Spicy Crawfish Pasta Recipes

RICHARD AND SUZANNE'S LOUISIANA CRAWFISH PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes; drain.
• While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir the garlic in the butter 1 to 2 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Stir in the yellow onion and 1/2 tablespoon red pepper flakes; cook until the yellow onion becomes translucent. Add the crawfish tails; cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring continually; transfer the crawfish to a bowl, leaving as many onions as possible in the skillet.
• Pour the heavy cream into the skillet and bring to a boil; reduce heat to low, and simmer until thickened. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 tablespoon red pepper flakes into the cream, return the crawfish to the sauce and simmer 2 to 3 minutes. Serve sauce over the drained pasta; garnish with chopped green onion.

LOUISIANA CRAWFISH YA-YA PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly-salted water to a rolling boil; stir in the egg noodles and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through but is still firm to the bite, about 5 minutes. Drain well in a colander set in the sink.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the chopped onion, green pepper, garlic, and parsley. Cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the crawfish tails and Cajun seasoning; simmer 5 minutes longer.
• Pour in the heavy cream, mushrooms, and 1/2 cup of Cheddar cheese; stir until the cheese has melted. Toss the pasta with the crawfish sauce and green onions; sprinkle with the remaining Cheddar cheese.

ORIGINAL CRAWFISH OR SHRIMP MONICA

Steps:

• 1. Cook pasta in salt water according to the directions on the package. Drain, then rinse under cool water to stop the cooking. Drain again, thoroughly.
• 2. Melt the butter in a large skillet and saute onions and garlic for 3 minutes.
• 3. *If using raw shrimp, add them with the onions and garlic at the beginning.
• 4. Add the crawfish and half-and-half, sauté until bubbly.
• 5. Add Creole seasoning - 1 big pinch then taste. Add more as needed but tasting before adding the next pinch until you think it's right. Add salt if needed. If you've boiled your own crawfish add the crawfish fat to the mixture as well.
• 6. Cook for 5 - 10 minutes over medium heat until the sauce thickens.
• 7. Add the pasta to the pot and toss well. You may not need to use all of the pasta. (I double the recipe when using the whole pound of pasta.) Let it sit for about 10 minutes over very low heat, stirring often.
• 8. Serve immediately, with lots of French bread and a nice white wine. Buon Appetito!
• 9. *COOKS NOTE: Most of the time I use half Heavy Cream and half - Half and Half, or in other words 1 1/3 cups heavy cream and 2/3 cups milk. I generally buy Heavy Cream because it can be cut with milk to make Half and Half. The sauce seems to thicken better than straight Half and Half but using all Heavy Cream is too thick.
• 10. *Tip: The sauce is excellent over Redfish on da Half Shell or grilled filets - I call it Redfish Monica.
• 11. *Options: If you don't have crawfish, use bay scallops, shrimp, lump crabmeat (add last and fold in gently).

CRAWFISH FETTUCCINE

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, saute the onion, red pepper, green onions and celery in butter until vegetables are crisp-tender, 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in flour until blended; cook and stir, 2 minutes. Add the cheese, cream, jalapeno and salt; cook and stir until mixture is thickened and cheese is melted, 10 minutes. , Meanwhile, cook fettuccine according to package directions; drain. Stir fettuccine and crawfish into the vegetable mixture. Cook, uncovered, over medium heat until heated through, 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

CRAWFISH AND CREAM OVER PASTA

Steps:

• Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Return to the pot and toss with the olive oil and reserved cooking liquid. Cover to keep warm.
• In a large saute pan or skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, Essence, salt, and cayenne, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the white wine and cook over high heat until nearly all evaporated. Add the cream lemon juice and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced. Add the crawfish tails and cook, stirring, to warm through. Add the onions and parsley and cook for 1 minute. Add the cooked pasta and toss to coat with the sauce. Cook until the pasta is warmed through, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and add 1/2 cup of the cheese.
• Turn out into a serving bowl and top with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. Serve.
• Combine all ingredients thoroughly.

CRAWFISH FETTUCCINE I

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic in butter until onions are tender. Stir in flour, and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in crawfish. Cover, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring often.
• Stir in the processed cheese, half-and-half, Cajun seasonings, and cayenne pepper. Cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook pasta in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente; drain.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Stir noodles into crawfish mixture; pour into prepared dish, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.