Cooking Fish in Parchment Packets
Chef Meg teaches us how to make fish in parchment packets (poisson en papillote as the French would say). It’s a healthy, easy dinner that’s on the table in under 15 minutes. And even better, there’s almost no cleanup. This recipe uses Flounder or Sole.
Chef Brian Landry on Crawfish
Chef Brian Landry is the Executive Chef of Galatoire’s in New Orleans and Galatoire’s Bistro in Baton Rouge. Winner of the 2008 Louisiana Seafood Cook-Off and runner-up in the 2008 Great American Seafood Cook-Off. One of America’s brightest young chefs.
What is your preferred way of preparing crawfish?
My favorite way to eat crawfish is with friends at a crawfish boil with some Abita Beer, but I also love the Crawfish Maison we make at Galatoire’s. The already boiled tails are mixed into a creamy salad of capers, creole mustard, green onions and aioli.
How is cooking with crawfish different than cooking with shrimp?
The shell of a crawfish is much tougher than a shrimp shell. Typically the water that crawfish are boiled in is seasoned much more heavily with a spicy blend of seasonings including salt, cayenne pepper, and lemon. The crawfish are also typically allowed to soak in the seasoned water after being boiled for a longer time. When I boil crawfish at home, I typically bring the seasoned water to a boil and then add the crawfish. Once the water has returned to a boil with the crawfish in it, I then turn off the burner and allow the crawfish to soak for about twenty minutes.
Do you purge your crawfish (soak in salty water to remove impurities)?
Typically the crawfish are allowed to soak in a highly salted water bath before they are boiled. This causes the crawfish to expel any grit or sand they may have ingested leading to a cleaner end product.
What side dishes go with crawfish?
My favorite side dishes with crawfish are actually cooked along with the crawfish at the same time. They include corn on the cob, potatoes, garlic, onion and sausage.
What is a recommended serving portion of crawfish?
When hosting a crawfish boil I will typically buy about 2-3 pounds of crawfish per person attending, but it also depends on the crowd. A close group of friends can easily eat a sack by themselves, which typically weighs 35- 40 pounds each.
What wine pairs well with crawfish dishes?
Due to the fact that crawfish dishes are often times on the spicier side, I will reach for a Riesling when pairing with wine. I like the crisp sweetness that a Riesling offers to counter the spice of the crawfish.
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Blackened Seasoning Mix for Fish
Blackening is a cooking technique often associated with traditional Cajun cuisine, however, it is in fact a modern invention of Chef Paul Prudhomme.
The food is dipped in melted butter and then dredged in a mixture of herbs and spices, usually some combination of thyme, oregano, chili pepper, peppercorns, salt, garlic powder and onion powder. It is then cooked in a very hot cast-iron skillet.
The characteristic brown-black color of the crust results from a combination of browned milk solids from the butter and charred spices.
While the original recipe calls for redfish, the same method of preparation can be applied to other types of fish and other protein sources, such as steak or chicken cutlets.
Ingredients
- 1 tsp Onion Powder
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper
- 3/4 tsp White Pepper
- 3/4 tsp Black Pepper
- 1/2 tsp dried Thyme
- 1/2 tsp dried Oregano
- 1 Tbsp sweet Paprika
- 2 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Red Cayenne Pepper (optional)
Instructions
Mix all ingredients well. Generously coat both sides of fish evenly before cooking.
On low heat, melt about 3 tablespoons of butter or margarine in a non stick frying pan (enough butter to cover fish and the bottom of the pan). As soon as the butter is melted, place the fish in the pan, flipping it over to cover both sides with butter. Then generously coat the fish with the blackened seasoning, flip over again and coat the other side with blackened seasoning.
Increase the heat to medium-high and cook on one side until blackened and somewhat crispy. Flip over and cook the other side. Fell free to add a little more butter if you need it.
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How to Bake Seafood
How to Bake Seafood
