Category Archives: Seafood

June 21, 2013 · 1:10 pm

BBQ Crabs

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Recipe by Pat Savoie

Our family always enjoys a day of crabbing in Cameron. Slowly pulling in the string and swiping the net underneath just in time never fails to thrill. And hey, you never know when you’ll catch a stingray!
While it’s common to boil crabs or put them in a gumbo, BBQ Crabs are a special treat worthy of dinner guests.

Aunt Becca and the Grandkids on the Cameron Ferry

Aunt Becca and the Grandkids on the Cameron Ferry

Cullen caught a Stingray!

Cullen caught a Stingray!

Ingredients

Cleaned crabs
1    stick   butter, melted
1/2  cup    Old Bay Seasoning
1/2  cup     brown sugar

Method

Clean raw crabs by removing the shell, legs, and gills.

Arrange crab bodies on a pan lined with tin foil.

Brush each crab with melted butter.

Combine Old Bay Seasoning and brown sugar and sprinkle generously on each crab.

Bake 450 for 10 minutes, then broil for 1-2 minutes.

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Filed under Main Dish, Seafood

April 14, 2012 · 10:59 am

Shrimp and Okra Gumbo

Mom and Dad are fortunate to have befriended Ms. Yvette, a former client, who calls them periodically when she has nice sized shrimp. Mom and Dad head and freeze them, so they always have them on hand. Growing up, our family never bought shrimp from the grocery store! This year my parents gave up rice for their lenten sacrifice, so after Easter, they enjoyed a nice big bowl of gumbo.  

by Pat and Kent Savoie based off of Granny’s recipe

Ingredients

1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup flour
1 large onion, chopped
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 lb sliced okra, fresh or frozen
2 lb peeled shrimp
Tony’s seasoning to taste
Salt

Method

Make small roux with oil and flour. See roux basics for step by step photos.

Add onions and cook until clear.

Stir in tomatoes, Tony’s seasoning,

and about 1 1/2 cups water.

Cook 15 minutes.

Stir in okra and fresh shrimp.

Simmer about 10 minutes until shrimp turn pink.

Serve over cooked rice.

Set the table with bottles of peppered vinegar, Tabasco or Tabasco Green Pepper Sauce, and Tony’s to use as desired. Generally when you have okra in the gumbo you don’t use filé.

Everyone likes to stir the pot in anticipation!

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March 22, 2012 · 10:58 am

Teriyaki Salmon or Tilapia

My friend Emma Welsch shared this recipe with me several years ago as an idea for Friday Lenten suppers. She claimed it was very easy and delicious. I have to agree. While the original recipe calls for marinading the fish and then grilling it over coals, Emma’s version of baking it in the marinade and then serving the fish over a bed of rice with the sauce is simple and quite tasty.

By Emma, Elizabeth’s friend

Ingredients

Fish fillets or steaks to fit in a 9×13 dish
Vegetables such as matchstick carrots or sliced red or yellow bell peppers
Sliced green onions

Marinade
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 Tbsp soy sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 tsp ground ginger or 1 tsp fresh grated

Method

1.Arrange defrosted fish in a 9×13 dish.

2. Combine marinade in a glass measuring cup and heat slightly in the microwave to help the brown sugar dissolve.

3. Pour marinade over fish and let sit for 15 minutes. If you are pressed for time, omit this and bake immediately.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

4. Place vegetable in dish, reserving the green onions for later.

5. Bake for 15 minutes. Serve over rice and top with sliced green onions and a spoon of marinade/sauce.

*Leftovers are perfect for a school lunch. Pack hot meal in a thermos.

**If you prefer, marinade the fish for 15 minutes and then place the fillet or steak on the grill for 3 minutes, brushing with marinade, and then flip for another 4-5 minutes.

