Cajun Courtbouillon

By JimMac

Ingredients

• 4 cups of homemade seafood stock*
• 2/3 cup of roux
• 1 cup of onion, chopped
• 1 stalk of celery, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (1 pound 12 ounce) can of whole tomatoes
• 1 can of Rotel diced tomatoes with green chilies
• 1 teaspoon of kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of freshly cracked black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon of Cajun seasoning (like Slap Ya Mama), or to taste
• 2 to 3 pounds of redfish, red snapper, or catfish, cleaned
• Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
• Green onion, to garnish
• Fresh parsley, to garnish
• Hot, cooked rice
• Hot pepper sauce, for the table
• Lemon wedges

Preparation

Step 1

Instructions

Warm the seafood stock and set aside. In a large, heavy, lidded pot, warm up the roux over medium heat, stirring constantly. If you haven't already, add the onion, celery and bell pepper to the roux and cook for about 3-4 minutes or until vegetables have softened. Add the garlic and cook another minute.

Using kitchen shears, chop the tomatoes in the can, and add to the roux and veggies. Add the Rotel tomatoes. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes. Stir in the warmed seafood stock and add the salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning, and bring up to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about one hour, or until nicely reduced and thickened. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Add the fish to the top of the sauce, sprinkle it with a bit of salt and pepper, cover and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until fish is poached and cooked through. Don't stir!

Once the fish is poached through, carefully ladle the courtbouillon into a deep soup bowl, over steaming rice. Add a nice, mixed garden salad, a wedge of lemon, some fresh, hot French bread and always, hot sauce to pass at the table.

Cook's Notes: Can substitute 1 (32 ounce) container of commercial seafood stock (like Kitchen Basics), chicken or vegetable broth, or plain water. Substitute your favorite fairly firm, white fish, such as grouper, trout, cod, or tilapia.