Bayou Shrimp Creole Recipes

BAYOU SHRIMP CREOLE

Steps:

• In a large pot, heat the bacon grease and slowly add the flour, (whisking constantly so it does not burn) until the roux becomes golden brown, about 15 minutes.
• Add onion, bell pepper, and celery and stir until tender, about 20 minutes.
• Pour in the tomato sauce, tomatoes, and liquid from the tomatoes.
• Add the garlic, Tabasco, worcestershire, sugar, salt and pepper.
• Simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add the wine and reduce by half, another 15 minutes.
• Add stock, 1/2 cup at a time, at about 15-20 minute intervals, reducing and stirring, let the vegetables really cook down.
• Taste all along the way, re-season according to your tastes.
• I like to cook this sauce down about 2 hours and then add the shrimp but you can add the shrimp anytime after the first hour.
• As soon as the shrimp are pink, about 10 minutes, remove the pot from the heat.
• Add the green onions, and parsley and serve over rice.

SHRIMP CREOLE

Steps:

• Melt butter in a small Dutch oven over medium heat; add bell pepper and next 7 ingredients, and sauté 7 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in tomatoes; bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 20 minutes. Increase heat to medium. Add shrimp; cook, stirring occasionally, 4 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink. Remove and discard bay leaf. Serve immediately over rice in shallow bowls.

SHRIMP CREOLE

Steps:

• Make the optional Creole seasoning: Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir together. The seasoning makes about 1/4 cup; store it in a closed container in a cool, dry place.
• Toss the raw shrimp with 1 teaspoon Creole seasoning and set aside.
• In a Dutch oven or large, heavy skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Sprinkle the flour on top and stir constantly with a wooden spoon until a roux the color of peanut butter forms, about 10 minutes.
• Add the onion, celery and bell pepper, increase the heat to medium and cook until softened, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute.
• Stir in 1/3 cup water, then the tomato sauce, hot sauce (if using), sugar, thyme, oregano, basil, bay leaves, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and the remaining 1 teaspoon Creole seasoning. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes until thickened, stirring occasionally to make sure that the bottom doesn't burn. (If needed, add more water.)
• Once the stew has thickened, add the seasoned shrimp and simmer until opaque and cooked through, about 5 minutes, turning each piece halfway through the cooking time. Taste and adjust seasoning.
• Remove from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes, uncovered. Sprinkle with scallions and parsley, and serve over steamed rice.

CREOLE SHRIMP

Steps:

• Get the pan hot over a medium high flame, saute all ingredients, except flour, tomato paste and tomatoes, in the olive oil and butter until they begin to wilt. Add flour and tomato paste. Season with oregano, thyme, parsley. cayenne pepper, white pepper and black pepper.
• Saute all that until it begins to brown. After 5 minutes when it's quite brown, add the tomatoes. Stir in hot pepper sauce and Worcestershire, to taste. Add sugar and salt. Reduce heat and let the sauce simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Shrimp: In a pan over medium heat, saute shrimp in 1 tablespoon of whole butter. While the shrimp is cooking, splash it with white wine. Then add to taste, some chopped scallions, a pinch of parsley and a bit of cayenne pepper and paprika.
• After the shrimp is almost ready, add it to the sauce for 3 to 4 minutes. so the Creole flavor cooks into the shrimp. Prepare the serving plates with cooked rice. Ladle the shrimp and Creole sauce into the rice beds, making sure there is lots of sauce. (Creole dishes feature "Lots of Gravy"). Garnish with sliced scallions (the green parts) for color and lemon wedges.

CREOLE SHRIMP PASTA

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, saute onion in butter and oil until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Sprinkle shrimp with seafood seasoning; add to pan., Stir in the cream, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, Cajun seasoning, hot sauce and pepper. Drain pasta, reserving 3/4 cup cooking liquid. Add reserved cooking liquid to pan. Cook and stir for 6-8 minutes or until shrimp turn pink. Add pasta and toss to coat.

