We’re obviously biased as hell, but we’re big fans of Cajun cuisine around our camp. Some might argue that Cajun cuisine is truly an acquired taste, for that matter what regional cuisine doesn’t fit into that category?
Our personal exposures started decades ago, clinging to the skirts of grandmothers chopping the ‘Cajun Holy Trinity’ (onions, bell peppers, and celery) on thick wooden cutting boards and patiently stirring roux in well-worn dutch ovens in steaming, non air-conditioned Southern kitchens.
We’d argue that roux-based foods make up some of the greatest culinary treasures known in the world, as damned important as the magical red chile puree we gushed about last week. And we’re not just talking gumbos.
This Cajun Chicken Fricassee is a great example of just what I’m talking about. Fresh chicken is browned to perfection then added back to a seasoned roux built the traditional way, stirred slowly to dark chocolate brown perfection. By the way, one of our Cajun cooking mentors notes (correctly we’re told) that if you brown the chicken first, it’s a fricassee; if you just add the chicken to the prepared roux to cook, it’s a stew.
Montana friend Bib (link below), who earned his Cajun cooking cred during his ENT residency in NOLA, claims the best chicken fricassee he’s ever had was prepared by a wonderful women, the mother of a friend there in NOLA – she added mushrooms and stirred in a cup of sour cream right at the end.
This one is ready made for the cold weekend coming up.
1 4-to-5 lb chicken, cut up
4 or 5 tbsp vegetable oil of choice
2 tsp good salt
2 tsp of your favorite Cajun seasoning, optional
1/2 cup AP flour
1 large onion, chopped small
1 large green bell pepper, chopped small
2-3 celery ribs w/ leaves, chopped small
1/2 tbsp minced fresh garlic
3-4 cups chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1/4 – 1/2 tsp cayenne
3/4 cup green onions, green and white, thinly slices
1-4 cup (generous) roughly chopped parsley
Optional: 1 cup sliced mushrooms, 1 cup sour creamBig pot of rice
Cut up your chicken, pat it dry, then season with the salt and optional cajun seasoning.
Heat 3 tbsp of the oil in your trusty dutch oven over moderately high heat, then brown the chicken (probably in two batches pending how big your DO is); you’re looking just to brown it, not cook it through (4 or 5 minutes).
Reduce the head (medium-low), add enough oil to equal roughly 1/4 cup, then stir in the flour and make your roux. Keep it moving until the color of at least milk chocolate, though we like ours a bit darker.
Now add the Cajun Holy Trinity (onions, bell peppers and celery), garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and cayenne, cooking (and stirring frequently) until the onions have softened (6-8 minutes).
Add the broth and mix until smooth, bring to a boil, and add the chicken and any juices that have drained. Reduce heat and simmer partially covered until cooked through (another 35-45 minutes). You may need to thin it out a bit as it cooks down.
Note that a good friend in the Flathead, Bib of Bib’s Turkey Bone Gumbo fame, told us years ago that his NOLA cooking mentor added a cup of thickly sliced mushrooms to the pot when the chicken goes back in and finished her’s with a cup of sour cream stirred in right at the end.
Stir in the thinly sliced green onions and parsley, adjust the salt and serve steaming hot over rice.
Enjoy.
