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    Home » Recipes » Seafood Recipes

    Shrimp Étouffée {Classic Cajun Recipe}

    Published: Feb 12, 2015 · Modified: Nov 7, 2022 by Chef Dennis Littley

    37.4K shares
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    4.67 from 215 votes
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    Shrimp Etouffee pinterest image

    Shrimp Étouffée is a Classic Lousiana Seafood Stew made with tender seasoned shrimp, smothered in a cajun sauce that’s packed with the cajun flavors of New Orleans.

    You can’t make Shrimp Étouffée without the Holy Trinity (onion, celery, and green peppers), and a simple dark roux to thicken it up. It’s an easy recipe that will have you enjoying the taste of New Orleans in your home tonight.

    Shrimp Étouffée with rice on a white plate

    I’m sure you’ll agree that this is the best Shrimp Etoufee you’ve ever made and truthfully it does take a bit of time to make, but the process is easy and after one taste you’ll agree it was time well spent.

    Table of Contents:

    • What is Étouffée?
    • What’s in an Étouffée Sauce?
    • Recipe FAQ’s
    • More Shrimp Recipes You’ll Love!
    • Cajun Shrimp Étouffée Recipe
      • Ingredients
        • Broth
        • Etouffee Sauce
        • Shrimp
        • Assembly
      • Instructions
        • Broth
        • Etouffee Sauce
        • Shrimp
        • Assembly
      • Video
      • Nutrition

    What is Étouffée?

    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.

    What’s in an Étouffée Sauce?

    Étouffée is a type of stew if you want to get technical. It’s made with a roux, onion, celery, and bell pepper (the holy trinity), tomato, garlic, hot sauce, and either shrimp, crawfish, or chicken.

    Cajun Étouffée does not contain tomatoes. The addition of tomatoes is the Creole way of preparing etouffee.

    shrimp etouffee with rice on a white plate

    There are many variations of this classic shrimp 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.

    Many 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.

    Around the Kitchen Table, shrimp etouffee

    Étouffée is typically made with shellfish, with crawfish 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.

    While traditionalists may argue that the only Etouffee is Crawfish ÉtoufféeI’ll have to disagree. Crawfish may make the traditional dish, but it’s easier to find shrimp, and shrimp make one delicious etouffee!

    Recipe FAQ’s

    What is Étouffée sauce made of?

    Etouffee means “smothered” when translated from French. It’s basically a stew and typically consists of a dark roux, the Holy Trinity (onion, celery, and bell pepper), tomatoes, garlic, hot sauce, and can be made with shrimp, crawfish, or chicken

    What is the difference between Gumbo and Étouffée?

    Gumbo is made with the same ingredients with the addition of file powder and okra (the word “gumbo” even comes from a West African word for okra.
    Gumbo is usually made with a mixture of different meats and seafood. Etouffee is usually only made with shrimp or crawfish.

    Does Étouffée always have tomatoes?

    True Cajun Étouffée does not contain tomatoes, but the creole version does. I prefer the flavor the tomatoes add to the dish, but they can be left out.

    Do you have to use Crawfish Tails to make Étouffée?

    No, you don’t. Shrimp Étouffée is becoming more popular and it’s easier to get Shrimp from US waters than it is to get crawfish.

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    Shrimp etouffee on a white plate with rice
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    4.67 from 215 votes

    Cajun Shrimp Étouffée Recipe

    My easy to make Shrimp Étouffée is perfect for that special date night or to make any night a special occasion!
    Prep Time15 minutes mins
    Cook Time1 hour hr
    Total Time1 hour hr 15 minutes mins
    Course: Entree
    Cuisine: American
    Servings: 2
    Calories: 804kcal
    Author: Chef Dennis Littley

    Ingredients

    Broth

    • shrimp shells
    • ½ lemon sliced
    • scraps from cutting onion and celery
    • 2 cups chicken broth

    Etouffee Sauce

    • 4 tablespoons butter
    • 4 tablespoons flour
    • 1 cup onion small dice
    • ½ cup celery small dice
    • ½ cup bell pepper small dice
    • 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 optional

    Shrimp

    • 14 jumbo shrimp 16-20 count shrimp, tail off shelled and deveined (about ¾ of a pound )
    • ½ tsp Cajun seasoning
    • ½ tsp Italian parsley finely chopped

    Assembly

    • 2 cups cooked rice
    • sea salt to taste
    • ¼ cup green onions sliced for garnish
    • tablespoon Italian parsley chopped for garnish
    US Customary – Metric
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    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 Sauce

    • 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

    • Dry the peeled shrimp with paper towels
    • Mix some of your seasoning (or paprika if you don't want heat) and chopped parsley with your towel-dried shrimp. Toss the shrimp with the seasoning.
    • Heat another saute pan over medium-high heat. Add a little oil to the pan and add the seasoned 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.

    Assembly

    • Place white rice in center of bowl, add Etouffee Sauce around rice, place cooked shrimp on top
    • Garnish with parsley and green onions

    Video

    Nutrition

    Calories: 804kcal | Carbohydrates: 93g | Protein: 39g | Fat: 33g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 275mg | Sodium: 2166mg | Potassium: 1568mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 4570IU | Vitamin C: 99mg | Calcium: 732mg | Iron: 18mg
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    About Chef Dennis

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    Chef Dennis Littley is a classically trained chef with over 40 years of experience working in the food service industry. In his second career as a food blogger he has made it his mission to demistify cooking by sharing his time-tested recipes, knowledge, and chef tips to help you create easy-to-make restaurant-quality meals in your home kitchen. Let Chef Dennis help you bring the joy of cooking into your home. For more details, check out his About page.

