Weeknight Chicken Sausage Etouffee
This rich and flavorful Cajun dish becomes an easy weeknight meal by using pre-cooked chicken sausage and a blonde roux.
Traditionally etouffe is cooked with shellfish, crawfish or shrimp (and often stock made from their shells) and sometimes chicken or andouille sausage. I make it easier to satisfy my craving for Cajun flavors on a weeknight by using pre-cooked sausage and chicken stock. I lighten it up a bit using a smoked chicken sausage rather than andouille. A blonde roux also saves time since it requires a shorter cook time than a brown roux.
While prepping shrimp is too much for me on a weeknight, if you would like to add shrimp, it is an easy addition to this dish and doesn’t affect the cooking time. I include those instructions at the end of the recipe.
Weeknight Chicken Sausage Etouffee
Prep time: 10 min | Cook time: 20 min | Total Time: 30 min | Servings: 6
Ingredients
1 package pre-cooked smoked chicken sausage, about 1 lb (use vegan sausage for a meatless option)
1 Tbsp olive oil
Roux:
2 Tbsp salted butter (use olive oil for dairy-free)
2 Tbsp flour
Produce:
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 medium sweet onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 green onions, sliced (optional garnish)
1 lemon, use 1/4 for juice and the rest sliced for optional garnish
Seasoning:
1 tsp Cajun seasoning, I use Tony Chachere's. If you don't like much heat/spice start with 1/2 tsp and you can add more at the end to taste.
1/8 tsp white pepper
Broth:
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes with juice
1 Tbsp tomato paste
a splash of hot sauce (I use Tabasco. Leave this out if you don't want it too hot)
Serve with:
White rice
Equipment
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Medium heavy bottom saute pan. We use this one.
Rice Cooker if serving with rice. We use this one.
Make it even easier
Skip browning the sausage.
Use 1 tsp pre-minced garlic in place of the 2 cloves of minced garlic.
Use frozen rice and heat up in the microwave. I like Trader Joe’s microwaved brown rice, takes just three minutes.
Directions
1. If you are serving with rice, go ahead and get your rice started in the rice cooker so it will be ready when the meal is finished.
2. Prep your ingredients. Slice the sausage into medallions. Chop the green bell pepper and sweet onion. Mince 2 cloves of garlic. Slice the green onions if using for a garnish.
3. Heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a medium, heavy bottomed saute pan. Add the sliced sausage in a single layer, cooking undisturbed just a couple of minutes per side until browned. Remove to a plate and set aside. If you are short on time you can skip this step since the meat is already cooked, but this step adds flavor and texture.
4. Melt 2 Tbsp of salted butter in the pan over medium heat. Be careful not to burn the butter, lower the heat if it starts to bubble and turn brown. Once the butter is melted, whisk in the 2 Tbsp of flour, one at a time. Continue to cook and stir continuously for about 3-5 minutes until it becomes a light brown color. This is the roux that will thicken the sauce. You don’t want to walk away from the stove at this point to make sure it doesn’t burn.
5. Add the chopped bell pepper and onion and cook until starting to soften, about 5-6 minutes, stirring often.
6. Add 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1/2-1 tsp of Cajun seasoning, 1/8 tsp white pepper, 1 Tbsp of tomato paste and cook another minute.
7. Add 1 cup of chicken broth and stir, scraping up any browned bits in the bottom of the pan.
8. Add the diced tomatoes with juice and a dash of hot sauce (optional) and stir well.
9. Add the sausage back to the pot and stir.
10. Bring up to a simmer. Simmer gently uncovered for 10 minutes.
11. Turn off the heat and stir in a squeeze of lemon (about one quarter of a lemon). Serve with rice and garnish with green onions.
Notes: If you would like to add shrimp to the recipe use a stock pot that can hold more volume. Double the roux, spice and broth ingredients. Follow the recipe as listed and add 1 lb of peeled and deveined shrimp along with the sausage for the final 10 minutes of cooking.