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Filed under Grill/BBQ, Lunch Box, Main Dish, Seafood

February 16, 2012 · 12:54 pm

Hot Crawfish Dip

“What smells so delicious?” my guests kept asking. At my recent Mardi Gras themed Pokeno party, my appetizer buffet included Louisiana inspired dishes. This Hot Crawfish Dip was a winner. Every last piece of French bread was used to sop up this guest favorite.

by Elizabeth Savoie Dronet, based on a Southern Living recipe

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 bunch green onions, sliced (about 1 cup)
1 small green bell pepper, diced
1 (1-lb.) package frozen cooked, peeled crawfish tails, thawed and undrained
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (4-oz.) jar diced pimiento, drained
2 teaspoons Tony’s
1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened

French bread baguette slices, slightly toasted

Method

Throw me something Mister!

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat; add green onions and bell pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, 8 minutes or until bell pepper is tender. Stir in crawfish and next 3 ingredients; cook, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Stir in cream cheese until mixture is smooth and bubbly. Serve with toasted French bread slices.

This dip would also be good over noodles to make a crawfish fettuccini.  Add a little celery to the onions and pepper if desired.

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Filed under Appetizer, Seafood

December 23, 2011 · 9:23 am

Pickled Shrimp and Onions

Here is a recipe for your Christmas buffet that’s sure to impress.  My mother, Dolores Borel, served this years ago when hosting for her dance club.  This Christmas, she helped me with the presentation for my party.  Everyone was in awe of how wonderful it looked and tasted.

By Pat Savoie, recipe from Dolores Borel

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Ingredients

2           pounds shrimp
2           sweet onions, sliced into rings
1 1/2     cups       vegetable oil
1 1/2     cups       white vinegar
1/2        cup         sugar
1 1/2     tsp          salt
1 1/2     tsp         celery seed
4            Tbsp      capers with juice

Method

Boil shrimp in salted water 3-5 minutes or until pink.  Chill in a cold water bath.  Peel.  Combine remaining ingredients and marinate shrimp and onions in the refrigerator several days stirring occasionally.

For presentation, I covered a cone-shaped piece of styrofoam first with lettuce, then with parsley using floral picks.  Marinated shrimp and onion rings were attached to the “Christmas tree” with plastic picks.  Excess were arranged at the base.

Rebecca and guests enjoying the Christmas buffet

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Filed under Appetizer, Seafood

December 2, 2011 · 2:43 pm

Boiled Stone Crabs

Kent and I are fortunate enough to have friends who are shrimpers by trade.  Once in a while they bring us stone crab, which is considered a great luxury.  The crab is relieved of only one claw, then returned to the water.  We received an ice chest full a few days ago, and got on the phone to call the relatives over to eat.  It was dark outside and the mosquitoes were bad, so we ate at the kitchen table.  Can you imagine grandchildren and adults all armed with hammers whacking away to get to the delicious crab?  My house sounded and looked like a construction site.  With a lot of elbow grease and the vacuum cleaner, my kitchen was back in shape.  Kent took the shells and crushed them to add to the compost pile.    by Pat Savoie

Method

Add enough water to a large pot to cover the amount of seafood you will be preparing. Add 1 cup of Zatarain’s Crab Boil per dozen crabs. Bring water and seasoning to a rolling boil and add crabs. When water comes back to a boil, cook 5 minutes and turn off the heat. Soak 15-20 minutes. Serve immediately.  Dip the meat into a mixture of melted butter and lemon juice.

(Stone crabs have an extremely hard shell.  Use mallets or hammers to crack open.)

Even the baby can get in on the fun!


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July 15, 2011 · 8:55 am

Shrimp Tempura

I love crispy fried shrimp!  Being raised in a Catholic family, I grew up abstaining from meat every Friday.  This was never a hardship having fresh seafood all of the time.  My mother used this recipe when frying fresh shrimp and I still love it today.

Recipe by Dolores Borel, submitted by Pat Savoie

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Ingredients

1     cup      Flour
1/2 tsp       Sugar
1 tsp           Tony’s
1                 Egg
1    cup       Ice Water
2    Tbsp     Oil
1    lb           Peeled Shrimp

Method

Mix flour, sugar, egg, ice water, and oil together and stir until batter is smooth.  Add all shrimp to the batter, then drop by spoonfuls into hot oil (350 degrees).  Fry for about 3 minutes or until light brown turning shrimp over.  Some batter will float off shrimp while frying.  Be sure to remove floating pieces before beginning the next batch.

