The Justin Wilson #2 Cookbook: Cookin' Cajun

By Justin Wilson

From the host of several PBS cooking shows, a second cookbook featuring Cajun-inspired recipes and humor.
 
In this treasury of authentic Cajun recipes, Justin Wilson has assembled a wide range of dishes that perfectly complement his highly successful first cookbook, The Justin Wilson Cookbook, which has gone through numerous printings.

For those who want to know the secrets of Cajun cooking, or for those who simply want mouthwatering recipes, Wilson’s collection serves as an excellent resource. Savor, for example, Wild Ducks and Turnips, Cajunized Oriental Pork Chops, Stuffed Cucumbers, and Leftover Spaghetti Casserole. Also enjoy a variety of recipes under the “Cooking in a Bag” section, in which Wilson discloses the secret of cooking meats more quickly―and making them more tender―than non-Cajuns ever dreamed of. These are but a few of the certain-to-please recipes in The Justin Wilson #2 Cookbook, many of which were developed for Wilson’s TV show.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Jul 5, 2000
• ISBN: 9781455606900

Justin Wilson

During his lifetime, Justin Wilson was much more than a Louisianan chef. In fact, for much of his life, he didn't consider himself a chef. Wilson was the first to say that he was a Cajun cook-not a chef. He was a humorist-not a comedian-who appeared on television programs across the country, including The Tonight Show. Born in 1914, Wilson started his career as a safety engineer, who traveled across the state to give lectures to refinery workers. During these lectures, Wilson realized that he had a talent for telling Cajun humor, and from there, his career as a humorist grew. Wilson appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show and began to tell stories and cook Cajun cuisine for a living. Wilson learned much of what he knew about cooking from his Cajun mother. He took that knowledge, developed his personal cooking style, and helped to pioneer the Cajun food craze that caught the country by storm when he appeared at the ABA in 1974. Politically active, Justin Wilson became one of Louisiana's most iconic men in the twentieth century. He spent more than three decades producing cookbooks, entertaining people of all ages with his jokes, and teaching people from Los Angeles to New York how to cook Cajun. His twenty-seven comedy albums have charmed audiences everywhere, at one point even outselling Elvis Presley! Wilson died in 2001 in Pike County, Mississippi.

Book preview

How to Make a Roux

The roux is the foundation of many, many Cajun dishes. You will find it referred to in a number of the recipes in this book.

The roux which follows is the one I have used for many years with great success. I garontee!

Roux

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Cover the bottom of a heavy pot with olive oil. After the olive oil is well heated over a low fire, add the flour. Cook the flour very slowly, stirring almost constantly. (Cook for about 45 minutes.) The flour must be browned to a very dark brown, nearly black, but not actually burned.

This takes more time than you might think is necessary, but a good roux must be cooked slowly to get all the floury taste out of it and to insure uniformity of color.

Although all roux are pretty much the same in Cajun kitchens, there are variations practiced by some stubborn ol' cooks which I won't attempt to go into here.

However, as you read this book, you'll see where several recipes call for a couple of additional ingredients.

For instance, after you have made the basic roux, you may be instructed to add a small can of tomato paste, stirring this constantly until the roux has reached the color of the flour before the paste was added. Then add a small can of tomato sauce, stirring this into the mixture until it all turns dark brown again. This is only one of the many variations of the basic roux.

Appetizers and Dips

Copper Pennies

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Simmer in a saucepan the salad oil, sugar, vinegar, tomato soup, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce.

Boil the carrots until tender. (Remember, if you use canned carrots, you don't have to cook them!) In a casserole dish, alternate in layers the carrots, onions, and peppers. Pour sauce over the vegetables and refrigerate.

Le' me tol' you the wondermous part about us Cajuns. We don't need no appetizers 'cause we got an appetite soon as we sit down, yeah. I don' even need no cookin' aromas, no. The kind of appetite I got wake up wit' me in the mornin', every mornin'. I tol' you for true!

Shrimp Dip

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Combine all of the ingredients, except butter, and whip together well. Chill. Just before serving, blend in the butter until the mixture becomes smooth. Use for dunking shrimp.

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Crawfish Cocktail

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Boil the crawfish in well-salted water about 15 minutes. Mix the rest of the ingredients together for the cocktail sauce.

Fill a large bowl with chopped ice and arrange crawfish tails over the top. Provide toothpicks for handy dipping. Serve with cocktail sauce.

Party Cheese Ball

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Blend together the cream cheese and shredded cheddar cheese. Add all of the other ingredients except the pecans; mix well.

Shape into a ball and roll in chopped pecans. Wrap, and chill for 24 hours in the refrigerator. Serve with crackers or chips. Makes one l'/rpound cheese ball.

Tabasco Marinated Shrimp

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Remove shells and veins from shrimp. Rinse. In a saucepan, combine beer, Tabasco, salt, mustard, vinegar, onion, honey, and bitters. Bring to a boil and simmer about 1 minute. Add only enough cleaned shrimp as will be covered by the liquid mixture; return the mixture to a boil and then simmer 2 to 5 minutes, depending on the size of the shrimp. Remove shrimp from the liquid, add remaining shrimp, and repeat the cooking procedure.

Cool both the shrimp and the liquid. Return the shrimp to the cooled liquid and marinate for several hours. Drain.

Serve with wooden picks as hors d'oeuvres or an appetizer. Makes approximately 2 dozen servings.

Tangy Meatballs

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Combine the ground beef, egg, chili sauce, chopped onion, salt, and pepper with 1 cup cheese cracker crumbs. Mix thoroughly. Shape into tiny meatballs and roll in the remaining y2 cup cracker crumbs.

Saute the meatballs 5 minutes in y, inch hot cooking oil, turning to brown on all sides. Remove to a chafing dish and