The Cajun Chef--Basics
If possible using fresh cuts of meat, just off the boat seafood and picked out of the garden vegetables is always best. While most people live in cities, not in the country these days most supermarkets and seafood shops and, if you have one close, a farmers market has a good selection of quality produce and meats.
By having some medium sized flower pots and a relatively small area with some sun you can grow your own spices and herbs like dill, basil, oregano, parsley, peppers, thyme as well as many others. An area on your porch, outside your door on the steps or walk even a balcony will give you an abundance of fresh (and probably enough to dry for winter use) spices.
Two very basic things used in Cajun cooking are a Roux and rice. Most people shy away from these saying "I can't cook those". Well follow the instructions below and you may surprise yourself how easy they really are.
How To Make A Roux
A Roux (pronounced Roo as in rooster) is the basis for most stews and gumbos. Roux may also be added to gravies to thicken.
It consists of equal parts of flour and oil. Here's how it's done.
Heat the oil in a heavy pot. When the oil is hot, gradually add flour, stirring continuously until well mixed. Lower flame and continue stirring until roux is the desired color,about 20 to 30 minutes. A light roux is generally the color of a new penny, while a dark roux is the color of an old penny.
The key is to stir continuously. There's nothing worse than a burnt roux! If it has black specks in it, it is burned and you have to start all over again!
Remove from fire(If roux remains in the pot it will continue to cook and get too dark) and add seasoning generally cut up Onions, Bell Peppers and Celery, sometimes called the Cajun trinity.
Return to fire and simmer until wilted. Now is the time to add warm water or stock according to how thick or thin you like. You can add salt, pepper and/or other seasonings to taste.
This can be used as a "stand alone" brown gravy.
White roux is usually made from clarified butter and unbleached white flour, so it has a pale yellow color. It is used for milk-based sauces and for thick soups. It is cooked only until it no longer has a raw taste and has a frothy and slightly gritty consistency, but hasn't begun to darken in color.
Blond roux, sometimes called "pale roux", is made from equal portions of butter (not clarified butter) and unbleached white flour and used for sauces based on white stocks. It is cooked slightly longer than white roux to give it a deeper color. A blond roux is great for sauces to go with fish or seafood, especially crab and shrimp, because it takes a nice orange, coral-like color when mixed with cream.
How to cook rice
- 1 1/2 c. rice
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tbs. butter or oil
- Water
Combine in heavy saucepan rice and salt. Add just enough water to rise above rice level to a depth of one inch. Add oil or butter. Over high heat, bring to a full rolling boil. Stir thoroughly with a fork, loosening grains of rice on the bottom of the pan. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover with a tight fitting lid, do not stir or peek for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn off heat and let rice stand covered until ready to serve. Flake gently while transferring to serving dish. Yields a tender but slightly chewy dry rice with no gluey mess on the bottom.
Clarified Butter
Clarified butter is butter that has had the milk solids and water removed. One advantage of clarified butter is that it has a much higher smoke point, so you can cook with it at higher temperatures without it browning and burning. Also, without the milk solids, clarified butter can be kept for much longer without going rancid.
It is very easy to make. Melt the butter slowly. Let it sit for a bit to separate. Skim off the foam that rises to the top, and gently pour the butter off of the milk solids, which have settled to the bottom.
Alternatively, pour the hot melted butter through cheesecloth to filter out the foam and solids that have settled, catching the clarified butter in a jar.
Or, pour the hot butter into a container, allow it to separate while cooling and then refrigerate. After it has solidified, you can easily scrape off the hardened foam from the stiff clarified butter layer.
A stick (8 tablespoons) of butter will produce about 6 tablespoons of clarified butter or 1 cup of butter will make 3/4 cup of clarified butter.