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    1. Andrea

      April 18, 2023 at 6:59 pm

      5 stars
      Loved this dish! Excellent flavors— very easy also!

      Reply
    2. Linda from Perth

      November 07, 2022 at 8:02 pm

      5 stars
      What a delicious recipe. I did double the vegetables, and served it with shrimp the first night. The next night I combined it with the rice, reheated it, and topped it with roasted cauliflower. Equally delicious!

      Reply
    3. Ranae

      July 13, 2022 at 8:50 pm

      5 stars
      I made this tonight and it was absolutely delicious! The shrimp broth made all the difference! I have some frozen lobster shells I think I will add next time and maybe double the sauce just so I can keep eating off the spoon! Highly recommend!

      Reply
      • Robert deGruiter

        August 10, 2022 at 8:34 pm

        5 stars
        I am Dutch, but has lived in New Orleans since the Sixties and love the local cuisine. It has been the last 10 years or so when I started cooking more and going back to cook the dishes which my Mom cooked and we thoroughly enjoyed. I saw the recipe for Étouffée and tried it and love the results. Thank you for sharing this great traditional Louisiana dish. I now live in Mississippi and am retired. Life is good…

        Reply
    4. Lauren

      July 03, 2022 at 9:14 pm

      5 stars
      My first time making etouffee and it was delicious! Cooking for one I’m always looking for recipes that reheat well and I can get multiple meals out of without getting sick of them. This recipe was really easy to follow and be able to modify the spice level to my tolerance; I made my own Cajun seasoning mix to tweak the amount of cayenne. Agree with the others that the shrimp stock makes it. I added a touch of coconut oil to finish my rice and some chopped cilantro to the parsley, which won’t be to everyone’s taste but if like me you’ve taken a liking to Gulf Viet-Cajun cuisine give it a try.

      Reply
    5. Sharon

      April 01, 2022 at 2:15 pm

      5 stars
      I have made this recipe! Fabulous!

      Reply
    6. J-Rock

      March 10, 2022 at 1:45 pm

      5 stars
      Making the broth is always the thing I least want to do when cooking dishes like this, but the broth recipe for this is the best for etouffee I’ve found, makes the whole process more fun and less wasteful feeling. The whole dish was great.

      Reply
    7. Christina

      January 12, 2022 at 6:16 pm

      5 stars
      This recipe is amazing. It really does create such a deep flavor!! So so so good!!! Making the shrimp broth really does make it INCREDIBLE!

      Reply
    8. Ceal Craig

      January 03, 2022 at 8:57 pm

      5 stars
      Thanks for good recipe, especially the explanation for why tomatoes–yes or no– depending on Creole or Cajun (respectively). We tried it without tomatoes. Made my own seasoning with Santa Fe Chile pepper and Smokey Paprika from a local Bay Area spice shop. I did not get a dark brown roux; because I think I missed the key phrase about browning the butter first! I just mixed them and then simmered, after boiling. Made shrimp stock with shells (and roe) that came with spot prawns from our Wild Alaska seafood box (I’ll post a link to your site in the community FB page!). Delicious taste! Very tasty. Thanks!

      Reply
      • Loretta

        July 03, 2022 at 8:51 pm

        How many servings does this Shrimp Etouffee recipe make?

        Reply
        • Chef Dennis Littley

          July 04, 2022 at 7:45 am

          2, you can always find that information on the recipe card

    9. Shay

      November 13, 2021 at 12:01 am

      5 stars
      I made tonight it was so good n flavorful. I cooked the shrimp about 2 mins each side n then once the etouffee was finished I put the shrimp in the pot to soak up the juice n flavor n finish cooking, so good thank u for this recipe

      Reply
    10. Laurie

      September 18, 2021 at 9:51 pm

      5 stars
      Absolutely delicious! The homemade shrimp stock is what makes this dish stand out and sets it far and above standard home cooking. Don’t skip that step, it’s how you build all the flavor! Great recipe, adding it into the hand-written family cookbook.

      Reply
      • Chef Dennis Littley

        September 19, 2021 at 10:12 am

        Thanks for the comment and great review Laurie! I’m happy to hear you enjoyed the ettouffe!

        Reply
    11. Sidney Allen Fein

      August 13, 2021 at 4:52 pm

      Use cayenne instead of jalepenos. Solid recipe though.

      Reply
    12. Allison Babb

      June 16, 2021 at 6:04 pm

      5 stars
      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.

      Reply
    13. Susan

      June 07, 2021 at 1:20 pm

      5 stars
      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.

      Reply
    14. Amy Liu Dong

      March 06, 2021 at 10:37 am

      5 stars
      Oh my gosh, this dish looks really, delicious and I can’t wait to make this for my family.

      Reply
    15. Weems McArthur

      February 27, 2021 at 8:05 pm

      5 stars
      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!!

      Reply
    16. Robert

      February 18, 2021 at 11:38 pm

      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

      Reply
      • Chef Dennis Littley

        February 19, 2021 at 9:20 am

        Thanks for the great comment Robert! I hope you find more recipes to try, my shrimp and cheesy grits is another classic!

        Reply
    17. Richard Anneler

      February 17, 2021 at 7:32 pm

      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.

      Reply
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    My name is Dennis Littley or “Chef Dennis” as I’m known both at work and across the blogosphere. As a classically trained chef with 40+ years of experience in the kitchen, I share my time-tested recipes, knowledge, and chef tips to help you create easy-to-make restaurant-quality meals in your home kitchen.

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