This is super easy and you can make it as spicy as you want! My mum made this sometimes with a basic flour pie crust, but I prefer to eat it in a casserole form. You can also make this with shrimp, since crawfish may mot be as readily available to most. *side notes~ you can add more or less onion to suit your tastes. also, the traditional recipe calls for green bell peppers, but we don't like them so I always omit them from my recipes. If you are familiar with creole cooking, you'll know that the traditional mox of onions, green peppers, and celery is referred to as the "Holy Trinity, and is called for in nearly EVERY cajun dish I have ever eaten. Below is simply MY take on the recipe, adjusted to suit my table:) Please add as much or as little Holy Trinity as you like;. Another thing, file is a finely ground sassafrass and you can find it in most supermarkets...if not, Publix will order it for you. They did for me when I lived in Columbia:)*
What you'll need:
1 pound crawfish tails *peeled, deveined*
2 boxes Uncle Ben's wild rice *prepared according to box*
1/2 c chopped onion
1/4 chopped celery
1 can condensed celery soup
2 cans condensed mushroom soup
1 can evaporated milk
1 medium size block velvetta cheese, cubed *use mexi version for a little kick*
2 tbls butter
garlic, salt, pepper to taste
file' and cayenne pepper to taste
What you'll do:
Prepare rice according to box. Set aside. Drain crawfish tails. Saute over medium heat w/ 1 tbls chopped garlic and butter until heated through. Set aside. Combine onion, celery, soups, and cheese with evap milk. Cook over med-low heat until cheese is completely melted. At this point, I add a few dashes of file and cayenne, then stir until well combined.
Place crawfish in buttered casserole dish. I find that it's best to mix in equal amounts of rice and cheese mixture in small bits...makes it easier to stir. Once all of the mixture is well combined, sprinkle with a bit of file...place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes *until the sides are crispy and the top is golden brown* at 350 degrees.
Serve fresh out of the oven with warm, crusty french bread. This dish is VERY filling, so a little goes a long way! You can cut the recipe in half by using only one box of rice, then adjusting the rest of the recipe to suit your taste.
