Crawfish Étouffée

Seafood markets sell frozen, peeled crawfish tails harvested in Louisiana. You can substitute peeled shrimp, but the color won't be as intense.

Recipe Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound peeled crawfish tails
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
Hot cooked rice

Cooking Directions:

1. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and next 3 ingredients; sauté, stirring constantly, 5 minutes.
2. Stir in crawfish and next 5 ingredients; cook 5 minutes. Stir in flour; cook, stirring constantly, 2 minutes.
3. Stir in water gradually; cook over low heat 20 minutes, stirring mixture occasionally.
4. Stir in green onions and parsley; cook 3 minutes. Serve over rice.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.