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On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Cornbread is a staple Cajun starch. Cajun cuisine is sometimes referred to as a ‘rustic cuisine’, meaning that it is based on locally available ingredients and that preparation is relatively simple. An authentic Cajun meal is usually a three-pot affair, with one pot dedicated to the main dish, one dedicated to steamed rice, specially made sausages, or some seafood dish, and the third containing whatever vegetable is plentiful or available. Cajun chefs in Cajun and Louisiana Creole cuisines. The Acadians were a group of French colonists who lived in Acadia, what is today Eastern Canada.

Due to the extreme change in climate, Acadians were unable to cook their original dishes. West African name for that very ingredient: “Gumbo,” in West Africa, means “Okra”. Up through the 20th century, the meals were not elaborate but instead, rather basic. The public’s false perception of “Cajun” cuisine was based on Prudhomme’s style of Cajun cooking, which was spicy, flavorful, and not true to the classic form of the cuisine. Cajun and Creole cuisine have been mistaken to be the same, but the origins of Creole cooking began in New Orleans, and Cajun cooking came 40 years after the establishment of New Orleans.

Today, most restaurants serve dishes that consist of Cajun styles, which Paul Prudhomme dubbed “Louisiana cooking”. Deep-frying of turkeys or oven-roasted turduckens entered southern Louisiana cuisine more recently. Also, blackening of fish or chicken and barbecuing of shrimp in the shell are excluded because they were not prepared in traditional Cajun cuisine. The following is a partial list of ingredients used in Cajun cuisine and some of the staple ingredients of the Acadian food culture. Cajun foodways include many ways of preserving meat, some of which are waning due to the availability of refrigeration and mass-produced meat at the grocer.

Also included in the seafood mix are some so-called trash fish that would not sell at market because of their high bone to meat ratio or required complicated cooking methods. These were brought home by fishermen to feed the family. Examples are garfish, black drum also called gaspergou or just “goo”, croaker, and bream. Boudin—a fresh sausage made with green onions, pork, and rice. Pig’s blood is sometimes added to produce boudin rouge. Other versions can contain seafood, such as crawfish. The sausage itself does not include rice, separating it from boudin.

Though parts of Acadiana are well suited to cattle or dairy farming, beef is not often used in a pre-processed or uniquely Cajun form. It is usually prepared fairly simply as chops, stews, or steaks, taking a cue from Texas to the west. Ground beef is used as is traditional throughout the US, although seasoned differently. Dairy farming is not as prevalent as in the past, but there are still some farms in the business. There are no unique dairy items prepared in Cajun cuisine. Traditional Cajun and New Orleans Creole-influenced desserts are common.

Cajun woman reaching for strings of garlic suspended from rafters. Thyme, sage, mint, marjoram, savory, and basil are considered sweet herbs. In Colonial times a herbes de Provence would be several sweet herbs tied up in a muslin. Cajun spice” blends such as Tony Chachere’s are sometimes used in Cajun kitchens, but do not suit every cook’s style because Creole- and Cajun-style seasoning is often achieved from scratch, even by taste. Cajun seasonings consist of a blend of salt with a variety of spices, most common being cayenne pepper and garlic.

The spicy heat comes from the cayenne pepper, while other flavors come from bell pepper, paprika, green onions, parsley and more. Hot sauce, including Tabasco sauce, which by 1885 was well known in Louisiana and abroad. Various barbecue rubs similar to those in other states. Vinegar seasoned with small, pickled, hot green peppers is a common condiment with many Cajun meals. Dark roux—Cajuns inherited roux from the French. However, unlike the French, theirs is made with oil or bacon fat and more lately with olive oil, and not normally with butter.