Shrimp Etouffee
My savory shrimp etouffee is a juicy entree smothered in rich, flavorful gravy boasting authentic Cajun flavors. Its bold spices are incredibly mouthwatering, and it’s super easy to make!
I totally appreciate easy, quick, and tasty meals. And if you want to put something more exciting on your table, this shrimp etouffee recipe is a great place to start. The French make delicious food, but throw in an African and Creole kick for a truly unforgettable combination.
Once you taste it, you’ll want it on a weekly rotation. So, while planning your weekly menu, add homemade Creole seasoning to your spice list. The mother of all Southern spices adds depth and richness, is quick, and easily customizable.
Etouffee vs. Creole
I love French because I grew up speaking it along with English and my Cameroon dialect. The verb etouffée is much prettier than smother. But you’re not here for French 101, right? The holy trinity (onion, celery, and green peppers) is essential in gumbos, creoles, jambalayas, and etouffees. Gumbo has a darker, more intense roux, and jambalaya relies on rice instead of a roux to thicken it.
Etouffee is different from creole in that the thick, spicy sauce smothers the main ingredients, dressing up steaming white rice for a delicious Southern meal. On the other hand, creole is a thinner, stew-like entree that isn’t quite as spicy. Both are equally delicious because the tomatoes, onions, celery, bell pepper, and garlic add a rich flavor.
How to Make Shrimp Etouffee
- Make the roux and add the holy trinity (onion, celery, and green bell peppers).
- Add the aromatics, then the tomatoes and broth, and simmer until thickened.
- Toss in the shrimp and simmer until they’re opaque and tender. Enjoy.
Recipe Twists and Tips
- Crawfish and shrimp étouffée is incredible when you can get them fresh and in season. But, hey, clams, oysters, mussels, lobster, and crab also sound terrific.
- Vegetable broth instead of seafood broth and baby portabellos, oyster mushrooms, tempeh, and eggplant instead of seafood are all good for a vegan version.
- Use ghee instead of butter, arrowroot powder instead of flour, and yuca fries instead of rice for paleo deliciousness.
- Turn up the heat with an extra dash of cayenne pepper.
- The key to a great etouffee is the roux. Some people like the brown roux for deeper, bolder flavors, but I prefer the blonde roux for two reasons. First, it takes less time, and second, it has a milder flavor than the darker one.
- Cook the roux over medium to low heat with constant whisking. Don’t stop even for a second to avoid burnt roux.
- Shell-on shrimp is best, even though it takes more time, because the shells make a quick, easy, and flavorful stock.
Make-Ahead and Storage Instructions
This incredible dish is the perfect make-ahead because the flavor is even better the next day. Make it the day before, let it cool, then store it in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for 3-4 months. Make your rice and reheat the shrimp etouffee on the stove when ready to serve. Keep your leftovers the same way.
What Goes With Shrimp Etouffee
Homemade garlic bread, fried okra, spicy green beans, skillet cornbread, and basmati rice all love to be with shrimp etouffee. King cake is a superb finish with a cup of coffee.
More Awesome Seafood Recipes to Try
Watch How to Make It
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”8ucJfXsH” upload-date=”Mon Aug 06 2018 19:57:54 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)” name=”Shrimp Etouffee” description=”Shrimp Etouffee — Juicy shrimp dish smothered in rich and flavorful roux sauce made with rich authentic southern flavors and an incredibly delicious taste. Easy recipe with big bold flavors!!!”]
This blog post was originally published in June 2017 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video.
Shrimp Etouffee
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons (28ml) canola oil
- 2 tablespoons (28g) butter
- ¼ cup (30g) flour
- ½ medium onion, diced
- ½ cup (70-75g) diced green bell pepper
- ⅓ cup (35-40g) chopped celery (1-2 stalks)
- 2 teaspoons (10g) minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon (1g) thyme (fresh or dried)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup (200g) chopped tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon (5g) Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon (1g) smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoon (8g) Creole seasoning
- 2 cups (500ml) seafood broth (or sub with water)
- 1 pound (453g) shrimp, peeled and deveined (reserve the shrimp shells)
- 1 teaspoon (5g) hot sauce (optional)
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 2-3 tablespoons (8-12g) parsley, chopped
Instructions
Shrimp Stock
- Add a teaspoon or two of butter or oil to a saucepan or skillet. Then, toss in the shrimp shells, remaining onion, garlic, and celery scraps, and aromatics like bay leaf and thyme.
