Cajun Spiced Salmon #FishFridayFoodies

Cajun Spiced Salmon is easy to make and even easier to eat. Serve it as part of a plated dinner or atop a salad.

Both my mother and my mother-in-law are good cooks although both claim not to enjoy it. What even does that mean? What’s not to like? Anyway, my mother-in-law makes a lovely salmon dish where she covers a whole side of salmon with various spices and herbs and then cooks it in the oven under the broiler – or grill for my British readers – until it’s just done enough. The spicy herb-encrusted top gets a little bit crunchy and golden while the salmon beneath is tender and perfectly moist still.

I was chatting with her the other day and she remarked that someone had given her some homemade seafood gumbo. She wanted to share it with friends but it was only enough for everyone to have a small bowl as a starter. She was looking for advice about what would go with the gumbo for her main dish. I suggested that she make her salmon dish but with Cajun spices instead of her usual ones. As I hung up the call on Skype, it occurred to me that I had solved my own problem too.

We probably eat fresh salmon at least once a week, simply pan-fried with salt and pepper and no other adornments. It’s one of our favorites. This month our Fish Friday Foodies host, Caroline of Caroline’s Cooking wants us to put a little spice in our lives so just salt and pepper wouldn’t cut it.  So I changed out my usual spices for Cajun ones and carried on, just as I had advised my mother-in-law to do.

Ingredients
1 salmon fillet per person (About 5 2/3- 7 oz or 160-200g each)
Favorite Cajun spice mix
Olive oil for pan

To serve:
1/2 lemon
Few sprigs parsley

Method
Rinse off your salmon steaks and pat them dry with paper towels. Lay them skin side down on a plate and sprinkle them well with your favorite Cajun spice mix. Since we’re putting it in kind of thick, you’d be better to use one with more spice and less salt.

Heat a skillet big enough for all of your salmon steaks to fit without being crowded over a medium high flame.

Drizzle in a little olive oil then add the salmon steak seasoned side down. Sprinkle a little of the seasoning on the skin side.

As salmon cooks, the color changes, starting near the heat source, from bright orange to a pale peach. Cook uncovered until you see the color change on the salmon reach midway up the steaks. Depending on the thickness of the salmon steaks, this could take from 3-5 minutes.

You can't really see it in this photo but you will in person, I promise.

Turn the salmon steaks over and cook with the skin side down until the skin is crispy and the sides are completely peach colored and opaque, perhaps another 2-3 minutes.

Remove the salmon steaks from the pan and allow to rest for five minutes before serving.

Slice your lemons and roughly chop a couple of sprigs of parsley. Scatter them over and around the salmon steaks.

Enjoy!

An InLinkz Link-up

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Shrimp Creole #FishFridayFoodies

A traditional Cajun recipe, this shrimp Creole is thickened by a roux and flavored with the holy trinity, tomatoes and, of course, a kick of cayenne for spice. 

This month Fish Friday Foodies are sharing international seafood soups and stews at my instigation. I had big plans to make a dish called moqueca, just like my Brazilian friend Betty taught me many, many years ago when we were living in the little oilfield town of Macaé together. But, in the end, my Cajun roots won out, and as you can see, I made shrimp Creole. I’d like to tell you that this is exactly as my grandmothers would have made it, but the honest truth is that I don’t remember ever eating shrimp Creole at either of their houses. I did consult a handful of good Cajun cookbooks though so I’m feeling pretty good about the authenticity. I’ll no doubt hear from my mother if I’ve gone astray and I’ll get back to you with corrections if necessary. But authentic or not, I can promise you it is delicious.

Like all good Cajun recipes, this one starts with a roux and the holy trinity of vegetables, onion, bell pepper and celery. Add in some butter, tomatoes, a little cayenne and a whole mess of shrimp and you’ve got yourself a delicious shrimp stew. Make sure you check out the linky tool (all those photos at the bottom) to see the other great seafood soups and stews my fellow Fish Friday Foodies have made.

