Cajun Crawfish Étouffée
Crawfish étouffée (pronounced AY-too-FAY) is a Louisiana dish of crawfish tails smothered in a rich butter roux sauce made with the Cajun holy trinity — onion, bell pepper, and celery — and served over white rice. It’s a staple of both Cajun and Creole cooking, born in the bayou country of South Louisiana.
What is Étouffée?
Ètouffée is a French word meaning “smothered”. Smothering is a technique popular in cajun and creole cooking that usually involves browning meat, sautéing vegetables, then cooking it all down together in a liquid until a stew forms. Dishes like smothered chicken and smothered green beans are popular in Louisiana cooking.
Ètouffée is a specific style of smothered dish made with a peanut butter roux, the cajun holy trinity, chicken or seafood stock, and either shrimp, crawfish, or chicken. The result is a stew with a flavorful thick gravy that is served over rice. Some recipes for étouffée use a roux, and some don’t. The cajun version of étouffée does not include tomatoes, but the creole version often does. If you’re not a fan of crawfish, try Chicken Ètouffée!
Lagniappe
Lagniappe: LAN-yap – a little something extra
Crawfish Étouffée is a dish that blends the cultural influences of Cajun and Creole cooking. It started in the bayou regions of South Louisiana where crawfish were plentiful. Originally a home cooked meal, this dish started popping up on restaurant menus and exploded in popularity. Today, you’ll find it on the menu of most cajun country and New Orleans restaurants.
Étouffée vs Gumbo
While étouffée and gumbo are both classic cajun dishes, they are different. Gumbo and étouffée are both served over white rice, but étouffée is thicker. Both can be made with a roux, but gumbo is made with a dark brown roux with a deep rich flavor. Étouffée is sometimes made with a peanut butter colored roux, but some recipes don’t use a roux at all.
They both use the cajun holy trinity (onions, bell peppers, and celery) for flavoring. Étouffée is usually made with shrimp, crawfish, or sometimes chicken. Gumbo can be made with chicken and sausage, okra, or seafood.
Crawfish Season & Where to Buy
An online search will tell you crawfish season in Louisiana is from November through July. But take it from a real Louisiana girl, true crawfish season is really more from late February through May. That’s when the crawfish are biggest, fattest, and most plentiful. After May, the crawfish tend to get too big with harder shells making them more difficult to peel. I can promise you, locals are not eating crawfish in November, December or July.
In Louisiana, crawfish boils are a highly anticipated event and are popular to have during Lent or for Easter, Good Friday, and graduation parties. It’s about more than just the crawfish. It’s the ritual of standing around newspaper covered tables, catching up with your family and friends, while you peel, eat, and have a beer.
Where to buy crawfish tails:
- After a crawfish boil: Peel the tails and use them fresh or freeze in a zip-lock bag. This gives you the best flavor.
- Frozen at the grocery store: Look for the flat pack of Louisiana crawfish tails in the freezer section (usually near the seafood). Always check the label, you want Louisiana crawfish, not imported. The label should say “Product of USA.”
- Order online: Companies like Louisiana Crawfish Co. ship fresh and frozen Louisiana crawfish tails nationwide during the season.
If you’re using frozen tails, my trick is adding a few drops of liquid crab boil to bring back that crawfish boil flavor. See the Tips section below.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Butter – Étouffée has a peanut butter roux made with butter and flour. Butter is preferred here over oil for the flavor. Save the oil for the dark gumbo roux.
- Trinity – The cajun trinity consists of yellow onion, green bell pepper, and celery. It’s the foundation of many cajun dishes like this one. I sometimes substitute for a red pepper.
- Stock – You can make this with chicken stock, but if you make homemade seafood stock or shrimp stock that would make it even better.
- Crawfish tails – Save your leftover crawfish boil tails or use frozen tails. Make sure the label says made in Louisiana. If you can’t get crawfish in your area, try substituting for crab, shrimp, or langostinos.
- Cajun or Creole seasoning – Use your favorite or make your own homemade cajun seasoning.
- White rice – Étouffée is traditionally served over fluffy white rice.
