Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen

You will wear out this book until it falls to pieces and the food stained remnants no longer resemble a book. I'm on my third copy and have taken to re-writing them on paper for kitchen use. Many other reviewers have stated this, but it can't be said enough - follow the directions exactly, no matter how incredulous you may be (and on some recipes you will be). It always works out. THAT SAID, there are a few recipes that to my tastes (and probably 99% of other people on this Earth) that have far too much oil. I noted them - well, at least the ones I've tried - at the bottom of my review. Although I grew up in New Orleans and continue to live there, my parents passed no cooking skills on to me worth mentioning, as they, like most New Orleanians who are not professional cooks, only knew how to make a few things well and never wrote anything down. After a few years of being unsuccessful learning to cook from books that were not meant for learners, I finally bought this one in the early 1990's. This book will teach you how to cook, so long as you let it. Follow the directions. No substitutions. The amount of work that went into testing these recipes must have been daunting, especially with regard to seasoning. This book isn't just for Gulf South dwellers. There are a great many recipes here that can be made anywhere in the world; for the seafood oriented ones, you're probably out of luck. Another note: please do use parboiled rice in Louisiana dishes. Stop calling it "processed" - it isn't any more processed than any other rice. All it means is that the husk has been blown off with steam rather than mechanical threshing. It retains the bran this way and the grains make perfect al dente rice. I personally like Zatarain's, but any will do. Some of my personal favorites - Crawfish Etoufée - this version is made with roux, which is not a common way to make it in New Orleans. It's one of those you think couldn't possibly turn out right, but it is sublime. This was my favorite dish in the world as a child and continues to be in my top ten! This is the best version I've ever tasted. Turtle Soup - One of the best recipes in this book, and the best turtle soup I've ever had (and I've eaten plenty of turtle soups around town). Shrimp Diane - shrimp and butter with mushrooms. Delicious over pasta. Barbecued Shrimp - Whole, head on shrimp broiled in butter with black pepper, rosemary, etc. Remember to snip the antennae, eyes and horn off the shrimp's face before cooking them. The antennae will make a gross mess in your pot. You're welcome for this advice. Don't eat this more than once a year if you want to live past 40. This is one of the best versions I've ever had. Shrimp, Chicken or Rabbit Sauce Piquant - VERY hot. If you can eat very spicy Asian food, you will be fine with it. If you want to make a less hot version, make shrimp creole instead. Seafood Stuffed Shrimp - A royal pain to make, but worth it! I like to make this with his Shrimp and Crabmeat butter cream sauce. Cajun Prime Rib Cajun Meatloaf Chicken Curry - doesn't taste anything like an proper Asian curry, but is delicious anyway. This has actually been a traditional New Orleans dish for a long time, although out of fashion now, it was very popular in the 1940's - 1970's. Made with a great deal of butter and fruit (raisins, apples, coconut and bananas here) and very spicy. Sticky Chicken Corn Maque Choux - this is a delicious version which is sweet. It isn't commonly made like this in Louisiana, but I like this one better than the normal, savory way with tomatoes. Potato Salad/Green Onion Salad Dressing - I'm not kidding. Make this. Gumbos - all of them. Especially Seafood, but all of them are excellent. Jambalaya - all of them, except the ones where he wants to put oysters in them. No one puts oysters in jambalaya down here, and I find it very weird and off putting, and I don't think it really works. Just my opinion. Roast Pork Loin - GOD Now for some of the ones I don't care for, or rather just don't work for me. The big man, as much as I love him, has Cajunified these particular New Orleans classics with too much oil - Stuffed Merliton - this version is somewhat greasy and I don't think the sauce does much for it. The merlitons (chayote squash) Americans find in the store are about 1/4 the size of the ones grown here, which also have spiny, husky skins which stuff well. The store bought ones from Central America aren't big enough, so don't try them.That said you can make a casserole version of this with them, but there are better recipes. Red Beans and Rice - way too greasy with those ham hocks. The seasoning is just right though. You could make this same recipe, except sautéing the trinity with seasoning first, then adding to the pot of boiling water (better: ham stock) with a smoked ham shank. Do away with the ham hocks and use a equal amount of pickled pork shoulder meat as you do beans. Pickled pork is a must in red beans for most New Orleanians. Oyster Dressing - too much oil! Yikes. Chicken Big Mamou (not a New Orleans dish) - too much butter again.

Just about every cookbook has a bad recipe here or there. Something that's not described correctly, never quite seems to turn out, or just plain isn't that great. That is, every cook book except this one. The Cajun food craze happened about the time I was born; before I bought this book I mostly knew Paul Prudhomme as the guy on the spice canisters who looks like Dom DeLuise. I also knew things like jambalaya, blackened fish as mediocre dishes served at casual dining chains. After having made Paul Prudhomme's versions of the famous Louisiana staples, I now know why these dishes were exciting enough for people to try to imitate, even if they have done so badly. While every recipe I have made from this book has been an explosion of deliciousness, chicken etouffee (which must not be that common; the crawfish versions seems to be easier to get), barbecue shrimp, and the chicken and tasso jambalaya are not only awesome, cooking them gives you an enormous and gratifying sense of accomplishment. The relatively high level of difficulty with these dishes (you WILL burn roux a couple times) makes it all the more enjoyable when you get it right. My wife, who does not like shrimp all that much and was grossed out by the idea of fat from shrimp heads cooking came around to the taste of the shrimp creole and barbecued shrimp from this book. The jambalaya has blown away everyone for whom I have served it. All the classics are here, sometimes more than one version (there are about six gumbo recipes in the book), and they are far better than just about any other version you will eat if you live outside of Louisiana. A couple warnings: 1) A few years back, Paul Prudhomme lost a bunch of weight because his doctors told him that being morbidly obese would kill him. This book was written before that happened. I used two boxes of butter (not individual sticks, but entire boxes) in a couple days making barbecued shrimp and blackened redfish in succession. You can't eat out of this book every day, which usually isn't a problem because; 2) You won't have time to cook this stuff every day, unless you have a lot of time on your hands. There is a place for 30 minute meals and short recipes for busy families can be great. This is not a book for that. While some recipes are less complicated than others (helpfully, easier dishes are at the beginning of their respective chapters), most of the classics like the gumbos, etouffees, and jambalayas, require long prep and/or cooking time. If you're busy, you may need to set aside a few hours over a weekend to make this food. Fortunately, most of it refrigerates well. This is high-quality cooking, and it takes the time, effort, and attention to detail you'd expect it to take. 3) Some ingredients, like whole shrimp and tasso, are not widely available outside of Louisiana. You may have to order some things online. Trust me, it's worth the expense and hassle. Tasso, in particular, tastes like no other ham you will ever eat, and most butchers and meat shops outside of Louisiana don't even know what it is. If you need to order tasso or andouille online and you can afford to do so; do it. You won't regret it. In short, best cookbook I have ever owned.

This book is a must have in every kitchen. My entire family has owned and used Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen for as long as I can remember. My mother even purchases copies to give as gifts as it is a truly amazing cookbook. If/when planning to cook a meal using this cookbook, plan for the occasion as most recipes are time consuming and some require steps to be completed the day before. Every recipe is extraordinary. I am not exaggerating when I say this as when I haven't cooked or eaten some of my favorite dishes, I dream about them. The book includes a wide variety of entree's such as seafood (obviously), chicken, beef, rabbit, sausage and pork as well as desserts, appetizers, breads and soups/gumbos. Many of the recipes also include instructions on proper presentation of the dish, how to garnish the items, etc. which is wonderful when hosting guests. For those who live inland, it may be hard to come by certain seafood items. Although I live relatively close to the coast, it is still a 2-hour drive, thus I have had many issues with trying to obtain certain ingredients. Through trial and error, I have substituted crawfish recipes by using shrimp instead, which has always worked decently. Another issue I have encountered is obtaining the ingredients necessary to make a proper seafood stock, (yes, for those unfamiliar with Cajun cuisine it may sound odd boiling shrimp or fish heads but the book explains its purpose and why it is necessary). It's easy to purchase fully intact fish at a local grocery store however, a fully intact shrimp is not as easy to come by. I have found that if you drive to a fishing area or marina (I go to the DC Warf) and look around or ask if you can have just the heads of the shrimp (they typically throw them away anyway), you may get lucky. I have also found that when I have frequented these places, the people don't mind and will many times give me the heads for free. Although majority of the recipes are complex, as well as time consuming, the chef also includes chapters that provide step-by-step instructions and pictures which explain how and why certain steps are necessary. Again, this book is a must have for anyone who enjoys the art of cooking and eating amazing food. It also makes for a great gift.