SCALLOP AND SHRIMP CREOLE

Steps:

• To prepare:
• Peel the shrimp and save the shells for shrimp oil or shrimp broth or discard them. Pick up a shrimp and make a shallow slit down the middle of the length of the back to expose the black intestine. Slit all the shrimp and lift out the black intestine with the point of your paring knife, or flush it out under cold running water. If using defrosted cleaned shrimp, skip this step. Either way, dry the shrimp well with paper towels and set them aside.
• Clean the sea scallops by peeling and discarding the little strip of muscle that is attached to one side. (If your scallops are somewhat old the muscle strip may not be there.) Place the scallops in a colander and wash them well under cold running water - keep an eye open for specks of dark sand. Drain the scallops well and roll them in paper towels to dry them thoroughly. If the scallops are very large, cut them into 1/2" to 3/4" pieces (it's the thickness that determines the cooking time, not how wide they are). If you're using bay scallops, don't remove the tiny strip of muscle, it's tender. Either way, set the scallops aside while you're preparing the sauce.
• Put the bacon fat or vegetable oil into a skillet or stew-type pot that's wide and deep enough to hold all the seafood in about 2 layers with about 2 cups of sauce. Place the skillet over medium-high heat and add the onion, peppers, and celery. Cook the vegetables, adjusting the heat if necessary and stirring frequently, until they have become slightly wilted and a little brown, about 5 minutes. When the vegetables are ready, turn the heat to low and stir in the garlic, thyme, oregano, bay leaf and cayenne, cooking for about 30 seconds. Add the flour and continue to stir for about 1 minute more to cook away its raw taste. Add the tomatoes and their juice, and simmer the sauce, covered, over very low heat, about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are almost tender and it's very thick. Stir the sauce once or twice during this period. Season it generously with salt, pepper, and Tabasco, and set it aside. The sauce can be made 3 or 4 days in advance and refrigerated, but be sure to heat it through before continuing with the recipe.
• In a separate bowl, mix the scallops and shrimp together and season them well with salt and pepper. (If you're using bay scallops that are smaller than 1/2" in width, don't mix them with the shrimp at this point - see Note.) Remove about one half of the sauce to a bowl, spreading the remaining sauce evenly over the bottom of the skillet or pot. Distribute the seafood evenly over the sauce in the skillet and spread the reserved sauce over the top of the seafood - it won't completely cover. Place the skillet over medium-high heat and, without stirring, heat the mixture until you see 3 or 4 bubbles at the surface. Reduce the heat to very low, tightly cover the skillet, and gently simmer the mixture until the shrimp are white throughout and the scallops are slightly translucent in the center, 8 to 12 minutes, cutting one of each to check, if you're unsure. (If you prefer, you can bake the Creole in a preheated 325°F oven once the bubbles have come to the surface.)
• The Creole will be much thinner now from the shellfish juices. Taste it for seasoning and adjust it with salt, a generous amount of pepper, and additional Tabasco, if you like.
• To serve:
• Ladle the Creole into warm soup plates or bowls, discarding the bay leaf. Sprinkle each serving with chopped parsley and serve right away.
• Note: If you've reserved bay scallops, add them approximately halfway through the cooking (depending on their size), pressing them into the simmering mixture as best as possible. Cover the skillet again and finish cooking.

BAYOU SHRIMP

Steps:

• Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat. Mix in water, lemon juice, pepper, rosemary, paprika and Worcestershire sauce. Simmer sauce until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 3 minutes. Season with salt. Add shrimp to sauce. Cover pan; cook until shrimp turn pink and are just cooked through, about 4 minutes.
• Transfer shrimp and sauce to shallow bowls, dividing equally, and serve.

MICROWAVE BAYOU SHRIMP CREOLE

Steps:

• Combine oil, onion, celery, green pepper, garlic and thyme in 1-1/2 quart microwavable dish.
• Cover and cook on high 3 minutes or until tender-crisp.
• Add shrimp, stewed tomatoes and tomato paste.
• Cook on high 6 minutes, stirring halfway through or until shrimp is pink.
• Serve with rice, if desired.