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Whether you make this shrimp étouffée on a normal weekend or come across it searching for a New Orleans recipe to make over Mardi Gras, I’ll explain how to make it step-by-step.
What is Étouffée?
Étouffée literally means “smothered” and this recipe is smothered in a simmering sauce with a lid and with the holy trinity of vegetables: onions, celery, and bell pepper. Shrimp étouffée means smothered shrimp in a thick sauce and that’s exactly what you’ll get.
And let me tell you that in New Orleans, we love our sauces and smothered dishes in our holy trinity of vegetables. The difference between étouffée and jambalaya is that étouffée is the main dish served with plain white rice, while New Orleans Jambalaya is a rice dish without any sauce.
Étouffée Base
The base for this shrimp étouffée, and many traditional New Orleans recipes, is a roux. A roux is a thick starter of flour and oil to give the stew a thick texture from the beginning.
In other words, you make a roux (base) and once it’s thick you add the vegetables and ingredients. Unlike thickening a stew or soup at the end by adding corn starch mixed in water like in other traditional recipes.
Ingredients
The stars of this stew are shrimp (peeled and deveined) and white rice. Canola oil and flour are essential to make the roux, the base of this recipe. The veggies you’ll use are onion, celery, bell pepper, garlic, and green onion; plus herbs and spices: fresh or dried thyme, cayenne pepper, and smoked paprika. You’ll also need canned diced tomatoes, seafood stock or vegetable stock, butter, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco.
Make Stock with Shrimp Shells
If you bought fresh shrimp, don’t throw out the shells and heads after you peel them. Simmer them for 10 minutes with 4 cups of liquid, the skin from your onion and stems from your celery and peppers, and a pinch of salt. Strain it through a strainer and now you have the 4 cups needed to make your shrimp étouffée.
How to Make Shrimp Étouffée
Check out the video below and the steps to learn how to make this authentic New Orleans Shrimp Étouffée recipe:
- Make the roux
In a large saucepan with a lid or 5qt dutch oven, heat up the oil. Whisk the flour into the hot oil. Stirring slowly and constantly, for about 15 minutes, until the roux is a copper brown color, chocolate-like, and it has thickened. - Add veggies & season it up
Add the onions, celery, and bell peppers and continue to stir for 4 to 5 minutes, until they've softened. Add the seasonings, and stir to combine. - Cook the rice
While the veggies are cooking, cook some rice so it's ready when it's time to serve. - Add the liquids and simmer
Add the diced tomatoes and stock. Once boiling, let it simmer for 7 to 10 minutes, stirring often so the sauce doesn't stick to the pan. - Bring on the shrimp
Add the butter, shrimp, chopped green onions, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, and stir. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until the shrimp are pink and cooked through.
Success Tips for the Best Shrimp Étouffée
Don't be fooled by internet recipes claiming that a slow cooker or instant pot étouffée is authentic: it is not. There's a reason the South is known for its cooking: the recipes, while simple, do require a little labor of love. Here are a few tips to help you make this meal better than the one you ate in that restaurant in New Orleans:
Pay attention to your roux (the starter)
A roux will require ten minutes of supervised stirring, so don't step away. The recipe below includes descriptive color stages. For a full explanation of making a roux, check out my Chicken Gumbo Recipe.
Don’t make substitutions
There’s a reason the ingredients are simple: they work! The only substitute would be using an all-purpose gluten-free flour to make your roux if you want to make this recipe gluten-free.
The larger the shrimp, the better
I recommend medium or larger shrimp for this étouffée recipe; and while fresh is usually best, if frozen is all you have available, make it!
Stick to seafood stock or vegetable stock
This recipe is a seafood recipe so if you're buying pre-made stock or broth at the store, do not use beef or chicken.
What to Serve with Cajun Shrimp Étouffée
This Cajun Shrimp Étouffée is able to stand alone as the main dish. However, if you want to make a full New Orleans-inspired meal, you can also make this Zesty Louisiana Creole Slaw, New Orleans Muffuletta Sandwich, and Loaded Deviled Eggs.
Real New Orleans Shrimp Étouffée
Watch how it’s made:
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- ½ red bell pepper, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, about 2 sprigs or, ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 15 oz can petite diced tomatoes, drained
- 4 cups seafood stock or vegetable stock
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 ½ lbs shrimp, peeled & deveined*
- 2 green onions, chopped
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon Tabasco, optional
- 3 cups cooked white rice
Instructions
Make the roux:
- In a large saucepan with a lid or 5-qt Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat. Whisk the flour into the hot oil. Stirring slowly and constantly, for about 15 minutes, until the roux is a copper brown color, chocolate-like, and it has thickened.
Cook the étouffée:
- Add the onions, celery, bell peppers, and garlic, and continue to stir for 4 to 5 minutes, until they've softened. Add the thyme, cayenne pepper, and paprika, and stir to combine. While the veggies are cooking, it's a great time to cook some rice so it's ready when it's time to serve it up.
- Add the diced tomatoes and stock, increase the heat to medium-high heat, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 7 to 10 minutes, stirring often so the sauce doesn’t stick to the pan.
- Add the butter, shrimp, chopped green onions, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, and stir. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until the shrimp are pink and cooked through. Turn off the heat and move the saucepan away from the heat.
- Serve over cooked rice.
Notes
- I recommend making your own stock with shrimp heads and peels for the most authentic flavor.
- Make light seafood stock by placing the shrimp peels and heads in a stock pot with ½ an onion, pinch of pepper and 4 cups of water. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 15 minutes. Pour the stock through a mesh strainer into a large bowl and reserve it for the recipe.
- You can use vegetable oil, duck fat, bacon fat, or lard to make a roux. Margarine is not an option for this!
KC says
This is a great authentic recipe.