Crawfish Boulettes With Creole Tartar Sauce
Why I Love This Recipe
Ingredients You'll Need
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/4 cup chopped bell peppers
1/4 cup chopped celery
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 pound peeled crawfish tails or 1 pound cooked and peeled shrimp
3 slices stale bread, broken into small pieces
1 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons chopped green onions
2 tablespoons chopped parsley leaves
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 1/2 cups dried fine bread crumbs
1 tablespoon Emeril's Bayou Blast, plus more for seasoning
Solid vegetable shortening or vegetable oil for deep-frying
Creole Tartar Sauce
1 egg *
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped green onions
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon Creole or whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon salt
Directions
In a food processor with a metal blade, combine the onions, peppers, celery, garlic, crawfish tails, bread pieces and egg together. Pulse the mixture a few times to finely chop the mixture. Do not puree. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl and stir in the green onions and parsley. Season the mixture with salt, pepper, and cayenne.
Fill a large, heavy stockpot or saucepan with shortening or oil to a depth of 3 inches. Preheat oil to 360º F.
Shape the mixture into small balls, about 1 tablespoon each. Season the bread crumbs with the 1 tablespoon of Bayou Blast. Roll the balls into the seasoned bread crumbs. Fry the boulettes until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain on a paper-lined plate. Season with additional Bayou Blast. Serve hot with Creole Tartar Sauce.
For tartar sauce:
Put the egg, lemon juice, green onions, garlic, Creole mustard, and parsley in a food processor and puree for 15 seconds. With the processor running, pour the oil through the feed tube in a steady stream. Add the cayenne and salt and pulse once or twice to blend.
Cover and let sit for 1 hour in the refrigerator before using. Best if used within 24 hours.
