PRAWN ETOUFFEE
Photography by Graham Turner for The Guardian.
Etoufee is traditionally made with shrimp, but I’m more likely to have a bag of prawns in my freezer, so this is my version. The trick to a good etoufee is not to rush the sauce, which should be the consistency of a good gravy – not too thick, not too thin. Be generous with the salt and pepper, too.
Serves 4:
4 fat cloves of garlic, minced
1 onion, sliced finely
2 tbsp oil
200g frozen peppers, sliced
1 red chilli, sliced, or a pinch of the dried stuff
2 rounded tbsp flour
1 level tbsp paprika
500ml chicken stock
1 tbsp mixed dried herbs
400g chopped tomatoes
300g prawns
Fistful of parsley
Salt and black pepper
Saute the garlic and onion in the oil on a medium heat for a few minutes. Add the peppers and chilli and cook low and slow until it all start to soften.
Add the flour and paprika, and stir quickly to make a rough paste. Add a little splash of stock to loosen, and beat to smooth out any lumps. Repeat, adding enough stock to thin to a gravy consistency. The sauce will thicken as it heats, so don’t worry if you have a lot of stock left – you can add it later.
Stir in the mixed herbs, then add the tomatoes. Bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer, then leave for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the prawns and heat through.
Remove from the heat, add the parsley and generously season. Serve with rice.
Jack Monroe. Twitter: @MsJackMonroe. Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/agirlcalledjack
Published in G2 magazine for the Guardian, May 2014. Photography by Graham Turner for The Guardian.
Categories: Blog, FISH, Guardian Food, Recipes & Food
The Guardian photographer threw in the lemons for effect…how much does that change the cost per serving, and/or the taste.
I have been obsessed with Cajun and Creole food and culture for a couple of decades now, going as far as to have a watercolour graphic of the different shades of roux next to my stove . Very happy to see you branching out into this often very economical cuisine very much founded upon what you could trap,forage, grow and buy seasonally.
I tend to make my roux separately to the rest of the process which gives excellent control over the degree of browning you require.
I cook the ‘trinity’ mirepoix separately too – onions ,bell peppers and celery. If I don’t have one of these in my fridge then they substitute well.
I am going to try your version Jack – thank you 🙂
Mmmm this looks really tasty, love anything with prawns. Thanks Jack you are a star! x
Hi, what are “dried mixed herbs”? Thanks for clarifying – you clearly don’t want to use a provencal mix as that would make it taste, well, as if it came from Provence! 🙂
From a pack in my cupboard – thyme, oregano, marjoram, parsley, sage and basil. But have an experiment – what herbs do you like?
Hi Jack, that sounds lovely. Can you think of a spice I could use instead of paprika as my little girl is allergic to paprika and oregano and she would love this. Thanks in advance (and I loved your foodtube video).
Hi Jenny
maybe a teaspoon of tomato paste plus the merest drop of red/green Tabasco (if your daughter tolerates it)? Or just up the RED peppers? A tablespoon of red pepper paste (ajvar, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ajvar)?
good luck
r
Thanks Regine, I’ll give those ideas a try.
Just made this for supper – delicious!
Is this made using fresh or canned tomatoes? Roughly how much does a fresh pepper weigh, I don’t like the texture of frozen ones.
Do you defrost the prawns first?