Cajun Seafood Au Gratin
This recipe comes from Alex Patouts Seafood Kitchen. It is easy to prepare, takes only a few minutes, and is rich and delicious. I often make it for company and it's one of my son's favorite foods. You can serve it over rice, pasta, or with crusty bread. It can be served as an appetizer or a main dish.
This recipe comes from Alex Patouts Seafood Kitchen. It is easy to prepare, takes only a few minutes, and is rich and delicious. I often make it for company and it's one of my son's favorite foods. You can serve it over rice, pasta, or with crusty bread. It can be served as an appetizer or a main dish.
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons black pepper ground
- 1 cup green onion chopped
- 1 pint heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme or 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground red pepper
- 1 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 cup chopped parsley
- 1/2 pound medium shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1/2 pound crayfish tail
- 1/2 pound lump crabmeat or white crab meat (we use blue crab)
- 1 1/2 cups cheese grated (jack, swiss, and american work well)
- 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese grated
- Carbohydrate 5.28007291669476 g
- Cholesterol 197.151333333333 mg
- Fat 27.0937583333401 g
- Fiber 1.46866665787704 g
- Protein 34.8343137500334 g
- Saturated Fat 16.3362866250004 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (213g)
- Sodium 799.042666666709 mg
- Sugar 3.81140625881772 g
- Trans Fat 1.78782141666796 g
- Calories 404 calories
Step-by-step
- Pour the cream into a large heavy skillet or saucepan and place over medium-high heat.
- The cream will rise before it begins to boil; just stir it to keep it from overflowing.
- Once it begins to simmer, add the herbs, salt, peppers, green onions, and parsley, and continue to let simmer until it becomes thick, 7-8 minutes.
- Stir in the shrimp and let cook 3-4 minutes, then add the crawfish.
- Mix well and let cook 2-3 minutes.
- Gently fold in the crab meat (you paid a premium price for it, so don?t destroy those precious lumps).
- Let cook 2-3 minutes more, then add the 1-1/2 cups cheese and stir gently until it has melted.
- Preheat the broiler.
- Pour the hot seafood mixture into a large ovenproof dish or individual ramekins.
- Sprinkle the top with the Parmesan cheese and glaze under the broiler.
- Serve immediately.
Bubbly, golden cheese gives way to a velvety cream reduction housing tender morsels of shrimp, crawfish, and intact lumps of crabmeat. Achieving the ideal texture requires strict adherence to heat management and ingredient timing in the pan.
- Use a heavy-bottomed skillet for the heavy cream to distribute medium-high heat evenly and prevent scorching during the 7 to 8 minute reduction phase.
- Add shrimp and crawfish sequentially based on density; shrimp require 3 to 4 minutes to firm up, while delicate crawfish tails need only 2 to 3 minutes.
- Fold the lump crabmeat in last with a rubber spatula, utilizing a gentle turnover motion to keep the expensive lumps from breaking apart into shreds.
- Watch the broiler constantly during the final 1 to 2 minute glazing step because aged Parmesan can burn rapidly once exposed to direct overhead infrared heat elements.
Refrigerate any surplus portions in an airtight container within two hours, consuming within 48 hours while noting that reheating gently on the stovetop preserves the seafood texture better than microwave methods.
