One of my favorite dishes from the Big Easy is Shrimp Etouffee. This easy to make dish would make a delicious date night dinner or would turn any night into a special occasion.
If you look up Etouffee in the dictionary you’ll find the literal translation to be smothered. Etouffee uses a technique known as smothering, which is a popular method of cooking in the Cajun areas of southwest Louisiana and the coastal counties of Mississippi.
There are many variations of this classic dish, some being Cajun and others being Creole. And while there are a lot of similarities in the styles, each has its own unique seasonings and flavors typical of the region and families the recipe came from. Lots of people confuse Étouffée with Jambalaya and that’s a completely different type of recipe. Even my Tex-Mex Jambalaya doesn’t come close to resembling my Shrimp Étouffée.
Étouffée is typically made with shellfish, Crayfish being the original star of the dish. But as we all know when it comes to cooking it’s all about what we like to eat and what’s readily available and since it’s easier to find shrimp (and we do love our Gulf shrimp) I decided to make a Shrimp Etouffee to get us into the Mardi Gras Spirit!
You’ll also find recipes for Chicken Etouffee some with sausage and combinations of all the ingredients. So adjust the recipe with the ingredients you like and let the good times roll!
More Recipes You’ll Love!
- Shrimp and Cheesy Grits
- Garlic Shrimp with Supergreens
- Lemon Basil Shrimp with Supergreens
- Shrimp Fra Diavolo
Shrimp Etouffee
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons flour
- 1 pound shrimp shelled and deveined
- ½ lemon sliced
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup onion diced
- ½ cup celery diced
- ½ cup bell pepper diced
- 4 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme chopped
- 14 ounce can diced tomato
- 1 tablespoon Creole or Cajun seasoning your favorite blend and adjust to your tastes
- hot sauce to taste
- sea salt to taste
- ¼ cup green onions sliced for garnish
- tablespoon Italian parsley chopped for garnish
Instructions
Broth
- Add the shrimp shells and scraps of onion and celery to a small saucepot with a little olive oil to saute and cook for a few minutes
- then add the sliced lemon and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a low simmer for 20 minutes. Add more water if necessary to keep the stock close to 1 ½ cups
- Strain the solids from the broth and set aside.
Etouffee
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, cook until it starts to brown sprinkle in the flour while mixing and reduce the heat to simmer. Continue to simmer until the roux turns dark brown, about 10 minutes.
- Add the onion, celery, and peppers to the roux and cook until tender, about 8-10 minutes.
- Add the garlic and thyme and cook for a minute.
- Whisk in the broth
- Add the tomatoes and seasoning, reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Season with hot sauce and sea salt to taste.
Shrimp
- Mix some of your seasoning (or paprika if you don't want heat) and chopped parsley with your towel-dried shrimp
- Get a saute pan hot, add a little oil to the pan and add the shrimp
- Saute the shrimp quickly and cook until just done so they stay moist and tender. You want to get color into the shrimp so it's okay if they seasoning burns a little.
- Place white rice in center of bowl, add Etouffee around rice, place cooked shrimp on top
- Garnish with parsley and green onions
Nutrition
Allison Babb
Made this for my family of six. Everyone d it! It has been added to our rotation of recipes we know we’ll make again. The leftovers were great too. I’m so happy with this recipe.
Susan
Made this for my husband’s birthday dinner Sunday. My daughter and son-in-law came for dinner. And they both raved how wonderful it was. My son-in-law said it was one of the favorite meals I have ever made. And my husband who loves Cajun/creole cooking was thrilled. I followed the recipe to a T, and used creole seasoning because I prefer the little milder flavors. It was delicious.
Amy Liu Dong
Oh my gosh, this dish looks really, delicious and I can’t wait to make this for my family.
Weems McArthur
We grilled lobster and I made a lobster stock out of the shells. I used your shrimp etoufee recipe and substituted the chicken stock with lobster stock. It was fantastic!!
Robert
February 18, 2021.
Made it for myself 2 nights ago. Followed your recipe exactly. So delicious..Made it again tonight and added a dozen fresh muscles to the sauce while it was simmering. Unbelievable! Again, so delicious….gonna surprise girlfriend tomorrow with this dish for lunch….