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January 12, 2011 · 8:15 am

Gumbo Roux Basics

by Pat Savoie

Mix 3/4 cup flour and 3/4 cup oil. Heat and stir constantly with a flat bottom spoon.

Cook unti it's the color of burnt peanut butter.

Add 2 chopped onions, which will cool down the roux.

Allow onions to cook until they begin to turn clear.

For Chicken and Sausage Gumbo:
Add browned chicken and sausage remembering to add water to the bottom of the pan to remove bits of browned chicken. Simmer about an hour until chicken is falling off the bone. (Chicken breasts can be used, but you will miss the flavor that the bones add just like when you make homemade chicken soup.) Remove the chicken from the gumbo and discard the bones and skin. Return the chicken to the pot adding water depending on the desired thickness of the gumbo. Simmer, skimming off excess oil. Before serving, add chopped green onions.
For Seafood Gumbo:
Seafood can be used instead of chicken. I like shrimp and crabmeat. Shrimp only take about 10 minutes to cook. Add the crabmeat last and stir gently to keep the lumps from falling apart. Don’t forget to add the chopped green onions.

For Shrimp and Okra Gumbo, see this recipe.

Elizabeth likes okra in her vegetarian gumbo. If you like, drop an egg into the boiling pot and let it cook for about 7 minutes before you are ready to serve.

Ladle over cooked rice. Many serve potato salad as a side dish.

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Filed under How To, Main Dish, Seafood, Vegetarian

September 15, 2010 · 10:41 am

Broiled Red Fish

Red fish are abundant in the waters of southwest Louisiana.  Recently, Pat and I were fortunate to fish at a camp on the south end of Big Lake near Cameron, Louisiana.  As the tide was coming in, the water flowed over the weirs carrying with it small fish, crabs, and shrimp.  The red fish gathered at this spot for the feast.  LSU students were conducting a study of the marine life at this location.  They threw a cast net that collected over 1,ooo specimens.  The catch was cataloged then offered to us to use as bait.   We reeled in red fish until our arms were trembling with exhaustion.  It was like fishing in a barrel.  We took home our limit of 5 apiece, and released the rest.  The average fish was 5 pounds. This is truly a sportsman’s paradise.

by Kent Savoie

Clean and fillet fish.  Scales can be left on or removed.

Line a jellyroll pan with tin foil.  Lay fillets skin side down.  Season with Tony’s Seasoning.

In glass measuring cup, melt a half a stick of butter.  Add the juice of half a small lemon.  Brush the tops of the fish with the lemon butter.

Place the fish on the second highest level.  Broil on high for about 10 minutes.  Take a fork and at the thickest point,  test to see if the fish is white and flaky.  If needed, return for a few more minutes until done.

Remove from oven and brush again with the lemon butter mixture.  Garnish with lemon slices.

Fishing is a family tradition. Here's Pat's grandfather, Ed Borel (right) with fishing buddies in 1966.

Ed Borel with a great catch 1965


Kent shows off his red fish 2011

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Filed under Main Dish, Seafood

June 21, 2010 · 5:29 pm

Crawfish Fettuccine

Our family likes to celebrate Easter with a crawfish boil.  Crawfish Fettuccine is a great dish to make with the leftover crawfish tails.



by Granny–Dolores Borel

1 1/2      cups  butter
3            medium  onions
2            medium  bell pepper
1/4        cup  flour
1/2        cup  water — warm
4            tablespoons  garlic
3            pounds  crawfish
4            tablespoons  parsley
2            pints  half and half
1/2        pound  velveeta
1/2        pound  cream cheese
24          ounces  fettuccine
1/2        teaspoon  tumeric
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

Melt butter and saute onions and bell pepper.

Combine water and flour and add to mixture.

Add parsley, garlic, crawfish and seasonings.

Add half and half, velvetta, cream cheese.

Add cooked fettuccine.

Pour into greased casserole.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bake 350 30 minutes Cover with tin foil while baking

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