- Liquid crab boil – This is optional, but if using frozen crawfish tails from the grocery store, the crab boil will give it that tasty crawfish boil flavor. You can find liquid crab boil on the seasoning aisle or online.
See the recipe card below for the complete list of ingredients and measurements.
How to Make Crawfish Étouffée
- Melt butter and whisk in flour. Cook while stirring constantly until you get a peanut butter roux. For roux help, see my Complete Guide to Making Roux.
- Add in onion, bell pepper, celery, and green onions. Sauté until softened then add garlic.
- Whisk in warmed stock to stir out the lumps, then simmer.
- Add crawfish, crab boil, parsley, and cajun seasoning. Simmer until thickened.
- Serve hot over white rice and top with more fresh green onions.
Lauren’s Tips
- Keep stirring the roux constantly, scraping down the sides, so it doesn’t burn.
- Warm the broth before whisking it into the roux to avoid breaking it.
- Liquid crab boil is optional, but if you’re using frozen crawfish, a few drops of this can help them get that crawfish boil flavor.
- Use real Louisiana crawfish, as they will have the best flavor! Be sure to read the package.
- To make a creole version with tomatoes: reduce the stock to 1 ½ cups add a 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes right after adding the warmed stock.
What to Serve with Étouffée
Crawfish étouffée is traditionally served over a big scoop of fluffy white rice, and that’s really all you need. But if you’re putting together a full Louisiana spread, here’s how we do it:
- French bread – You need something to soak up that sauce. A crusty loaf of French bread is the move. In New Orleans, we mean Leidenheimer’s. Anywhere else, just get the crustiest loaf you can find.
- A simple green salad – Something light to balance the richness.
- Corn on the cob or potato wedges – If you want to lean into the Louisiana vibe, this mirrors what you’d see alongside a crawfish boil.
- Hot sauce on the table – Crystal or Tabasco. Non-negotiable.
Storage & Make Ahead
- Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days in an airtight container.
- Freeze without rice for up to 3 months. Let cool completely before transferring to a freezer safe container.
- Reheat on the stove over medium-low heat, adding a splash of stock or water to loosen it back up. Don’t microwave if you can help it, it can make the crawfish rubbery.
- Make ahead: You can chop the vegetables a day in advance. The full étouffée also reheats beautifully, so making it a day ahead actually works great for dinner parties.
Frequently Asked Questions
The main difference is tomatoes. Cajun étouffée is made without tomatoes and relies purely on the roux, the holy trinity, and butter for flavor. Creole étouffée often includes tomatoes, which adds a slight tanginess and a darker color. Both versions are common in Louisiana.
Yes, absolutely. Most people outside of Louisiana use frozen crawfish tails, and it works great. Look for Louisiana-brand frozen tails at the grocery store. The label should say “Product of USA.” If the tails lack that crawfish-boil flavor, add a few drops of liquid crab boil to the dish. That’s my go-to trick to bring frozen tails to life.
Yes, and it’s delicious. Use peeled and deveined shrimp in the same quantity. Add them at the end of cooking and simmer just 5–7 minutes until they’re pink and cooked through. Don’t let them go longer or they’ll get tough. The sauce base is exactly the same.
More Crawfish Recipes
If you’ve got extra crawfish tails, don’t let them go to waste. Here are a few of my favorite ways to use them:
- Crawfish Monica — The legendary Jazz Fest pasta dish, made at home. If you’ve ever stood in line for it at the festival, you know this one’s worth it.
- Fried Crawfish Tails — Simple, crispy, and dangerous to make because you’ll eat half of them before they make it to the plate.
- Crawfish Cream Sauce — A rich, silky sauce that goes over pasta, fish, or literally whatever you want to put it on.
- Crawfish Bread — Another Jazz Fest staple. Cheesy, rich, and utterly addictive. A crowd favorite whenever I make it.
See all the leftover crawfish recipes.
