I first tried shrimp étouffée on a trip to New Orleans, and was instantly hooked on this classic southern Creole dish. So I had to recreate it at home and bring the taste of the Big Easy into my kitchen for when I am craving this mouthwatering flavorful dish. The recipe is very easy but the flavors are definitely huge.

Etouffee is a dish that can be found in both cajun and creole cuisines. It is referred to a method of cooking when a dish consisting of seafood like crabs, crawfish or shrimp is slowly simmered in a roux based sauce and seasoned with traditional creole or cajun seasoning.

Aromatics like holy trinity of southern cooking (peppers, onions and celery) and herbs together with Worcestershire sauce are also added for more depth and complexity of flavor.

The secret to the best étouffée is the roux. Traditionally blond roux is used, it has a mild, nutty taste and only takes 5-7 minutes to make compared to the dark roux. Homemade shrimp stock is also a key to the most flavorful and tasty étouffée. I usually get shell on shrimp and use the shells with the vegetable scraps to make the broth from scratch for the dish.

Étouffée is bursting with bold, delicious flavors and is a unique and original dish that might become your favorite. It is a wonderful way to enliven your average shrimp scampi and expand your horizons with something new. Étouffée is served over rice for a comforting complete meal.