Creole Cooking Guide: The Basics

by nola_josh
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November 19, 2008

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A guide to cooking Creole no matter where y'at!

Introduction

Whether you’re anything like me, born and raised in Louisiana, and relocated elsewhere, or just another person who has been to New Orleans and fallen in love with the food, you will likely face an enormous challenge finding everything you need to even try and cook Creole. Fortunately since Katrina, demands have been on the rise everywhere for everything from Tony’s Chachere’s to Andouille sausage, all in part because of folks who were displaced by the storm, and even though that demand has created the market conditions necessary for national chains such as Wall Mart to begin to carrying more Louisiana products. That change has been slow, and a great many items are still really hard to find. Hopefully this guide will not only make that hunt easier, but if you are new to Creole cooking, quite practical, for unlike a mere recipe book, this aims not only to tell you what the ingredients are, but how to obtain them.

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The Importance of Spices

Image: Red hot Chili Peppers By Gioischia

It is often said that the reason Creole food is so good, isn’t that it is made out of anything entirely exotic, but rather because the style of cooking has an attitude that is entirely its own. To highlight this, I recall a cruise vacation I took several years ago with my family, when on the first night we were dining in a restaurant on the top deck, I ordered a chicken-something pasta with an obscure French name. I though it would be good, and when the waiter set the plate down in front of me, it was almost too pretty to eat. Needless to say, it wasn’t nearly as good as it looked. I called the waiter back over shortly thereafter and asked him if they had any spices I could throw on top of it. He shook his head, and asked if it was not to my liking, and I replied that it was quite bland. His apparent solution to this was salt and pepper. Yikes! Anyway, there is a long tradition of paranoia on the part of chefs and restaurant owners for to liberally spicing up their food. They argue that doing such not only masks the true flavor, but may also make it inpallatable to some of their patrons… Hogwash!
Good food always has attitude, and although it there is certainly a danger in overspicing any dish, if done just right, spices will instead compliment the flavor, and enhance the dining experience. True enough, Creole food may not be as pretty, but taste IS the most important factor. Listed on the side here are a few spices and blends you should never be without.

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The Right Beer: Abita

If you haven’t tried it yet, you should. I remember years ago when one of our local spring water companies started making their own beer, and since the first time I tried it, I’ve been hooked. The good news is that Abita does bottle and sell some of their beer nationally. You might have seen it before. Purple Haze and Abita Amber? You’re sure to find them in any of the larger liquior stores around the country, but there are a few more you might not have heard of. Abita makes a variety of beers aside from these two. My personal favorite is the Abita Strawberry Harvest beer. They actually put fresh strawberry juice right in with the hops! I can’t even begin to describe to you how unique that flavor is! The best I can do is say that it’s neither too strong of a berry taste, nor too weak of a beer taste. Somehow the folks down at Abita came up with the perfect formula for something truly unique. The bad news is that unless it is spring (yes, it is a seasonal beer) and you happen to be in Louisiana or a bordering state, you most certaintly are not going to be able to find it. On the other hand, you might be in luck if you go to http://beergeek.stores.yahoo.net/abtudogale12.html . Turbodog is another favorite of mine and they just so happen to sell it online.

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The Essentials

Most Creole recipes require only a few basic and widely available ingredients to start. Having these few items you are virtually set up for Creole cooking at any time:

1. All-purpose flour (for making a roux)
2. Corn Meal (for fried foods)
3. The Holy Trinity (an equal-part blend of chopped bell-pepper, celery, and onion.)
4. Garlic
5. Tomato Sauce
6. Italian Bread Crumbs
7. Lemon juice
8. Red and/or white wine (optional)
9. Hot sauce
10. Rice
11. Cooking oil
12. Spices

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Tony's Chachere's

It’s often said that us Louisianians can’t live without this stuff. Truth be told, we practically put this one creole seasoning on everything but our pancakes and oatmeal! The good news is that Tony’s is also becoming easier to find nationwide. I recently discovered that Wall Mart has it, but oddly enough, you might have to look in the international foods section! If you’re in luck, you may also find some of their other products, such as the white gravy mix, which I highly recommend as it vastly simplifies making a white sauce. Just in case you can’t find it whereever you are, Tony’s ships nationally via their website.

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Greek Seasoning, Gumbo File, Crab Boil, and Creole Mustard

Greek Seasoning? You might ask why if this is about Creole food. The answer is that Creole food uses flavors from a variety of cultures. The greek seasoning on this page is the very same kind most of us use in Louisiana. They also sell Gumbo File (pronounced Fee-lay), Crab Boil (liquid kind), Creole mustard, and a variety of other hard to find items.

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Fried Red Tomatoes?

2 Thick and Flat Sliced Large Semi-ripe Tomatoes
1/4 cup Corn Meal
1/2 cup of Italian Bread Crumbs
1/3 cup of All Purpose Flour
2 scrambled eggs (with a little milk)

Mozzarella Cheese
Vegetable Oil
Tony’s Chachere’s Creole Seasoning

Fried RED tomatoes? I bet you’re thinking that doesn’t work right? Well, I have a recipe that does. The only catch is that you’re tomatoes must be large enough, and not over ripe, or else they will come out mushy. Overall though, this is a really easy and quick recipe that’s well worth the 20 minutes to prepare. I first began making these years ago at my grandmothers restaurant where it has been on the menu ever since.

First, mix together the flour, corn meal, and breadcrumbs to make thr tri-meal. Be sure while you are doing this that you pre-heat the vegetable oil, and if you have one, it’s always best and safer to use a deep fryer rather that a cooking pot. If you don’t have one, a cooking pot will do.

Second, be sure to season the tri-meal to taste with some Tony’s. Though keep in mind that it is ok to make it a little saltier and spicier than you might normally tolerate. The cooking process removes some of the salt and the tomatoes absorb the spices.

Third, dip the tomatoes in egg and flour them with the mixture. Be sure that each slice is dry to the touch after it has been coated and as a word of advice, it sometimes hepls to coat in flour before dipping in the egg. Deep fry the tomatoes for approximately 2 – 2 1/2 minutes and leave to cool on a paper napkin.

Last, sprinkle some Tony’s on top, and garnish with shredded mozzarella cheese. Ready to serve!

(also works very well with fried mushrooms)

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Discussions

: by nola_josh 11/03/2008 Reply

Cool. Thanks for all the compliments yall. Keep posted, I’m just getting started on this one, so there are more recipes I have yet to post. =)

: by aliciak 11/02/2008 Reply

Abita. YES. The first day I was in NOLA for a conference 7 years ago, I ordered a Dixie beer, the only Louisiana beer I knew. The bartender said, “You know what the bottom of the keg tastes like? That’s Dixie.” He brought me an Abita Amber and I’ve been converted every since.