Ingredients
1 medium onion
1 green bell pepper or capsicum
1 stalk celery
1/4 cup or 25g flour
1/3 cup or 80ml canola oil
1/4 cup or 63g butter
1 can (14 oz or 400g with juice) whole peeled Roma tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 lb 13oz or 825g cleaned shrimp or prawns (Mine weighed 4.4 lbs or 1984g with heads/shells on)
Salt
Cayenne pepper

To serve:
Cooked rice
Green onions
Louisiana hot sauce

Method
Discard any stems, peels or seeds, then chop your celery, onion and bell pepper up finely.

In a large heavy gauge pot or pan with a tight fitting lid combine the flour and oil to make a roux. Cook the roux over a low to medium heat, stirring often at the beginning and the constantly as it begins to brown.

Eventually you want to get to the color of old copper but be careful not to let it burn.

When the roux is done, add in the chopped vegetables and cook for several minutes, stirring well.

Add in the butter and cook for another few minutes, until the vegetables have completely softened.

Add in the can of tomatoes, half a can of water and the tomato paste.

Stir well and then turn the fire down to a simmer. Pop your lid on the pan and simmer for about half an hour, checking the liquid level and stirring occasionally. Add just a little water if it looks dry.

The tomatoes should break down as well, but feel free to mash them around with your stirring implement to encourage that.

Season the shrimp with a generous sprinkling of sea salt and add them to the pot, stirring well to coat them with the sauce.

Cook over a medium flame for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste the sauce and add more salt if necessary and cayenne pepper to taste.

Serve with cooked rice and a good sprinkling of chopped green onions. Put the hot sauce on the table so everyone can help themselves.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to our fearless leader, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm, and without further ado, here are the rest of our seafood soups and stews of the world:

An InLinkz Link-up

Would you like to join Fish Friday Foodies? We post and share new seafood/fish recipes on the third Friday of every month. To join our group please email Wendy at wendyklik1517@gmail.com.

Visit our Facebook page and Pinterest page for more wonderful fish and seafood recipe ideas.

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Gram’s Cajun Rice Dressing

Rice dressing with pork, beef, chicken livers and gizzards, seasoned with onion, bell pepper and garlic, just like my grandmother used to make it, hence the title, Gram's Cajun Rice Dressing! Some Cajun cookbooks call this “dirty rice” but in my family, we just call it dressing.

Many years ago my cousin, Simone, put together a family cookbook of favorites and kindly made copies to share with the rest of us. When the Sunday Supper theme for today was announced – National Grandparents Day – I knew that would be the best place to start looking for one of my grandmother’s recipe that I haven’t already shared. I’ve posted quite a few because those are ones I still cook all the time but I needed fresh inspiration. I’ll be honest, I hadn’t thought about my grandmother’s dressing in quite a while but as soon as I turned to that page, I knew I couldn’t make anything else.

Rice dressing was always a favorite on both of my grandmother’s dinner tables, making an appearance quite regularly not just for Thanksgiving or Christmas but often also on Sundays.

In the old days, they would grind the liver and gizzards at home in a meat grinder or asked the butcher to do it, but nowadays we use a food processor. In fact, to make it even easier, folks living in Louisiana can buy the “dressing mix” pre-made in every grocery store and my mom informs me that it’s even available in Houston.

If you aren’t a liver lover, you can leave it out, but I’d like to reassure you that with only four whole livers in all that rice and ground meat, the flavor is very, very subtle. I think they are essential to get the right flavor.

Gram’s Cajun Rice Dressing

This rice dressing makes me miss my grandmothers but it also brings back wonderful memories of them. This is the taste of home.

Ingredients
For the rice:
2 cups or 400g uncooked long-grained rice
1 1/2 teaspoon fine salt

For the roux:
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon or 42g flour
1/4 cup or 60ml canola or other light oil

For the dressing:
8 chicken gizzards (about 4 oz or 115g)
4 whole chicken livers (about 4 oz or 115g)
3/4 lb or 340g ground pork
1/2 lb or 227g ground beef
1 large onion
1 small green bell pepper (capsicum)
1 small bunch green onions (plus more to garnish, if desired)
2 cloves garlic
Salt, black pepper, cayenne to taste
Roux
8 cups cooked rice

Method
Cook your rice with the salt by your favorite method. I’m not giving water amounts or cooking times since rice varies so widely. My grandmothers would have used a local Louisiana rice that was relatively short-grained but since I can’t get that in Dubai, I’ve used long-grained Indian Basmati. Long-grained rice fluffs up more so my two cups raw made eight cups of cooked rice.

