| For the Court Bouillon: |
| 5 |
pounds live Louisiana Crawfish or Redclaw Crawfish |
| 4 |
gallons of water |
| 1 |
onion, peeled and rough chopped |
| 1 |
carrot, peeled and rough chopped |
| 2 |
celery stalks, cleaned and rough chopped |
| 1 |
leek, cleaned, white only and rough chopped |
| 2 |
tablespoons Cajun seasoning |
| 2 |
heads of garlic, cut in half |
| 1 |
large bouquet garnie with thyme, bay leaf and rosemary (tied together with kitchen string) |
1) |
Make the court bouillon in which you will cook the crawfish. To a large stockpot add the water and all the above ingredients except the crawfish. Heat the pot to a simmer. Simmer until the water is fully infused with the flavor from the ingredients, about an hour. Strain the court bouillon. |
| 2) |
Purge the crawfish by soaking them in cold water for 1 hour. Drain the water and reserve the crawfish. |
| 3) |
Set up an ice bath by placing ice and cold water in a large bowl. Place a colander in the bowl and set aside. |
| 4) |
Return the court bouillon to a boil and add the crawfish. Cook for 3 minutes. Strain or remove with a large slotted spoon. Shock the crawfish in the ice bath. |
| 5) |
When the crawfish are cool remove the tails from the heads. This is easily done with a twisting motion (as if wringing its neck). Reserve the heads. Remove the meat from inside the tails. Reserve the meat. Discard the tail shells. |
For the Bisque:
|
| 1/2 |
bottle of brandy |
| 1 |
bottle of white wine |
| 4 |
cloves of garlic, cleaned and chopped |
| 1 |
small onion, peeled and chopped |
| 1 |
carrot, peeled and chopped |
| 1 |
celery stalk, chopped |
| 2 |
fresh tomatoes |
| 1/2 |
cup of rice, raw |
| 2 |
tablespoons tomato paste |
| 1 1/2 |
cups of cream |
1) |
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. In a roasting pan, roast the crawfish heads until they are bright red. |
| 2) |
Add all the chopped ingredients, celery and carrot to the crawfish heads and continue to roast for 2-4 minutes. |
| 3) |
Add the fresh tomatoes to the roasting pan and let the mixture continue to roast. After 2 minutes add the tomato paste. Roast again for 2 minutes. |
| 4) |
De-glaze the roasting pan with the brandy. Flame the brandy and reduce the liquid to a syrup-like consistency. Add the white wine and reduce the liquid by half. Add the raw rice and cover the contents in the roasting pan with water and cook for 1 hour (you may also cover the ingredients with chicken stock instead of water). The liquid should slowly simmer. |
| 5) |
Crush the heads and blend all in a powerful blender or food processor. Pass through a fine mesh strainer or china cap. Add the cream to the bisque. Taste and adjust the seasoning by adding salt, pepper, cayenne and Cajun seasonings. Cool and refrigerate. |
To Serve: Garnish with the reserved tail meat and fresh herbs.
|
