Mardi Gras is over for the year, but the Cajun party does not have to stop, especially for your taste buds. Crawfish season is officially here, and everyone has their personal style to cook and host. Think you’ve tried it all? How about a Viet-Cajun Crawfish Boil? Necessary supplies include a giant bib, a few extra ingredients, and a taste for adventure.
Starting in 1975 and into the ’80s, the United States welcomed several rounds of Vietnamese immigrants after the fall of Saigon. Southern California was the most popular area to start new lives, but Houston’s close location to the ocean allowed immigrants to carry on with trades like the seafood industry. Fast forward twenty years or so, and the Vietnamese communities in Houston began crafting new approaches to Louisiana-traditional crawfish boils. Thanks to this experimenting, Viet-Cajun crawfish is growing in popularity.
Photo: envato elements
Louisiana-traditional crawfish boils typically feature potatoes, corn, and those little crustaceans; everything is boiled together with water, mustard seed, cayenne pepper, bay leaves, allspice, and secrets of the bayou. Viet-Cajun style means another round of kitchen time: once the crawfish is cooled, the tasty mudbugs are tossed in a butter-based sauce, which often contains elements such as garlic, orange wedges, ginger, and lemongrass. Different versions of Viet-Cajun cuisine are constantly evolving, and each restaurant has their own take, but you can be certain of a mouth party.
Photo: envato elements
Although crawfish aren’t Vietnam natives, this seafood has been welcomed and built on, partly likely due to French-influenced similarities to Gulf Coast food. Not into mudbugs? Consider Vietnamese takes on crab, shrimp, and pho. As the United States home to the second-largest Vietnamese population in the world, embrace your neighbors! Experiment with new flavors in your own backyard or patronize one of these enterprising restaurants. Just be ready for the heat. Laissez les bons temps rouler with thức ăn ngon!