Thank you for the recipe….already one of my favorites….
Robert….Agawam, MA
Chef Dennis Littley
Thanks for the great comment Robert! I hope you find more recipes to try, my shrimp and cheesy grits is another classic!
Richard Anneler
Thank you for this wonderful recipe
Followed your instruction to the letter, including the shrimp broth. This was a very easy dish with excellent instruction. Didn’t add to or change a thing.
Sharon Olson
How can I replace the tomatoes when there are dietary restrictions?
Chef Dennis Littley
there really isn’t a replacement for tomatoes. If you can’t eat them, leave them out.
Lizz in WA State
This was astoundingly good! An interesting version – this New Orleans girl had never used lemon or tomatoes in étouffée before but I’ll never leave them out again!! My roux was very dark and I ‘smothered’ the shrimp in the pot instead of cooking them separately. This one’s a keeper! Thank you for making me even *more* homesick for my hometown.
Leslie
Just delicious! The layers of flavors & spices make a beautiful, fragrant dish. I added 2/3 cup of lump crabmeat to the étouffée after simmering was complete. This recipe is a keeper and I’m looking forward to serving it to dinner guests.
Pilar
Made this New Years Day. The broth with lemon and shells made a complex and phenomenal difference. I added some of my spices while the roux was cooking the “trinity”, a trick from my experiences with indian cooking. I rarely follow recipes exactly, but this one really hit it. NICE
Chef Dennis Littley
LOL….thats probably a good idea since that would be about 750 F
Clinton Kent
Great recipe. I like the addition of a butter roux instead of the oil which is how my father Cajun father traditionally taught me. I used a high fat quality butter and it came out rich and almost a velvet texture.I also added some crawfish tails leftover from our last boil because why not. 10/10
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed the etouffee and I think you found out why I like butter for my roux’s!
Camil Anderson
So good! Easy to follow with an authentic Cajun taste!
Jane McIlmurray
Living in Florida we do not have good Cajun restaurants here. So I have to make them myself. I love these recipes.
Jan Neuman
Try Harry’s in Lakeland, St. Augustine, Tampa or Tallahasee. Amazing great food. For some reason can’t get it to the south of that like around the Naples area!
Danielle Fields
Wonderful. My family loved it. My first time making this. I will be making it again
Maureen
This was fabulous! Will be making this regularly. I substituted chicken thighs and sausage for the shrimp, but will make it with shrimp in the future.
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe Maureen. And swapping ingredients out is a great way to use what you have on hand and change up the dish!
Kelly
This sounds delicious
Mandy
I only gave 4 stars because I haven’t made it yet, but I’m super excited to try it! I love Cajun food, and etouffee is a favorite! My husband is coming off a 60 hour week tomorrow, and I want to make him a great home-cooked meal. I love how you have the steps listed to really build flavor. Wish me luck!
Nick DelRegno
This was a tasty dish, however it had more of a shrimp creole flavor than a classic etouffee flavor. I used home-made Emeril’s Essence for the seasoning, so perhaps that’s why. I loved the idea of making your own shrimp stock! We typically buy our shrimp peeled and deveined with tail off for ease of preparation, but making a broth with the shells and vegetable scraps was very flavorful!
Danny Adams
Good afternoon chef Dennis I have been looking over some of your étouffée Recipes my wife and I on a little restaurant in Cohutta Georgia There has not been a restaurant for 30 years in this town.I have had people ask me about doing seafood and one of the questions about étouffée I have never tried to make it but I have done other seafood dishes and was wanting to do étouffée one night at the restaurant do you have any suggestions Thanks
Chef Dennis Littley
I would start with following my recipe and see how it tastes to you. Adjust it to your style of cooking
Erica
LOL I also forgot your stars…
Erica
OMG! This was AMAZING! Followed instructions directly and the end result was tear jerkingly delicious. Over the pandemic, I’ve lost my passion for many things, cooking being one of the casualties. This recipe has breathed new life into my desire to do something other than mope. Thank you so much. This will forever be a rare happy memory from this era…. And I’ve taught my son how to prepare it in the process. Let’s hear it for new traditions!