While the rice is cooking, you can make the roux. Using the amount of flour and oil in the ingredients list, follow the instructions here: How to Make Roux. Set the roux pot aside to cool in a sink filled with a little cool water. You don't want it to continue to darken once it's done. Don't get any water in the pot though!

Put your gizzards in the food processor and chop them up finely. Add in the liver and give it another few pulses to chop the liver as well.

Add the oil to a large pot or pan and then tip in the ground pork, ground beef and your chopped liver and gizzards.

Cook over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, breaking the meat into small pieces with your spoon as it cooks.

While the meat is cooking, finely chop your onion, bell pepper, green onions and garlic.

Once the meat is well browned and even a little crispy, add in the chopped vegetables. Stir well.

Cook the mixture over a medium heat, stirring often, until the vegetables are soft and just about disappear.

Add in your roux and a cup or two of water and stir well. Season the mixture with salt, fresh ground black pepper and cayenne to taste. We like ours pretty spicy.

Lower the fire and simmer for a couple of hours, adding water occasionally when the mixture gets a little too dry. You want to end up with a thick meat-filled gravy.

Gently fluff your rice with a fork to separate the grains and then mix the rice in with the meat.

Garnish with some chopped green onions or parsley.

Enjoy!

What special recipes have your grandparents handed down to you? Here’s a list of favorites from my Sunday Supper family.

Sweets that are the Sweetest

• Buttermilk Pie by Feeding Big and more
• Chocolate Chip Banana Cake by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Chocolate Covered Cashews by Peanut Butter and Peppers
• German Applesauce by Magnolia Days
• Grandma’s Lemon Meringue Pie by The Freshman Cook
• Grandma's Raisin Bread by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Homemade Brotchen by Cosmopolitan Cornbread
• Irish Brack (fruit loaf) by Caroline’s Cooking
• Laura’s Old-Fashioned Prune Cake by Palatable Pastime
• Nana’s Million Dollar Cake by The Crumby Cupcake
• Nanny’s Tea Cakes by Whole Food | Real Families
• Nanny's Raisin Filled Cookies by Grumpy's Honeybunch
• Old Fashioned Cinnamon Rolls by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Pop Pop's Peanut Butter Fudge by Runner's Tales
• Pumpkin-filled Cream Puffs by Brunch with Joy
• Summer Peach Cake by Pies and Plots
• White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake by The Redhead Baker

Savory Meals with Special Memories

• Busia’s Barbecue Sauce by Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Gram’s Cajun Rice Dressing by Food Lust People Love
• Grandma’s Greek Salad by FamFriendsFood
• Grandma’s Polish Meatballs by Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Grannie's Clam Dip by Serena Bakes Simply From Scratch
• Individual Breakfast Fritattas with Vegetables by Delaware Girl Eats
• Nunney's Super Mac N Cheese by Momma's Meals
• Portuguese Stove Top Pork Roast by Family Foodie
• Potatoes Stroganoff by Cookin’ Mimi
• Shepherd’s Pie Quebec Style (Pâté Chinois) by Curious Cuisiniere
• Taco Pie by Food Done Light
• The Best Boiled Peanuts by 30A Eats

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Roux - How to - with step-by-step photos

The essential start to many Cajun dishes, a good dark roux isn't hard to make, but it does take a lot of stirring and a watchful eye. Rule number one - Never turn your back on a roux!

A couple of years back, I shared this process with photos at the beginning of my chicken and sausage gumbo recipe but since a good old-copper-penny colored roux is so important to many Cajun dishes, I decided that perhaps it was time to give How to Make a Roux its own post.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups or 190g plain flour
1 cup or 240ml oil (I prefer canola.)

Method
In a heavy pot, preferably a black iron skillet or some other heavy gauge vessel, mix your flour and oil and stir until there aren't any lumps.

