Cajun News

Cajun Articles, news and recipes

Cajun cuisine is the style of cooking named for the French-speaking Acadian or “Cajun” immigrants deported by the British from Acadia in Canada to the Acadiana region of Louisiana, USA. It is what could be called a rustic cuisine — locally available ingredients predominate, and preparation is simple. An authentic Cajun meal is usually a three-pot affair, with one pot dedicated to the main dish, one dedicated to steamed rice, special made sausages, or some other seafood dish, and the third containing whatever vegetable is plentiful or available. Ground Cayenne & Fresh Black Pepper are used often.

The aromatic vegetables bell pepper (poivron), onion, and celery are called by some chefs the holy trinity of Creole and Cajun cuisines. Roughly diced and combined in cooking, the method is similar to the use of the mire poix in traditional French cuisine — which blends roughly diced onion, celery, and carrot. Characteristic aromatics for the Cajun version may also include parsley, bay leaf, green onions, and dried cayenne pepper.

Boudin

Boudin also spelled “boudain” is a type of sausage made from pork, pork liver, rice, garlic, green onions, and other spices. It is widely available by the link or pound from butcher shops. Boudin is usually made daily as it doesn’t keep well for very long, even when frozen. Boudin is typically stuffed in a natural casing and has a softer consistency than other, better-known, sausage varieties. It is usually served with side dishes such as rice dressing, maque choux or bread. Boudin balls are commonly served in southern Louisiana restaurants and are made by taking the boudin out of the case and frying it in spherical form.

Gumbo

High on the list of favorites of Cajun cooking are the soups called gumbos. Contrary to non-Cajun, or Continental, beliefs, gumbo does not mean simply “everything in the pot”. Gumbo exemplifies the influence of African and Native American food cultures on Cajun cuisine. The word originally meant okra, which is a word brought to the region from western Africa. Okra, which can be one of the principal ingredient gumbo recipes, is used as a thickening agent and for its distinct vegetable flavour.

A filé gumbo is thickened with sassafras leaves after the stew has finished cooking, a practice borrowed from the Choctaw Indians. The backbone of a gumbo is roux of which there are two variations: acadian, a golden brown roux, and creole, a dark roux, which is made of flour, toasted until well-browned, and fat or oil. The classic gumbo is made with chicken and the Cajun sausage called andouille, pronounced {ann-doo-wee}, but the ingredients vary according to what is available.

Jambalaya

Another classic Cajun dish is jambalaya. The only certain thing that can be said about a jambalaya is that it contains rice, some sort of meat and almost anything else. Usually, however, one will find green peppers, onions, celery and hot chili peppers. Anything else is optional.

Crawfish boil

The crawfish boil is a celebratory event where Cajuns boil crawfish, potatoes, onions and corn over large propane cookers. Lemons and small muslin bags containing a mixture of bay leaves, mustard seeds, cayenne pepper and other spices, commonly known as “crab boil” or “crawfish boil” are added to the water for seasoning. The results are then dumped onto large, newspaper-draped tables and in some areas covered in spice blends, such as Zatarain’s, Louisiana Fish Fry or Tony Chachere’s. Also, Cocktail sauce, mayonnaise and hot sauce sometimes used. The seafood is scooped onto large trays or plates and eaten by hand. During times when crawfish are not abundant, shrimp and crabs are prepared and served in the same manner.

Attendees are encouraged to “suck the head” of a crawfish by separating the abdomen of the crustacean and sucking out the abdominal fat/juices. Often, newcomers to the crawfish boil or those unfamiliar with the traditions are jokingly warned “not to eat the dead ones”. This comes from the common belief that when live crawfish are boiled, their tails curl beneath themselves, but when dead crawfish are boiled, their tails are straight and limp. Seafood boils with crabs and shrimp are also popular.

Boucherie

The traditional pig-slaughtering party, or Boucherie, where Cajuns gather to socialize, play music, dance, and preserve meat does still occur in some rural communities and individual farms, but the use of every last bit of meat, including organs and variety cuts in sausages such as ‘boudin’ (never correctly spelled boudain) and the inaccessible bits in the head as head cheese is not still a necessity

____________________________________________________________________
If you require a high quality printout of this article, just click on the printer symbol next to ’Share and enjoy’, and we will do the rest.

Get the best website builder available anywhere –SBI! Lick here for more information

Return from cajun to Home Page

If you want to increase your site popularity and gain thousands of visitors – check out these sites THEY ARE FREE. Spanishchef more than doubled its ‘New Visitors’ last month simply by signing up to these sites: