Bubba Deen's Shrimp Etouffee

I like a lot of Paula Deen's recipes. They are not super complicated and the ingredients are easy to find in the grocery store. And they taste great. One day when watching her show, she featured her brother, Bubba. The two of them made this dish together.

 This recipe for shrimp etouffee sounds fancy....etouffee, but it is really simple to make. It tastes so good, has just the right combination of flavors as well as a creamy texture. I worked for a few months in New Orleans as a travelling nurse and this dish reminds me of the unbelievably good food I ate while there.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup flour (I use Bob's gluten-free all purpose flour)
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1 cup chopped celery
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 teas. black pepper
1/2 teas. white pepper
1/2 teas. cayenne pepper
1 teas. Cajun seasoning
1/2 cup minced green onions, plus extra for garnish
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
2-3 dashes hot sauce
1 (8oz) clam juice
1 (4.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
salt 
2 pounds small or medium shrimp peeled and deveined (31/35 count)
1/2 stick butter
Rice (optional)
Diced green onions(for garnish)


Directions:


Make the roux, mix oil and flour in a large heavy saucepan over low heat. Whisk flour into the oil to make a paste. Continue cooking over low heat and whisk continuously, until the mixture turns a caramel color and gives off a nutty aroma, about 15-20 minutes. To the roux, add the onion, green pepper, celery, and garlic and cook over low heat, about 5 minutes, until the vegetables are limp. Add the black pepper, white pepper, cayenne pepper, Cajun seasoning, green onions, parsley and hot sauce to taste. Add 1 can clam juice and the tomatoes with their juice, stir to blend. Add the salt, starting with 1 teas., then add more if needed. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer 10-15 minutes. Add shrimp and stir. It will take about 3 minutes for the shrimp to cook, don't overcook. Remove from heat. Add the butter and stir, the heat from the dish will melt the butter. Transfer the etouffee to a tureen, serving bowl , or if you prefer, over rice. Garnish with the green onions. 


Tip: I add 1 jalapeno pepper, diced and omit the hot sauce. It is plenty spicy!