Cook the mixture over medium to medium high heat, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until roux begins to turn brown.

0 minutes

7 minutes

12 minutes

14 minutes

18 minutes

20 minutes

22 minutes

24 minutes

Depending on temperature and the thickness of your pot, you may have to stir constantly because roux has a tendency to burn. A medium heat is safer; it just takes longer. Continue cooking until the roux turns a very dark, chocolate brown. Should the roux burn (Everyone does it at least once, so don’t feel too bad.) toss it out and start again, otherwise your entire dish will have that burnt taste.

27 minutes - it looks delicious but do NOT try to taste it. It's hotter than the hinges of hell and will burn your mouth off. Also, it doesn't actually taste good. 

The roux will be VERY hot so be careful when handling it and try to stir without splashing on yourself or a nearby “helper.”

In fact, it's best if you make your helper go sit on his bed.

Remove the roux from stove and cool it down quickly by adding whatever chopped vegetables are called for in your recipe or by setting the pot in a sink partially filled with cool water.

Store unused roux in a clean jar in the refrigerator once cooled, where it will keep for months.

Recipes with roux

Gram's Cajun Rice Dressing

Crawfish Étouffée

Chicken Spaghetti

Slow Roasted Pork

Cajun Courtbouillon or Shrimp and Fish Stew

Chicken and Dumplings

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo 

Louisiana Roasted Barbecue Shrimp

In New Orleans, this dish is simply known as barbecued shrimp despite its method of cooking, which doesn’t get anywhere near hot coals or even an electric grill. I’ve added “Roasted” so you know that the oven is where the action takes place. 

I came to barbecued shrimp late in life. It wasn’t something either of my Cajun grandmothers made, at least, I don’t recall ever eating it at their houses. Fresh gulf shrimp in their hands became an étouffée or were boiled whole in spicy seasoned water along with baby new potatoes and corn on the cob. Even my mother, born and raised in New Iberia, Louisiana, is more likely to bread and deep-fry shrimp or, if company is coming, cook them in a cheesy rich Newburg sauce. Now we are going back a few years but it was my cousin, Misty, who first introduced us, me and the barbecued shrimp. It was love at first bite.

We were visiting Misty one summer at her lovely home in New Orleans and she baked the shrimp with a full cup of butter and a package of wonderful seasonings from the folks at Bolner’s Spices. You know I had to go buy a packet or two right after that. But, living as we do overseas, remembering to buy enough spice packets to keep us going from year to year often just didn't happen. It was time to figure out how to do it on my own, from ingredients I could get. This week’s Sunday Supper theme of Fat Sunday - sharing decadent or Mardi Gras inspired recipes – was just the motivation I needed. I am calling this homemade version of roasted barbecue shrimp a great success based on my husband’s comment after the meal, “We could have this again, and often.” Why, yes. Yes, we could!

Ingredients (to feed two greedy people on shrimp and bread or four normal people, if you include side dishes like potatoes and salad)
1 lb 10 oz or 750g fresh shrimp or prawns (without heads, shells still on)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh rosemary
4 cloves garlic
Olive oil
1 lemon
1 small purple onion
1/2 cup or 115g unsalted butter
1/4 cup or 60ml Worcestershire sauce
To serve: Chopped green onions for garnish and French bread for sopping up the sauce. Sides of boiled baby new potatoes and salad – optional

Method
Use a mortar and pestle to grind together into a thick paste the paprika, black pepper, salt, red pepper flakes, the leaves off of your sprigs of rosemary and thyme and the cloves of garlic.

Add in a couple of glugs (perhaps two tablespoons) of olive oil and stir until loosened.

Spoon the spice paste into a medium-sized bowl with your shrimp. Using a microplane or a fine grater, zest the yellow peel off of your lemon.

Give everything a thorough stir to make sure that the spices and zest are well mixed with the shrimp. Set aside.

Finely mince your purple onion. Put the minced onion and the butter into a large ovenproof pan on the stovetop. Gently melt the butter and sauté the onions over a medium heat.

When the onions are translucent, turn the fire off and remove the pan from the stove. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and allow the mixture to cool.