Raye
I used this recipe and it came out great, thanks!
Avi
This came out simply amazing!!! It’s definitely my favorite seafood recipe !! Has soooo much flavor!
Sara
Forgot your stars!
Chef Dennis Littley
thank you Sara and I’m very happy to hear you enjoyed my Etouffee, it’s always been a family favorite
Sara
This is a-maz-ing! Worth the time to have a taste of N’awlins. Made it when I was missing Louisiana. Thank you for the step-by-step deliciousness!
Billie Jones
The etouffee I tried in NOLA was canned. 99% sure. Gross af. This was my first attempt at making it ever. Your recipe is great! I really appreciated the home made broth since it’s a little hard to find shrimp broth in North Dakota. Thanks for sharing!
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed my Etoufee recipe Billie and thanks for the great review!
Carol Calhoun
Chef Dennis,
I have to say this was Dam good! My husband love this dish. This Shrimp Etouffe is so flavorful.
I’m not one to comment on dishes oh so good! Thank you so much!
Chef Dennis Littley
thanks for the great review and comment Carol, I’m very happy to hear your husband enjoyed the dish! I hope you find more recipes to try .
gary hunter
well chef Dennis your shrimp Etouffee is here for ever just wonderful my wife tells me it is the berst she ever had
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m very happy to hear that Gary. I hope you find more recipes to try
Jerry
Made Chef Dennis’ shrimp ettouffee last night, the family really liked it. My wife is the judge and she said this recipe is a keeper. Thanks Chef Dennis!
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed my Etouffee recipe Jerry.Thanks for the great review!
fannie
Chef Dennis, this is my first rodeo and I’m a true Louisianian , it smells good, hope it taste as good as it smells. Thanks for the recipe.
Chef Dennis Littley
you’re very welcome, I hope you enjoyed the Etouffee
Summer
I made this last night and it was amazing. I was so excited that the flavor profile was exactly as it should be. Aside from the prep (deveining the shrimp and chopping all the veggies), this was a breeze to make. All I changed was adding more garlic and I used vegetable broth as the base instead of chicken. So good!
Chef Dennis Littley
Thanks for the comment and great review Summer! I’m happy to hear you adjusted the flavors more to your liking.
Karesha
It came out deliciously and looks amazing. Wish I could post a picture.
Dana
After an ill-fated vacation that was supposed to be in New Orleans, I’ve been craving a taste of N’awlins. This was great! Easy to follow directions though I modified a bit since I had a 12 oz. pkg of precooked shrimp. Since they were large, I cut them to make them go farther. I also had to use dried Thyme and slipped the parsley. We really enjoyed it and I will definitely fix it again! I am curious – you mention in an earlier comment that you don’t include serving size and calories but there is a nutrition label inserted in the “print” version. Have you added that? If so, why is the fat count so high? Thanks for sharing this and I’ll have to try some other things!
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Dana
this is an older post before I started using the nutrition app on my recipe plugin, now I do have the approximate information. As for the fat content, I would say it’s from the butter. Again these are only approximations of nutritional information.
Thanks for the great review!
Jeff H
Came out so good !
Saretha
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It was easy to make and flavorful.
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed my recipe!
Jeff h
Great recipe
Gene Wartman
I liked the show But what does a pink dress a rug on the table or a old park bench have todo with the food? Let her get her own show!.
Nick
You have butter listed twice in the ingredients
4 Tbs and 2 Tbs. is this an error or am I missing a step?
Thanks, Nick
Chef Dennis Littley
It’s just an error, and thanks for pointing that out Nick, not sure how that happened.
Laquita
I love this dish, even though I used patti Labelles recipes, This is one of my favs, other dishes are always welcome, I like to make new things, instead of the same dishes each week….
Chef Dennis Littley
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed my recipe!
Phyllis
I cooked it yesterday 07/05/2017, right along with you on the video, my family love it, Thanks!!!!
Chef Dennis Littley
I love it! Thanks so much for letting me know you enjoyed the Etouffee Phyllis!
Michelle
Just made this…. twiked it a little to mine and mine husband’s taste. Loved it next I a making your lobster chowder.
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Michelle
I’m happy to hear that you tried my Etouffe and added your own touch to it! That’s what cooking is all about creating dishes that you and your family will enjoy! I hope you like the lobster chowder just as much
Glenda Cox
I made this and it was a hit! I cooked for eight big hungry guys. I had to triple the amount of seasoning and I put 146 shrimp size 16-21. I have always used the Louisiana shrimp etouffee package that I purchase whenever I am home there. Have to admit, making it from scratch was so much better. I am hooked making it from scratch only for me
Glenda
sherry speece
please tell me calorie count and serving size.
Chef Dennis Littley
you would have to find a site to estimate that for you Sherry, its not something I do with my recipes.
Priscilla
Hi Chef Dennis!
Where have you been all of my life – I love your recipes. I actually happened to have a rack of pork so it is in the oven as we speak. Saw a recipe for Shrimp Etouffee – I have beautiful shelled and deveined gulf shrimp in my freezer I would like to use – but it mentions add the shrimp shells – I do not have any, will it be okay without them?
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Priscilla
thanks so much for stopping by and I’m happy to hear you like my recipes! The shrimp shells are just to add more shrimp flavor to the stock, its not a deal breaker. I hope you enjoy the flavors of the Etouffee!
KC the Kitchen Chopper
Thanks so much for the etouffee explantation. Your dish looks so mouthwatering. On my “to do” list.
Chef Dennis Littley
You’re very welcome KC, I hope you enjoy making and eating this delicious dish!
Jill
Thank you for this recipe! We are snowbirding on the Gulf-made this dish last night and it was delicious! I was a little light-handed with the seasonings-will add a bit more next time…happy Valentines day!
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Jill
I’m very happy to hear that you enjoyed the Etouffee and I do love my gulf shrimp!
Happy Valentines Day!
Dennis
Jill
Computer glitch (certainly not user error! Ha)
This recipe was a 5 STAR for sure! Not sure what happened……..
GERRY SJODIN
Looks Delish. I’m going to have to try it. Presentation looks pretty inviting.
Chef Dennis Littley
Thanks Gerry, I hope you get to try my Etouffee soon!
GERRY SJODIN
I think I’m going to tackle your Etouffee tomorrow, like I said, it looks Delicious. One question though, what size can of Diced Tomatoes? and do you have a preference of diced tomatoes.
Chef Dennis Littley
sorry for missing that Gerry, use a small can weight will be around 14 ounces. a little less or a little more isn’t a deal breaker. I use organic, but any diced tomatoes you like is fine (just make sure they’re not seasoned)
Liz
Thank you Chef Dennis for the lovely recipe. Have a wonderful weekend.
Chef Dennis Littley
you’re very welcome Liz!
mike
Chef I love you, but don’t ever use Canola oil !
Chef Dennis Littley
Thanks and I mostly use olive oil Mike.
Judy
I love your website and always look forward to getting a new email with a new recipe. I have tried several of your recipes and they are always awesome. I will be making this one this weekend. For anyone that has not tried the Tiramisu, you must! Thank you so much for sharing!
Chef Dennis Littley
Thank you Judy, I really appreciate the kind words!
Jennifer @ Peanut Butter and Peppers
Ohhhh Dennis, this is one recipe I have been wanting to make! Now that you shared your recipe I will be making this soon. I love it and your photos are beautiful!
Chef Dennis Littley
It is definitely a keeper Jennifer, Its going to make the rotation on our home menu!
Joyce
Look so delicious.
Chef Dennis Littley
thanks Joyce!
Larry
I really like your presentation and it sounds delicious.
Chef Dennis Littley
Thank Larry, I didn’t want to bury those beautiful shrimp and it looked great that way!
Barbara
What does 1oz can tomatoes around 14 mean? I’ve never heard of this, is it a typo
Barbara S.
Chef Dennis Littley
sorry that was supposed to say 1 14 oz can of tomatoes.
Will
Made this recipe for my first go st Étouffée. Added a jalapeño-deseeded for a little heat. Also used thawed frozen shrimp with some langoustine lobster according to recipe. Was a hit. And we’re used to some nice restaurant Étouffée. Thanks much!