Crawfish And Cream Over Pasta Recipes

ORIGINAL CRAWFISH OR SHRIMP MONICA

Steps:

• 1. Cook pasta in salt water according to the directions on the package. Drain, then rinse under cool water to stop the cooking. Drain again, thoroughly.
• 2. Melt the butter in a large skillet and saute onions and garlic for 3 minutes.
• 3. *If using raw shrimp, add them with the onions and garlic at the beginning.
• 4. Add the crawfish and half-and-half, sauté until bubbly.
• 5. Add Creole seasoning - 1 big pinch then taste. Add more as needed but tasting before adding the next pinch until you think it's right. Add salt if needed. If you've boiled your own crawfish add the crawfish fat to the mixture as well.
• 6. Cook for 5 - 10 minutes over medium heat until the sauce thickens.
• 7. Add the pasta to the pot and toss well. You may not need to use all of the pasta. (I double the recipe when using the whole pound of pasta.) Let it sit for about 10 minutes over very low heat, stirring often.
• 8. Serve immediately, with lots of French bread and a nice white wine. Buon Appetito!
• 9. *COOKS NOTE: Most of the time I use half Heavy Cream and half - Half and Half, or in other words 1 1/3 cups heavy cream and 2/3 cups milk. I generally buy Heavy Cream because it can be cut with milk to make Half and Half. The sauce seems to thicken better than straight Half and Half but using all Heavy Cream is too thick.
• 10. *Tip: The sauce is excellent over Redfish on da Half Shell or grilled filets - I call it Redfish Monica.
• 11. *Options: If you don't have crawfish, use bay scallops, shrimp, lump crabmeat (add last and fold in gently).

CRAWFISH AND PASTA

Steps:

• In a large skillet, heat oil. Add the onion, peppers, and celery and cook for 5 to 6 minutes or until soft. Add the cayenne pepper, oregano, and salt, and cook for 2 minutes. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute, toasting the flour to a light brown color. Add the hot water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer mixture for 10 minutes.
• As sauce simmers, cook the pasta, timing pasta to finish cooking at the same time as the sauce. Add the crawfish to sauce, and continue simmering for 5 minutes. Add the green onions and cook for 1 minute more. Add cream and heat gently. Spoon crawfish mixture over orzo pasta in large pasta dishes.

LOUISIANA CRAWFISH YA-YA PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly-salted water to a rolling boil; stir in the egg noodles and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through but is still firm to the bite, about 5 minutes. Drain well in a colander set in the sink.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the chopped onion, green pepper, garlic, and parsley. Cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the crawfish tails and Cajun seasoning; simmer 5 minutes longer.
• Pour in the heavy cream, mushrooms, and 1/2 cup of Cheddar cheese; stir until the cheese has melted. Toss the pasta with the crawfish sauce and green onions; sprinkle with the remaining Cheddar cheese.

CREAMY CRAWFISH PASTA

Steps:

• Add butter to a Dutch oven, preferably cast iron, set over medium-high heat.
• Add onion, green pepper and celery. Cook until onion is opaque.
• Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add crawfish and cook until heated through.
• Add cream and jalapeno cream cheese and cook until heated through and cream cheese is melted. Add your favorite Cajun seasoning, to taste. Stir in the parmesan to incorporate.
• Add prepared pasta and heat through. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until sauce is slightly thickened.
• Garnish with additional parmesan cheese.

RICHARD AND SUZANNE'S LOUISIANA CRAWFISH PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes; drain.
• While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir the garlic in the butter 1 to 2 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Stir in the yellow onion and 1/2 tablespoon red pepper flakes; cook until the yellow onion becomes translucent. Add the crawfish tails; cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring continually; transfer the crawfish to a bowl, leaving as many onions as possible in the skillet.
• Pour the heavy cream into the skillet and bring to a boil; reduce heat to low, and simmer until thickened. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 tablespoon red pepper flakes into the cream, return the crawfish to the sauce and simmer 2 to 3 minutes. Serve sauce over the drained pasta; garnish with chopped green onion.