Pappadeaux Crawfish Etouffee

Make a roux by melting the butter over medium high heat in a large, heavy sauce pan (preferably cast iron). Add flour gradually and stir well to blend. Slowly cook flour, stirring frequently (a wire whisk is helpful) until it reaches a medium dark brown color (similar to chocolate milk). When the roux reaches this color, add the paprika, cayenne, black pepper and red pepper; stir well and cook for 1 minute. Add the onion, celery, green bell pepper and garlic and saute approximately 10 minutes, stirring frequently until the vegetables are tender. While the vegetables are sauteing, bring the water to a boil. Pour the boiling water into the sauce slowly, stirring constantly with a whisk. (If you don’t keep stirring, the sauce will develop lumps.) Bring back to a simmer and add shrimp (or fish) base. At this point, taste to determine if more salt is required, and for consistency. If the etouffee is too thin, add the additional 3 tbsp of flour, whisk to incorporate, and continue simmering. When the sauce is ready, add the red bell pepper and parsley for color. Just before the sauce is served, saute the crawfish or shrimp until opaque, and add to the hot sauce. Serve with rice. Makes 8-10 small servings or 4-5 large dinner servings.