- Sauté for 5-7 minutes, constantly stirring to prevent burning. Add about 5 cups of water to it, and simmer it for 40 minutes or up to an hour.
- Remove from heat and strain using a sieve. Set stock aside.
Etouffee
- In a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine melted butter, oil, and flour until smooth.
- Cook on medium heat, stirring continuously, for about 10-12 minutes or until you've achieved the desired color. Don't walk away during this process because it might burn.
- Add the onion, green pepper, and celery, and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Then add garlic, thyme, and bay leaf—continue stirring for another 2 minutes.
- Next, toss in about a cup of chopped tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, and Creole seasoning, and let it cook for 5 minutes.
- Gradually pour in about 2 cups of shrimp stock, bring to a boil, and let it simmer. Add the shrimp and simmer for 5 more minutes. Or season the shrimp with Creole seasoning, sauté for about 5 minutes, and then throw them in at the last minute. You've got two options here – both work.
- Adjust the soup's thickness and flavor with more shrimp broth or water, hot sauce, and salt.
- Stir in the green onions and chopped parsley, and serve over hot cooked rice.
Tips & Notes:
- Feel free to use crawfish instead of shrimp. You could even use chicken if you’re allergic to seafood, making sure to cook the chicken well.
- If you want to add crab to this recipe, cut down on the shrimp or double everything else, minus the shrimp.
- Some people like the brown roux for deep, bold flavors, but I prefer the blonde roux for two reasons: First, it takes less time (5-7 minutes) to get rid of the flour’s raw flavor. And second, it has a slightly nutty taste, not as strong as gumbo, but equally tasty in its own right.
- Shell-on shrimp are best, if possible. Don’t let the shelling and deveining scare you because those shells make a flavorful broth!
- Please remember that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used.
I finally made this last night..and it was AMAZING!!! My date loved it! I usually don’t like spicy food, so I skipped on the hot sauce, and although it still had a kick, it was delicious! I subbed the flour for rice flour to make it gluten-free, and added andouille sausage! Will definitely make it again!
Thank you!!!
Yaay! I’m doing a happy dance now. Glad you loved it, Patrick!
Good evening, Imma. I made your wonderful Shrimp Etouffee for dinner. I made the shrimp stock as written, made a homemade creole seasoning and followed your recipe. It was delicious.
Thank you, once again, for sharing your delicious recipes. I can always count on you for culinary perfection!
I finally made this last night, and it is AWESOME!! The work involved in peeling the shrimp to make the stock is definitely worth it, and I had enough stock left over for another batch. That went in the freezer. I have had made several of your recipes, all of which were good, but this one is the best yet.
Thanks, Imma.
Thank you for taking the time out to share your thoughts, Molly. And homemade stock sounds great as always. 😉
Made this last night for a pre valentines dinner because my wife loves shrimp. She demanded I save this recipe, lol. 5 stars. Her second love are scallops. Any suggestions? Thank you!
Awesome! I have some will be posting them soon. Thanks for letting me know.
This was fantastic! I didn’t have celery (such a crime, I know) so I added a little more onion and green pepper I used rice flour (to make it gluten free) and added some red pepper flakes. It was really so delicious, thank you for the recipe, Imma!
My pleasure Marcie! So happy to hear it worked out well for you.
Hello,
Made the stock from scratch and it definitely took longer than 40 minutes to make this. That being said, it was VERY good. Also, be careful when cooking the shrimp, 5 minutes in the pot is about 2 minutes too long.
Looking forward to making it again, I think I’ll try a shrimp base next time to make things go a little faster.
Regards.
Awesome! Glad to hear it worked out well for you ken. Thanks for taking the time to share feed back with us – appreciate it !
Just made this for New Years… Bomb.com!!! Only added sausage and doubled recipe size for my family… Winner!!!
I love your recipes! Easy to follow, & now people think I cook like Big Mama!
Virtual High Five Girl! Glad to hear the recipes are working for you LaToia. Happy New Year!!!
Made this tonight and it was fantastic! Can’t wait to try out more of your recipes 🙂 Happy New Year!
Happy to hear it worked out well the second time around. Thanks for taking time out to let me know.
Hello,
Can this recipe be doubled and still come out the same ? Thanks
It sure can.
