Creamy Crawfish Mac-N-Cheese

Creamy Crawfish Mac-N-Cheese

 

Ingredients

1 Pound of Crawfish Tails

1 Tablespoon of Oil (Vegetable or Olive Oil)

½ Cup of Chopped Sweet Onions

½ Cup of Chopped Bell Pepper

½ Cup of Chopped Celery

½ Cup of Chopped Green Onions

2 Chopped Garlic Cloves

1/2 Cup of Chopped Chives for Garnish

½ Teaspoon of Liquid Crab Boil

1 Pound of Your Favorite Pasta

 

Creamy Béchamel Cheese Sauce

½ Cup of All Purpose Flour

½ Cup of Unsalted Butter

1 Teaspoon of Kosher Salt

1 Teaspoon of Black Pepper

1 ½ Cups of Vitamin D Milk

1 Cup of Evaporated Milk

3 to 4 Cups of Your Favorite Shredded Cheeses 

(I used Cream Cheese, Sharp Cheddar, Pepper Jack, Pecorino Romano)

 

Crispy Onion Rings

I Large Vidalia Sweet Onion

2 Cup of All Purpose Flour

2 Tablespoon of Kosher Salt

2 Tablespoon of Black Pepper

2 Teaspoon of Cayenne Pepper

2 Cups of Buttermilk

48 Ounces of Vegetable Oil

 

Directions

1.     Boil your paste according to the package directions and set aside in a large bowl.

2.     In a medium saucepan over a low to medium heat add 1 Tablespoon of oil and sauté chopped onion, bell pepper, celery, onions, garlic then add liquid crab boil.  Allow to sauté for approximately 5 to 7 minutes then add your crawfish tails and sauté for an additional 3 minutes on a low to medium heat.  Remove from the heat and set aside.

Prepare your creamy béchamel cheese sauce in a heavy saucepan.   On a low to medium heat combine butter and flour until well mixed stirring for 1 to 2 minutes.  Add milk half cups at a time to mixture stirring constantly… Mixture will thicken quickly….continue to add additional milk until all is gone and remember to stir constantly to prevent any lumps in your sauce.  Once your béchamel sauce is smooth and creamy add half of the shredded cheese into the sauce along with the cream cheese and stir until melted.

(Tip: In a separate bowl combine all of the shredded cheeses, except for the cream cheese. Save half of the shredded cheese to top the dish for baking in the oven.)

3.     Pour your creamy béchamel cheese sauce over your pasta add the crawfish mixture and stir until well combine.  Place in a casserole dish top with the remaining cheese and bake in a 400 Degree oven for 15 minutes until all the cheese has melted on top and crisp up around the edges.  Remove from the oven and top with crispy onion rings.

 

Crispy Onion Rings

1.     Heat oil to 350 Degrees in a deep frying pan.

2.     Place flour in a deep dish and place milk in a separate deep dish.  Season both flour and milk    with 1 Tablespoon of Salt, Pepper and Cayenne Pepper mixing well together.

3.     Peel and slice onion to desired thickness and separate.  First dust onions in flour mixture and then into buttermilk and finally back into the flour mixture.  Remove from flour mixture and set aside for a couple of minutes while your oil is heating.  Add a few onions at a time…don’t overcrowd your deep frying pot when placing in the onions to fry.  Fry until golden brown.  Remove and place on a pan lined with paper towels, napkins or even paper bags for excess oil to drain off your crispy fried onion rings.