In this week's episode of Louisiana Eats!, listen as two men with long-standing reputations in the New Orleans restaurant scene discuss their craft. Hear how Chef Greg Picolo has found redemption at a restaurant of the same name, and how sticking to tradition has kept Wayne Pierce's restaurant thriving for 120 years.
Send us your answer for this week's Culinary Quiz!
CRAWFISH BISQUE (Serves 8 – Yields 3 quarts)
4 lbs. boiled crawfish
3 lbs. crawfish tail meat
Stuffing
1/4 cup flour for roux
4 T oil
1/2 lg. onion finely chopped
1/2 lg. bell pepper finely chopped
1 stalk celery finely chopped
1 tsp. thyme
1 sm. can tomato paste
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1 T fresh parsley, chopped
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 cup chopped crayfish tails
1 stick butter
1/2 cup flour for rolling heads
Make a dark roux with the flour and oil. Add onions, then bellpepper and celery, and cook until tender. Add tomato paste and chopped tails. Add seasonings and simmer on low flame 10 - 15 minutes. Add bread crumbs, parsley, green onions, and butter. Fill each head with stuffing. Roll in flour and bake for 15 minutes in a 300 degree oven. Set aside.
Crawfish Stock
Take all peelings from crawfish, onions, celery, green onions, etc. and cover with 1 gallon of water. Bring to a boil, and boil for 5 minutes. Strain and reserve stock.
Bisque
3/4 cup flour for roux
1/2 cup oil
1 onion finely chopped
1 bell pepper finely chopped
3 stalks celery finely chopped
3 qt. crawfish stock
3/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
2 cups crawfish tails
1 bunch green onion, thinly sliced
2 bay leaves
2 T thyme
Make a dark roux with the flour and oil. Add onions, then bell pepper and celery. Add rest of ingredients except garlic, crawfish tails and parsley. Simmer 30 minutes, then add garlic. Simmer 10 minutes, then add tails and parsley. Simmer 5 minutes and add more stock if necessary. Reheat stuffed heads in bisque. Serve over rice. Add 5 - 6 heads per bowl, and eat by scooping the stuff out of the heads and eating together with rice and bisque.