Did you enjoy this recipe? Leave me a comment and let me know! Share with your friends on Facebook and Pinterest 🙂
Authentic Crawfish Étouffée Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- 1 large onion
- 1 bell pepper (can do half red, half green)
- 1 stalk celery
- 5 green onions
- 5 cloves garlic
- 2 ½ cups chicken or seafood stock (warmed)
- 1 pound crawfish tails
- 2-3 teaspoons cajun seasoning
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
- ⅛ teaspoon crab boil (optional)
- Cooked white rice for serving
Instructions
- PREP: Finely chop onion, bell peppers, celery, green onions, and parsley. Mince garlic. Measure out other ingredients.1 large onion, 1 bell pepper, 1 stalk celery, 5 green onions, 5 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
- ROUX: Heat a large skillet over medium heat then melt butter. Whisk flour into the butter. It will be foamy at first. Cook while stirring constantly for about 5-10 minutes, or until the roux turns to a peanut butter color.* It should smell toasted and nutty.6 tablespoons unsalted butter, ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- SAUTÉ: Add in onions, bell peppers, celery, half the green onions, and a pinch of salt to the roux. Mix together and sauté for about 10 minutes until vegetables are softening. Stir and scrape the bottom frequently so nothing sticks. Add in garlic and cook for about 1 minute while stirring.
- SIMMER: Slowly whisk in warmed* broth until it is all incorporated and there are no remaining lumps of flour. Bring up to a simmer then cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.2 ½ cups chicken or seafood stock
- FINISH: Next add crawfish with the juices, crab boil (if using), parsley, and cajun seasoning. Simmer for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the sauce has thickened to desired consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.1 pound crawfish tails, 2-3 teaspoons cajun seasoning, ⅛ teaspoon crab boil
- SERVE: Serve over rice and top with remaining green onions.
Notes
- *Keep stirring the roux constantly, being sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of the pan to keep all the flour moving so it doesn’t burn. You may see some darker specks turning brown – this is the milk solids browning. This is fine as long as they are not turning black. Black spots means a burnt roux and you have to start over.
- *Its important to heat the broth before adding it in. Cold broth can cause a hot roux to break.
- Add tomatoes – If you want tomatoes, reduce the stock to 1 ½ cups and add a 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes right after adding the warmed stock.
- Make your own seafood stock and cajun seasoning for the best flavor.
- See this tutorial on perfectly cooked white rice.
- Store in the fridge for 3 days and the freezer for 3 months.
Equipment
- Large skillet
Nutrition
Meet Lauren
I’m the blogger, recipe developer, food photographer, and otherwise food obsessed gal behind Lauren From Scratch. I was born and raised in New Orleans and lived in South Louisiana most of my life. Growing up around Cajun country has instilled a love of food that runs deep in my bones. I am passionate about food and teaching you how to make mouth-watering Louisiana inspired dishes in your own kitchen — and most recently, on Food Network’s 100 Cooks!
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If I have roux already made would I use about 6 tablespoons?
Hey Stacey, when using pre-made roux in a recipe, use the same amount as flour is called for. So in this case, replace 1/3 of flour with 1/3 cup of roux. Reduce the butter to about 1-2 tablespoons. But keep in mind étouffée uses a light brown or peanut butter color roux, not a dark roux.
Love your crawfish your ettouffee recipe. What about using shrimp? Can you do this same recipe but with shrimp?? I am from Louisiana and grew up along Bayou Lafourche.
Thanks, Beryl! Yes, you can definitely use shrimp too. Make the recipe the same way. Add the peeled and deveined shrimp in and simmer for 5-10 minutes until they are just cooked through.
Tried this recipe and it was very good!!! Easy to follow directions. Will make again.
So glad you liked it!
Had leftover crawfish from a neighborhood boil last night so decided to try this recipe. The directions were very easy to follow and it turned out delicious served over rice. Will definitely make this again but will have my husband pick the crawfish meat for me…certainly the hardest part.
Hey Leah, so happy you liked it! And yes, get husband on crawfish peeling duty 😆
Tried recipe it was very delicious,Will make it again.
Thanks Jesse!
This was my first time making Crawfish Étouffée from scratch and it came out perfect with this recipe.
Love to hear that David! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment.