Louisiana Cookin' July/August 2018

WHEN I WAS GROWING UP, my dad took us crabbing a few times, though it wasn’t something we did often. We didn’t use baited traps as many folks do. Our method—sneaking barefoot around the warm shallow water with nets—was probably not as efficient, but much more fun. Even so, we had a bucket full of those snappy little critters by the end of the day. Each season in Louisiana brings with it a host of new flavors and dishes that we look forward to all year long. As summer settles in, blue crabs start running, sno-ball stands reopen, and the okra is high. In this issue, you’ll find some of our favorite new summer recipes, including some classics from Napoleon House chef Chris Montero. His crispy Panko-Crusted Crab Balls and Creole…

IN CASE YOU ARE DREADING turning the oven on, please know you are not alone. It’s deep summer here in Louisiana, so if you’re like me, you’re about to go from your air-conditioned home to your air-conditioned car to your favorite local restaurant. I feel cooler already just thinking about somebody else doing the cooking. As regular readers of this column know, it is my life goal to eat my way across Louisiana, and if I do say so myself, I’m making some great progress. Wherever you live in the state, you can find great moderately priced restaurants practically in your own backyard. Let me tell you about some of my recent great finds. LIVIN’ LA VIDA LOCAL By the time you read this, there will be a bacon-centered restaurant in Lafayette, aptly…

New Orleanians were deliciously introduced to the food hall concept with St. Roch Market on the edge of the Marigny neighborhood a couple years ago, but now the owners have taken their concept to the Warehouse District. That is where you will find Auction House Market, a wide-open, architecturally pleasing space featuring an eclectic collection of food vendors. How eclectic? Consider, all under one roof: sushi, poké bowls, Mediterranean food, local seafood, empanadas, deli fare, Indian food, vegetarian dishes, and more. How will you decide? We can’t help you there, but if it’s just too hard to leave it all behind, you can actually live upstairs in newly renovated lofts. One of our favorite local chefs, Alon Shaya, is out with his new cookbook, Shaya: An Odyssey of Food, My…

As you know, in each issue, we feature a chef we believe in here in this space, but this time around, we’re going a bit more high-spirited. Alan Walter is the creative director at Loa, the upscale cocktail lounge in New Orleans’ International House Hotel. We caught up with Alan to discuss his distinctive approach to craft cocktailing: For those who haven’t visited, please tell us about Loa. Loa is part of a boutique hotel just outside the French Quarter. It is close enough that we cater not only to our own guests, but people who are sent our way from concierges at other hotels. We also have a strong local following. It’s a very romantic, candlelit bar, great for date nights, with low light and music low enough to talk,…

GROWING UP NEAR PENSACOLA, FLORIDA, Jeremy Conner has always loved catching and eating Gulf seafood. The Lafayette-based chef’s passion for the Gulf of Mexico has carried throughout his life and led him and his wife to handcraft flake finishing salt from its waters for their company Cellar Salt Co. During the summer, when Gulf shrimp are plentiful in Louisiana’s coastal waters, Jeremy likes to highlight their unique flavor in this bright, acidic pickled shrimp salad. One of the best things about this recipe is that it works with any size shrimp, or even shrimp of various sizes. “THIS IS A GREAT SUMMER RECIPE BECAUSE THE SHRIMP ARE PLENTIFUL AT THOSE CAST NET SPOTS.”—CHEF JEREMY CONNER SMOKY P PICKLED SHRIMP SALAD MAKES 4 SERVINGS Recipe courtesy of Chef Jeremy Conner 2 quarts water½ sweet or yellow…

COOKING EN PAPILLOTE, or steaming food in a parchment paper pouch, is a light and foolproof way to prepare seafood. When fish, vegetables, and aromatics are sealed in the pouch, it retains the steam and juices during cooking, yielding an extremely flavorful result. In New Orleans, pompano is the traditional choice for this method, but any firm white fish (such as trout or snapper) will work nicely in this recipe. FISH EN PAPILLOTE MAKES 4 SERVINGS 4 (6- to 8-ounce) firm white fish fillets½ teaspoon kosher salt½ teaspoon ground black pepper¾ pound fresh asparagus, cut into 1½-inch pieces2 large carrots, cut into 1½-inch pieces¼ cup sliced red onion8 teaspoons unsalted butter2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil12 thin lemon slices8 sprigs fresh dillGarnish: fresh dill sprigs 1. Preheat oven to 400°. 2. Sprinkle both sides of fillets…