Crawfish Étouffée

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup butter or margarine
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 1 medium-size green bell pepper, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large shallot, chopped
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can chicken broth
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
• 2 pounds cooked, peeled crawfish tails*
• Hot cooked rice
• Garnishes: chopped fresh chives, ground red pepper

Preparation

1. Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and next 4 ingredients; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Add flour, salt, and red pepper; cook, stirring constantly, until caramel colored (about 10 minutes). Add next 3 ingredients; cook, stirring constantly, 5 minutes or until thick and bubbly. Stir in crawfish; cook 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve with rice. Garnish, if desired.
2. *2 pounds frozen cooked crawfish tails, thawed and drained, may be substituted for fresh crawfish.