Photography by Jim Bathie | Recipe Development by Vanessa Rocchio | Food Styling by Kathleen Kanen | Styling by Haley Bowen
Move over, elbows. For this mac & cheese, we wanted to honor the famous Rocky and Carlo’s-style that so many New Orleansarea folks adore. That Chalmette institution uses bucatini noodles, and serves it with tomato gravy and some brown gravy.
Crawfish Mac and Cheese
Makes 6 to 8 servings
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 3 cups whole milk, room temperature
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (16-ounce) package cooked crawfish tails, drained
- 4 cups shredded fontina cheese, divided
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese with peppers, divided
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, plus more to taste
- ½ to 1 teaspoon hot sauce (optional)
- 1 (16-ounce) package bucatini, cooked according to package directions
- Tomato Gravy (recipe follows)
- Brown Gravy (recipe follows)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°. On a rimmed baking sheet, spread flour.
- Bake, stirring frequently, until golden brown, 50 to 55 minutes. Leave oven on.
- In a medium Dutch oven, heat ¼ cup butter over medium heat until melted and bubbling. Add ½ cup browned flour (reserve remaining browned flour for Tomato Gravy and Browned Gravy); cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Slowly add milk and cream, whisking constantly. Cook, stirring frequently, until thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Working in batches, add 3½ cups fontina and ½ cup Monterey Jack, a little at a time, whisking until completely combined after each addition. Add salt, paprika, cayenne, black pepper, and hot sauce (if using), whisking until completely combined.
- Meanwhile, in a medium skillet, melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, until onion is tender, about 6 minutes. Stir in crawfish, and cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Stir in cooked crawfish and pasta. Spoon into a 13x9-inch cast-iron pan. Cover with foil.
- Bake until bubbling, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle remaining ½ cup fontina and remaining ½ cup Monterey Jack on top, and bake for 10 minutes more. Let cool until firm enough to cut, about 1 hour. Serve with Tomato Gravy and Brown Gravy. Season to taste with black pepper.
Tomato Gravy
Makes about 5 cups
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- ½ cup finely chopped celery
- ½ cup finely chopped green bell pepper
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ cup browned flour (reserved from Crawfish Mac and Cheese)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 (28-ounce) can chunky-style crushed plum tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, celery, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, until tender, about 8 minutes.
- Sprinkle browned flour onto vegetable mixture, and cook, stirring frequently, until flour is not dry. Whisk in broth until smooth. Stir in tomatoes, and cook, stirring frequently, until thickened and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Stir in Creole seasoning.
Brown Gravy
Makes about 2¾ cups
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- ¼ cup finely chopped onion
- ¼ cup finely chopped celery
- ¼ cup finely chopped green bell pepper
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ cup browned flour (reserved from Crawfish Mac and Cheese)
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, celery, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, until tender, about 8 minutes.
- Sprinkle browned flour onto vegetable mixture, and cook, stirring frequently, until flour is not dry. Whisk in broth until smooth. Cook, stirring frequently, until thickened and bubbling, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in Creole seasoning.
