Maque Choux Pasta Recipes

MAQUE CHOUX

Steps:

• Working with 1 corn cob at a time, set the ear of corn upright in a medium bowl. Shave the corn from the cob by slicing down the sides using the tip of a sharp chef's knife, holding the knife almost vertical. (This gives you neat tablets of corn that land squarely in the bowl and keeps the kernels from scattering all over the counter.) Using the back of the knife, scrape each cob to release all the nibs and the "milk" of the kernels into the bowl. Repeat with remaining ears of corn, then snap the cobs in half, and add them to the bowl.
• In a large, deep sauté pan, melt 3 tablespoons butter over medium heat until foaming. Add onion and celery, and season with 1 or 2 pinches of kosher salt. Stir constantly until softened and translucent but not browned, about 5 minutes.
• Add 2 tablespoons butter and the bell pepper, poblano and serrano, and stir constantly, adding another pinch of kosher salt, letting the butter melt and the peppers soften and become translucent, about 2 or 3 minutes. You will smell the peppers' sweetness and their mild capsaicin releasing.
• Add the final 3 tablespoons butter and the corn mixture from the bowl, cobs included, and another pinch of kosher salt. Stir constantly to coat with the butter and combine thoroughly.
• When everything starts to hiss and sound hot, but isn't cooking so hard as to take color, add 1/2 cup water and a healthy few grinds of black pepper, and cover the pan for a couple of minutes to steam/shallow braise the mixture.
• Remove the lid, and stir well, noticing the corn releasing its liquid and the kernels softening, and the cobs turning somewhat translucent, if however vague. You will notice a general softening and melding together. Return the lid, and let cook a few more minutes, noticing the water evaporating and the remaining liquid reducing and gaining some "body" and gloss. Discard the corn cobs, but do suck them before tossing - those buttery juices make a nice cook's treat.
• Taste for salt, and serve. It should be sweet, spicy, a bit wet and surprisingly complex, given the few ingredients and their ordinariness. If you want a smoky taste, add a good pinch of smoked paprika.

SUNNY'S SWEET QUICK KENNER MAQUE CHOUX

Steps:

• In a large pan with straight sides, add the bacon and cook over medium heat, rendering the fat until crispy, about 8 minutes. Add the onions, celery, bell pepper, butter and salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring, until the veggies are tender, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, garlic, corn and chicken stock. Stir and bring to a low simmer, then cook until everything is tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the yogurt and a generous amount of black pepper, more salt and cayenne pepper.
• Transfer to a platter and serve.

TASSO MAQUE CHOUX

Steps:

• In a large saute pan, over medium heat, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the Tasso and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the corn, onions and bell peppers. Season with salt and cayenne pepper. Saute for about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the corn is tender. Add the cream, stir, and remove from the heat.

CHICKEN AND SAUSAGE MAQUE CHOUX

Steps:

• Cut kernels off cobs and, working over a large bowl, scrape cobs with knife to extract all juices. Discard cobs. Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a heavy 8-qt. pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown sausage, transferring to a plate. Brown chicken in batches, transferring to another plate.
• Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from pot, then sauté onions, bell peppers, celery, thyme, cayenne, and salt to taste over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, 4 minutes. Add corn with juices and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and sausage.
• Nestle chicken into mixture and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through, about 40 minutes. If the maque choux is soupier than you like, simmer uncovered until juices are reduced. Stir in basil and season with salt and pepper.

SHRIMP AND SWEET CORN MAQUE CHOUX

Steps:

• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallot, red and green peppers, and green onion. Season with salt and pepper, and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.
• Add zucchini, sweet corn, water and 2 teaspoons Cajun or creole seasoning to the skillet. Cook until zucchini is tender, about 2 minutes. Add half and half, and stir. Turn off heat.
• Meanwhile, season shrimp with remaining 2 teaspoons Cajun or creole seasoning. Melt butter in a separate skillet and cook shrimp in four batches, about 2 minutes on each side, or until curled, pink and cooked all the way through. Do not overcook.
• Divide corn mixture between four plates. Top each plate with 5 cooked shrimp, and serve immediately.

CAJUN CORN AND BACON MAQUE CHOUX

Steps:

• Cut corn off the cobs by thinly slicing across the tops of the kernels; place in a medium bowl. Cut across the kernels again to release milk from the corn, add milk to bowl. Set aside.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and green pepper, cook until onion is transparent, about 5 to 8 minutes. Combine corn, tomatoes, and milk with the onion mixture. Reduce heat to medium low, and cook 20 minutes longer, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. Do not boil. Season with salt and cayenne pepper. Lower heat, cover skillet, and cook 5 to 10 minutes longer. Stir in green onions and bacon. Remove from heat and serve.

MAQUE CHOUX PASTA

Steps:

• Drain liquid from artichoke hearts into a large skillet; coarsely chop artichokes and set aside.
• Sauté onion, celery and garlic in artichoke heart liquid over medium-high heat for 5 minutes; add tomatoes and their liquid, olives and reserved artichoke hearts. Cook for another 3 minutes or until most of the excess liquid has cooked off.
• Stir in cooked noodles and fresh herbs; toss to coat. Season to taste with seasonings as desired. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.