I made this for Sunday dinner last weekend. Southern cooking is new to me, but I read about this dish and it sounded good. It was easy to make and my family loved it. Definitely will be added to my weekly menus.
Thank you for the recipe.
Awesome! So glad to hear you enjoyed it. Thanks for letting me know ! Happy Holidays Bernadette!!!
Just made this for dinner tonight. Absolutely the best etoufee ever. Love the idea for the quick shrimp stock. That made the dish. Thanks for posting!
OH WOW! Thank you so much Tracy!!!
Hello how are I’m planning on making this tomorrow how do you keep the sauce from getting thick once it has sat for a couple of hours and has gotten cold
The shrimp etouffee was on point I had to keep adding water so that I could get it really nice and soupy like you see in the restaurants but not like a soup more like a thick Rich Roux and the spices add in more to taste, I added in a some cayenne pepper and a little extra Worcestershire sauce and also poured in a little bit of white wine to give it that little extra Zing it came out really good I added extra shrimp also to make it a bigger meal to feed more people
Love all the additions. I want to head over to the kitchen and make some- sounds Delicious. Thanks B!
Two questions. I’m planning on making this hours in advanced so it has time to mature and become even more amazing. Doing that, what ingredients should I hold out until just before I get ready to serve? Shrimp, green onion, and parsley?
Second question – My Indian wife loves spicy (like we cook with habanero peppers when we make eggs in the morning lol). To increase the heat above a southern hot sauce, any recommendations that wouldn’t hurt the integrity of the dish?
Hi Jason! Yes to the first question. Add those three ingredients just before you are ready to serve . In regards to your second question. A southern sauce would work or cayenne pepper – habanero is not a good fit here.
Happy Cooking
I doubled the recipe so there would be plenty of leftovers, blackened some chicken and added some Andouille sausage and my family now begs me to make it. I’ll be making it again tonight. Thank you for the great recipe and follow-up.
Aww, thanks ! So happy to hear it’s a hit with the family.
This was fantastic! The depth and richness of the flavors were wonderful. This will be a repeat absolutely and is a definite must for dinner parties and seafood lovers.
Hi Linda! Thanks for taking the time to provide such glowing review. So happy to hear it was a hit .
Imma, how delicious, great recipe. Lived in Louisiana for 5 years and love these local dishes! I like to add some lime at the end, adds another layer, thanks for sharing Delf
Thanks for the feedback Delf! So happy you liked it !
Looks sublime! Have made it is wonderful! Serve up with cheddar biscuits to stop up any gravy/sauce.
Hi Patrick! Cheddar biscuits just pairs well with this -it’s been a while .. now I have the hankering for cheddar biscuits. Thanks for the feedback!
In the instructions for Shrimp Stock it says add to “Add a teaspoon or 2 of butter or oil to a sauce” What type of sauce? Or just use the butter or oil as the sauce?
My bad! It’s sauce-pan. Recipe updated!!!
Hi Imma!
To make this or your gumbo gluten free could I use cassava flour or what flour do you recommend to preserve the flavor of your dishes?
Btw I absolutely love your recipes and they’ve been satisfying my pregnancy cravings to the tee! Lol
Thank you!!
Hi Nicole, So glad to hear this. I remember when I was pregnant and only certain foods could satisfy me – the joys of pregnancy.
I have very limited knowledge when it comes to gluten free flours. So don’t have much to offer , have used cassava flour before and it worked to thicken other food but never tried it with étouffée or gumbo. If you do let me know how it works out for you.Thanks
Hi pls whats creole seasoning, hot sauce?
Also how do i get smoked paparika?
I wanna try this sauce
Ada
Creole seasoning is combination of spices . Check it out here https://www.africanbites.com/creole-seasoning/. Hot sauce is any peppery sauce
Hi, can I use Tony’s for the Creole seasoning?
You sure can. You will have to adjust salt and pepper, to suit your taste buds. It has salt and a little on the heat side.
Smoked paprika can be found in large grocery stores/supermarkets or maybe specialty markets like Whole Foods, Sprouts, Natural Grocers, etc.
Thanks for
sharing Monica
Wal-mart sells both.
Thanks for sharing!!!
Hi Imma,
Do you think I can use homemade chicken stock instead of shrimp stock? I know you said sub with water but stock would obviously be more favorable.
Thanks!
Of course you can Johanna! I meant to include that too! Obviously it will add more flavor that water.