Get cookin'

Etouffee on the stove.
Crawfish to be added.
Hard at work!
This morning we worked in teams of 3-4 to prepare our own lunch at the cooking classrooms of the University of Louisiana Lafayette.  We prepared four dishes fried eggplant with tasso cream sauce, broiled catfish topped with crawfish etoufee, shrimp and tasso corn maque choux and chocolate pecan pie.  Chef Becky Dubois who teaches at the University walked us through each recipe and then set us to work.  In the process, which felt busy but pretty relaxed, we were introduced to many general cooking concepts as well as some Louisiana specific foods.  We made a roux (a basic sauce), etoufee, a smothering or gravy and maque choux which was a dish influenced by the Indians who once lived in the area.  We worked with tasso, a smoked pork shoulder, crawfish, peppers, onions, mushrooms, corn and lots of butter!

 

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