I bought this Louisiana kitchen cookbook in 1984 when I was in college in north Louisiana. I’m still cooking from it!! I am from South Louisiana and they did not have Cajun food in north Louisiana back in 84 so I use this book to make my own. Let me tell you these recipes are unbelievably overwhelmingly delicious. Try the pork roast recipe in this book it will blow your mind. Paul Prudhomme could season food like no other chef. In everyone of these recipes make sure you season exactly like he tells you to and you won’t be sorry. You may want to cut the amount of cayenne pepper and white pepper and a half if you don’t like hot seasoning. Also, in his chicken and sausage gumbo, he fries the chicken. You don’t have to do that you can use bake chicken. You can buy fried chicken to put in there but you don’t have to mess up your kitchen frying chicken. Anyway you do it make sure you cook chicken and sausage gumbo cause it’s sooooo good. His étouffée seasoning mixture is what I use for shrimp gumbo and let me tell you it’s incredible. If you like Cajun food, this is the king of Cajun food cookbooks. I actually think it’s the best cookbook in history and I cook a lot and from a lot of different cookbooks. There’s nothing that can compare so buy this book and get cooking!!!

If you like cajun/creole cooking or Gulf seafood this book is an absolute must. I got this book when it first came out in 1982, I believe. I've been cooking with it ever since and make many dishes throughout the year, every year. My copy has lost its dust jacket, the pages are stained, the binding is just about to go, and some of the pages have completely come loose. No matter, the recipes still work and the food still comes out fantastic. Of course, there are a few recipes that don't work for me and my taste buds such as the Dirty Rice. Never cared for this version. Instead I developed a recipe that is almost identical to the dirty rice served at Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen restaurants here in the south. In most cases I find the recipes a little too spicy - even for someone who has Mexican heritage and eats A LOT of chile every day. I usually reduce the amount of cayenne pepper by half and adjust accordingly when the dish is ready. As the old adage says - it's easy to add more, hard to take out too much. Pay close attention when making roux for a recipe. Follow the directions exactly, especially which color of roux to achieve. I think this is the most important thing to watch out for when cooking with roux. To Chef Paul's infinite wisdom he included pictures of the different roux used in his recipes. This is an excellent visual guide. Using a roux that is too light or too dark for a particular dish can ruin it. But if you have the right color it will turn out heavenly. I highly recommend this book. If you have an aversion to using butter, margarine, and vegetable oil in substantial quantities then take a pass. Nevertheless, you shouldn't eat like this everyday, just take one look at Chef Paul, he's a big guy. Use it once a month and you will be fine. I live about 60 miles from the Gulf Coast so I luckily have access to all the wonderful seafood used in this book. Whenever I procure some fresh gulf shrimp, flounder, redfish, speckled trout, blue crab, oysters, and crawfish I always first turn to this book.

This was, of course, the book that brought "blackened" fish into American home kitchens, and its recipe for that is as good now as it was then, and suitable for new kinds of fish that are now available in stores. When there is rice, Prudhomme always means converted rice. There are a number of recipes for rabbit that I may never get the chance to try. Same with various organ meats. There are a wide variety of Jambalayas in the book. However, in general the recipes don't seem to be as well-tested as some modern cookbooks. It's a really good resource, and it's very enjoyable just to sit down and read, but I wouldn't be surprised if I never make any of the recipes "as written." I'll probably modify all of them to try to make them easier (I spent about 2 hours just making his "dirty rice" side dish! Very meaty, by the way. I might rename it 'ricey meat'), or to use ingredients available in my average grocery store.

Great cookbook. Replaced my original one that was falling apart.

Great to replace my lost cookbook. Love this one

Love this book. Great recipes to.take me back to new orleans. Can not wait to try the recipes.

Every dish that I've tried so far has been spiced to perfection. Many seafood dishes, but don't let that deter you. Plenty of great food recipes to try out

Simply the best

I have followed Paul off and on over the years but have never bought any of his books. I eventually purchased this book and sat down to look through it and I'm totally loving it. So much history which he explains throughout the book and only what I feel are authentic Louisiana recipes. Cannot wait to start cooking from it. At long last I have it!

The recipes aren't exactly straight forward, and neither is his cooking style (go ahead a google him on youtube!) But the results are amazing! The book also includes all of his rub recipes and variations on blackening spices. My favourite cookbook.