Crawfish Bisque Foamheart

[chef willie]

Well, I'm late to this party but this posting is a tutorial in itself for sure. I'm a big fan of the crawdad myself and love a good Etouffee, even using shrimp which is more readily available up here in the PNW. I feel very fortunate to have been able to visit New Orleans on 4 occasions for vacations, allowing me to just scratch the surface of the food scene. Great posting Kevin.....you are stimulating many others to try their hand at cookin' Cajun......regards, Willie

 

[foamheart]

Yes Kevin Yabbies. Man that takes me back.Caught plenty back home on the Murrumbidgee River. We just boiled them.On the coast it's catching prawns in nets at night with head lamps.
I like the natural fusion of different kitchens involved in your style of cooking. Obviously there is a French influence to start. Way down here I am drawn to Malaysian( Chinese,Indian,Malay) Mauritian( French,Indian,African) & other styles that have a touch of Portuguese ,Sri Lanka for instance.

Yabbies, crawfish, crawdads, etc.... its still good eating to me.

"Hot funk, cool punk, even if it's old junk It's still rock and roll to me"   Hehehehe.......
 

 
Thanks for posting the stuffing, Foamheart. 

No problem, its just pretty standard where I live. I am sure someone has a written down recipe but don't think I have ever seen one. Well one I would use anyway.

 

[foamheart]

 
Looks good! I do the shells trick with shrimp, too - I made a big batch when I visited my sister in Patterson, on Bayou Teche.

And I make my cornbread as muffins, too.

Edited to add, American crayfish are a major invasive pest in Scotland. They're wiping out the stoneflies that the trout depend on.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Uploads/Documents/FW-SignalCrayfish.pdf

I always made "shell stock", if I don't use it today it goes in the freezer. Now I underdstand why they didn't vote to suceed from the Britush Empire. They were saving their money to build a better stronger crawfish. You've got to apprceiate their thinking.

I love your direction, not Patterson right next to Morgan City or by the McDerrmott docks. Patterson on Bayou Teche!

 
Kevin, my favorite part of getting this dish at restaurants when I was still down there was the stuffed crawfish heads. They were always amazing. The only access I have to crawfish that's reasonably priced up here is in the freezer section at Walmart and I don't think I could bring myself to buy them. The meal and recipe look amazing, and thanks for posting it. You've given me an idea of a bisque I'd like to make with some of my Andouille. Cheers!

When I was living out west, in cowboy and oilman country the butcher at my local market ( yes, we were friends of course), ran me down in the store one day all excited. He lead me back to the counter and showed where he had some packaged boiled crawfish. There was a dozen to a container.  LOL... they were only like a dollar a piece. He was so excited he just knew I'd be thrilled.... LOL He had boiled them in a salt and vineagar water... Yuck!

Listen if you have never tryed it before, have you made a tasso cream sauce? Pop liked it so much he said you could put it on Labrador sh^t and could sell it all day long....LOL Grate the tasso, the shallots, a small bit of garlic if needed, heavy cream and reduce by half. Stuff a squash/zuchinni with any stuffing and put that crean sauce over it....ZOMG! And it makes outstanding creamed baby spinache!

It was my pleasure to post, I have learned so much here. If its stirred up those creative juices, I am happy!

 

[disco]

Great post.

Great thread.

Great Qview.

Great tutorial.

Cruel poster. We don't get crawfish up here.

Terrific looking dish, Foam.

Disco

 

[bad santa]

Outstanding !! 

Thanks for sharing all of it with us Foam

 

[crazymoon]

 Thanks Foam,Looks like a damn fine meal and was an excellent post for  Cajun cuisine !

 

[reinhard]

The thread caught my attention for sure.  Up here we have some good sized one's and we catch them when camping.  Put out a trap with some fishheads ect and let the trap set out overnight.  We dont get the amount you get down there but enough for a snack or two.  We just boil them in some crab boil seasoning and eat with butter camping.  This is a great thread worthy of points for sure.  Thanks Foam!!! Reinhard

 

[rob sicc]

This brings tears to my eyes.  I have an ex from New Orleans and this thread really made me miss New Orleans!

It's so hard to get mud bugs up in New jersey.