When the pan is cool enough not to cook your seasoned shrimp on contact, pour them in and mix thoroughly. Set aside to marinate further.

Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.  When the oven is hot, give the shrimp another good stir and pop them into the oven, uncovered, for about 20 minutes or until they have turned pink and are cooked through. Squeeze on some of the lemon juice from your zested lemon.

Sprinkle with a little chopped green onion, if desired. Serve barbecued shrimp with sliced French bread to dip in the pan juices because, honestly, that’s the best part! This is a meal you will eat with your hands. It's gonna get messy but it's gonna be good!

Enjoy!

Whether you celebrate Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday, the final day of indulgence before the start of Lent, or just love decadent dishes, desserts and cocktails, you are going to love our round up today, hosted by the talented Leslie of La Cocina de Leslie. I know I want to try everything on the list!

Cocktails & Other Beverages:

• The Hurricane Cocktail Recipe from An Appealing Plan
• The French 75 from Kimchi MOM
• Sweet Potato Pie Smoothie from Peanut Butter and Peppers

Appetizers:

• Fried Oysters and Remoulade from Jane's Adventures in Dinner
• Shrimp in Mustard Sauce from Noshing With The Nolands
• Mini Sweet Potato Pies from MealDiva
• Cajun Crab Beignets from Delaware Girl Eats
• Pancetta and Mushroom Arancini from Ruffles & Truffles

Main Dishes:

• Creole Shrimp Po Boy Recipe from Small Wallet, Big Appetite
• Chicken and Sausage Gumbo from Supper for a Steal
• Sausage and Shrimp Jambalaya from Yours And Mind Are Ours
• Vegan Pizza Waffles from Killer Bunnies, Inc.
• Red Beans and Rice from Cookin' Mimi
• Baked Catfish Po'Boy from Curious Cuisiniere
• Muffaletta from Casa de Crews
• Bayou Seafood and Andouille Jambalaya from The Weekend Gourmet
• Seafood Gumbo from Take A Bite Out of Boca
• Cajun Rice and Beans from Momma's Meals
• Creole Celery Root Bisque (with Lobster) from The Wimpy Vegetarian
• Louisiana Roasted Barbecue Shrimp from Food Lust People Love
• Cajun Dirty Rice Bowls from The Dinner-Mom
• New Orleans Fried Chicken from Family Foodie

Side Dishes:

• Baked Endive and Pears in Blue Cream Sauce from Shockingly Delicious
• Okra Creole from Cindy's Recipes and Writings

Desserts:

• Banana Creme Pie with Honey Whipped Cream and Pecan Brittle from The Foodie Patootie
• Chocolate Ganache Tart from Melanie Makes
• Banana Bread Pudding from Gotta Get Baked
• Delicious Saffron Baked Beignets from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
• New Orleans Bread Pudding with Caramel Whiskey Sauce from La Bella Vita Cucina
• Polish Paczki from Cravings of a Lunatic
• Buttermilk Beignets from The Messy Baker
• Eggless Bread Pudding in a Jar from What Smells So Good?
• Mint Julep Bars from The Girl In The Little Red Kitchen
• Mardi Gras Cupcakes with Cinnamon Frosting from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Mardi Gras Long Johns from Kudos Kitchen by Renee 
• Mexican Chocolate Coffee Cake from La Cocina de Leslie
• Fasnetküchle from The Not So Cheesy Kitchen
• Cheesecake Swirl Brownies from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Pecan and Chocolate Pralines from Desserts Required
• Chocolate Raspberry Cake from Clarks Condensed
• Baked Coconut Beignets from Mess Makes Food
• Ravioli dolci di Carnevale from Manu's Menu
• Strawberry Paczki from Neighborfood
• Blackberry Fritters from girlichef
• Brownie Chocolate Chip Cheesecake from Magnolia Days
• Flourless Chocolate Cake in a Mug with Coconut Cream from Sue's Nutrition Buzz
• Pecan Bars from Pies and Plots
• "Skinny Tuesday" Bananas Foster Cheesecake Parfaits from Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Mocha Pear Cake from Happy Baking Days
• Skinny Baked Beignets from Daily Dish Recipes