Cajun food is one of my favorite regional foods. I love the spiciness of it and add in the seafood and smoky flavors...Yumm! I have not been to New Orleans yet but plan on going this summer and I can't wait to eat there!
Today, in honor of Mardis Gras, I am going to introduce you to a few of the meals I have made recently that have a cajun flare even if they may not be traditional. Most everyone knows about the popular dishes like jambalaya and gumbo, but those I had made before and wanted to try something new.
So, to get things started we have my take on red beans and rice but made a bit healthier with quinoa instead of rice.
The ingredients:
1 package Andouille sausage
1 bay leaf
3 cans of red kidney beans
2 celery ribs chopped.
3 cloves of garlic
1 green bell pepper
2 TBSP of parsley
1 sweet onion
3 C chicken stock
2 TBSP tomato paste
1tsp hot sauce
1 C basmati rice (or quinoa)
1.5 tsp Cajun seasoning
a pinch of salt and pepper
1 TBSP vegetable oil
The recipe:
In a large saucepan cook rice according to instructions and set aside.
Heat vegetable oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add sausage in batches to cook, stirring frequently until lightly browned and set aside.
Add onion, bell pepper, and celery and cook stirring occasionally until tender.
Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, and Cajun seasoning until fragrant.
Stir in the red beans, chicken stock, hot sauce, bay leaf, and sausage. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Uncover and continue to simmer until reduced an additional 15 minutes.
Using a wooden spoon, mash the beans until slightly thickened and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve topped with rice or quinoa.
Next, we have a Shrimp and Grits Casserole, I added some Cajun seasoning not called for in the recipe, traditionally I believe this is actually a low country regional recipe but it popular in Cajun cooking as well.
The ingredients:
2 TBSP butter
1 bunch scallions chopped
1/2 lrg red bell pepper chopped
1 jalapeno pepper seeded and finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic
1 can Rotel drained
2 C chicken broth
2/3 C quick cooking grits not instant
salt and pepper to taste
1lb large shrimp peeled, deveined, and cooked
2 slices of bacon cooked and crumbled
1 large egg beaten
1 1/4 C shredded gouda cheese
The recipe:
Preheat oven to 375.
Butter baking dish, 8x8 preferred.
Heat butter over med-hi heat in saucepan, add scallion and peppers cook until beginning to soften.
Stir in garlic, Rotel, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, and slowly stir in grits.
Stir continuously until returns to a boil, reduce heat to low, simmer, stirring occasionally for 5-7 min or until thickened. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Stir in shrimp, bacon, egg, and 1 C cheese and transfer to baking dish.
Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
Bake 30-35 minutes or until heated through and bubbling. Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.
Next, we have Creole eggs with andouille sausage. Creole cooking is also used a lot in Louisiana and is considered to be a bit more rustic. Funny enough I heard of this recipe when watching NCIS New Orleans and thought I'd find a recipe and it was surprisingly good! This is traditionally served on toast, but I was out of bread, so I used tortillas instead.
The ingredients:
1 TBSP butter
1/4 C chopped mushrooms
1 TBSP chopped onion
1TBSP chopped bell pepper
1 C crushed tomatoes (I used Rotel instead)
1 TBSP of capers (I did used thyme instead)
6 large eggs beaten
4 slices of toast
Cut up andouille sausage
The recipe:
Melt butter in a large skillet over med-hi heat.
Cook and stir mushrooms, onion, and bell pepper until soft.
Add tomatoes and capers/thyme and bring to a simmer.
Pour beaten eggs over the vegetable mixture. (I added 1tsp of creole seasoning to the eggs)
Cook and stir the eggs until scrambled and no longer runny.
Spoon mixture over toast. Serve with a side of cooked andouille sausage.
Next, we have a Cajun pizza. This was kind of made up the only thing I looked up was a sauce. Basically, just a pizza sauce with Cajun seasoning added.
The ingredients:
Pizza crust
pizza sauce
Cajun Seasoning
Whatever topping you like (I used andouille sausage diced, roasted red peppers, and pepperjack cheese)
The recipe:
Just mix the Cajun seasoning in with your sauce. Then layer your pizza I like a bit of sauce then a bit of cheese, then toppings, then topped with a bit more cheese. I also sprinkled more of the Cajun seasoning then all over the top.
Bake as directed for your crust.
And lastly, we have Cajun egg bites, I served these again with the cheese gouda grits with bacon. This is another twist on a classic to give it a Cajun flare.
The ingredients:
6 Eggs scrambled
andouille sausage diced
gouda or pepperjack cheese shredded
diced peppers
Rotel
Cajun seasoning
In a muffin pan, sprayed with oil, add the diced andouille, peppers, and a bit of Rotel. I then baked in the oven for about 5 minutes just to get things softened a bit. Then after it cooled a bit, I added the shredded cheese to the top.
Scramble your eggs and add in a bit of Cajun seasoning and salt and pepper. Top each muffin cup with the egg mixture and bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes.
For the grits, I just made them as instructed on the box but when done added some smoked gouda and crumbled bacon.
I hope these recipes gave you some ideas and also showed you that you can change everyday dishes into a flavor you love with a few changes here and there.
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