 

[foamheart]

 
Well, I'm late to this party but this posting is a tutorial in itself for sure. I'm a big fan of the crawdad myself and love a good Etouffee, even using shrimp which is more readily available up here in the PNW. I feel very fortunate to have been able to visit New Orleans on 4 occasions for vacations, allowing me to just scratch the surface of the food scene. Great posting Kevin.....you are stimulating many others to try their hand at cookin' Cajun......regards, Willie

Chef you are never late, there is no party without you!

Thank you sir, appreciate the compliment.

BTW

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/159001/crawfish-etouffee-foamheart

 

[foamheart]

 
Great post.

Great thread.

Great Qview.

Great tutorial.

Cruel poster. We don't get crawfish up here.

Terrific looking dish, Foam.

Disco

 Thank ye, thank ye, thank ye, thank ye, and take solice in the fact that we don't get that great syrup that you do, and thank you.

 I would send you some but when it hit the border and they inspected the package, I think we'd be in trouble. LOL

 

[foamheart]

 
Outstanding !! 

Thanks for sharing all of it with us Foam

Thank you, I enjoy sharing what little I know and its not very professional, but its how I learned.

You are always most welcome.

 

[Rafter H BBQ]

Damn Foam ! :drool I just ate

Thank you sir. I'll be sending requests for help with my snack stix soon..... so you hire out your sous chefs?

Haha, Foam.... Yeah, I've got some great helpers for sure ! I can send em down your way if ya send some of that Crawfish Bisque back with em ! :biggrin:

 

[foamheart]

 
 Thanks Foam,Looks like a damn fine meal and was an excellent post for  Cajun cuisine !

Thank you for the compliment. Its really good stuff.

 

[foamheart]

 
The thread caught my attention for sure.  Up here we have some good sized one's and we catch them when camping.  Put out a trap with some fishheads ect and let the trap set out overnight.  We dont get the amount you get down there but enough for a snack or two.  We just boil them in some crab boil seasoning and eat with butter camping.  This is a great thread worthy of points for sure.  Thanks Foam!!! Reinhard

Thank ye kindy my friend. We use canned dog food, just punch a lot of holes with an icepick or a can opener. Same with shrimp traps.

Dang sounds like you are a reincarned coonazz. Try throwing in some corn on the cob, new potatoes, onions, mushrooms, etc.... they absorb that taste, and are dang tastee! Makes the crawfish stretch futher too.

 

[foamheart]

 
This brings tears to my eyes.  I have an ex from New Orleans and this thread really made me miss New Orleans!

It's so hard to get mud bugs up in New jersey.

They are there I am sure, they are probably using tourist visa's.

We occassional let you foreigners come back south for refresher courses in good food. You're always welcome.

 

[foamheart]

Haha, Foam.... Yeah, I've got some great helpers for sure ! I can send em down your way if ya send some of that Crawfish Bisque back with em !

I note you didn't say you'd trade them for a pot of bisque. I see you included there return in that offer....... LOL

Good Dad

 

[leah elisheva]

Damn Foamheart!

Your posts are better than any cooking show out there!

So fantastic to see! I love it! Great job!

And all your step by step photos always make it so terrific to follow along with too!

Cheers! - Leah

 

[eman]

I remember back when the women would have a day to stuff da heads . They would do 400- 600 heads at a time and everyone would have 100 to take home for the freezer. Bisque was only done for company or special occasions.

 

[foamheart]

 
Damn Foamheart!

Your posts are better than any cooking show out there!

So fantastic to see! I love it! Great job!

And all your step by step photos always make it so terrific to follow along with too!

Cheers! - Leah

I would like to apploigize to you Leah. I wasn't iggnoring you, somehow I totally missed your posting. I even feel bad now saying thank you for your kind words.

Its a local thing, the Bisque, not being rude. Its communial, but I don't much see it done much anymore. People are too busy, crawfish are usually easily bought, no one crawfishs anymore, and to have 2 to 10 families together cooking, laughing, talking, eating, drinking and sometimes even dancing at someones house just ain't as common as it once was. Really sort of sad.

But Stuffed heads is stuffed heads.

 

[foamheart]

 
I remember back when the women would have a day to stuff da heads . They would do 400- 600 heads at a time and everyone would have 100 to take home for the freezer. Bisque was only done for company or special occasions.

I remember them too. I the past we'd have crawfish bisque for Easter. Now everyone has a crawfish boil when crawfish are available.

Its one of those times when experience and knowledge was everything, because you only did it once a year.

As for special occassions, it was sort of like when someone butchered.

That is one of the great things about here, people learning and practicing so its not a lost art.