Crawfish Fettucine

A fork swirls into a bowl of crawfish fettuccine

This Crawfish Fettuccine recipe is a grown-up take on a classic South Louisiana dish — crawfish-forward, deeply flavorful and made with real cheeses. Built on a roux with the holy trinity of Cajun cooking and some andouille sausage for bonus flavor, this is the creamy, decadent pasta recipe to make when you want to impress. It’s the perfect way to put fresh or frozen crawfish tails to use, too!

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 30

Total Time 55

Servings servings

Calories 472kcal

Ingredients

1 lb. fettuccine pasta
½ - ¾ cup pasta water
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
½ cup diced andouille sausage * smoked
3 cups chopped yellow onion (about 1 medium onion)
¾ cup chopped celery (about 1 ½ ribs)
½ cup chopped green bell pepper (about ½ large bell pepper)
6 cloves garlic minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups milk
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup shredded monterrey jack cheese
24 oz. crawfish tails ** (this should be 1 ½ lbs., including the liquid in the packaging)
1 ½ teaspoons Creole seasoning
½ cup grated parmesan cheese plus more for garnish
Green onions and parsley for garnish

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Before starting on the sauce, cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the 1 lb. fettuccine pasta, and cook for 8-10 minutes or until al dente. Reserve ½ - ¾ cup pasta water in a liquid measuring cup and set aside. Drain the pasta and toss lightly with olive oil to prevent sticking, and set aside.
Melt 4 tablespoons unsalted butter over medium heat in a large pot or Dutch oven.
When the butter is fully melted, add ½ cup diced andouille sausage and saute for 3-4 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Add the 3 cups chopped yellow onion, ¾ cup chopped celery and ½ cup chopped green bell pepper next. Cook for 7-10 minutes, or until softened. You do not want for the vegetables to begin to brown.
Add the minced 6 cloves garlic next and cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
Measure in 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, and stir it into the vegetable mixture. Cook for 1-2 minutes so that it does not have a raw flour taste.
Lower the heat to medium-low. Slowly pour in 1 ½ cups milk, stirring constantly, until the mixture begins thickening, about 2-3 minutes.
Measure in the ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese and ½ cup shredded monterrey jack cheese, stirring constantly and letting the cheeses melt completely before moving to the next step.
Add 24 oz. crawfish tails , as well as the liquid from the packaging. Season liberally with 1 ½ teaspoons Creole seasoning, and stir into the sauce mixture. Cook for 5-8 minutes, or until warmed through.
Sprinkle in the ½ cup grated parmesan cheese, and stir to combine. Add the cooked fettuccine pasta directly to the sauce, and toss, until all noodles are coated.
Serve immediately with extra grated parmesan cheese, Green onions and parsley.

Notes

Adapted from Louisiana Cookin' magazine.

* smoked andouille will be easier to work with in this recipe. If you can only find fresh, remove it from the sausage casing and break it up into very small pieces as you cook it to get a similar effect.

** crawfish tail packages vary depending on where you live. I used to use 16 oz. bags, but my grocery store now only stocks 12 oz. bags. You can use a single 16 oz. bag if you don’t want to get a second and then have leftover crawfish, but you will not have the same crawfish flavor or color to your sauce.

Nutrition