Crawfish Bread (New Orleans Style)

This cheesy crawfish bread is easy to make and will leave you craving more. Loaves of French bread are stuffed with a homemade Creole crawfish filling and plenty of cheese.

Why it Works

• Onions, bell pepper, celery, garlic, and tomatoes are cooked in butter to create a flavorful base for the Creole crawfish filling. 
• We use frozen, cooked crawfish tail meat that’s easy to find in most grocery stores.
• A small amount of mayonnaise, along with mozzarella and parmesan, transforms the crawfish mixture into a creamy, cheesy filling for the bread.
• A loaf of soft French bread from the bakery is flavorful and sturdy enough to hold the filling.

Ingredients

• Yellow onion, green bell pepper, celery, and garlic (the Trinity and the Pope) are slowly cooked in butter to create a flavorful base for the crawfish.
• Roma tomatoes add more depth and a hint of acidity to the rich, cheesy filling.
• Creole seasoning, black pepper, and cayenne pepper flavor up the dish. I like Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning. If you use a low-sodium seasoning blend, you’ll need to add salt to taste.
• Cooked crawfish tail meat is easy to find when you don’t live in Cajun country. We buy 12-ounce packs of frozen cleaned Louisiana crawfish tails. You can absolutely use leftover tail meat from a crawfish boil in this recipe. If you’re using leftover crawfish tails, use 2 cups of cooked tail meat.
• Mayonnaise, shredded mozzarella, and parmesan cheese create a creamy, cheesy sauce.
• Parsley and green onions add a light, herby flavor that balances the richness of the crawfish filling.
• A loaf of soft French bread is flavorful and sturdy enough to hold the filling. Look for a long loaf of French bread in the bakery section. Ideally, an 18-inch loaf of soft French bread, not a baguette. If you can get New Orleans-style French bread, like the kind used for Po’ Boys, use that.
• More parsley and green onions, along with Louisiana Hot Sauce (not pictured), add the perfect garnish and a little extra flavor at the end. It’s delicious before adding the hot sauce, but Louisiana hot sauce takes it over the top.

How to Make it

Cut all of your vegetables before you start cooking. This will make the process smooth and easy.

Finely dice the onion, bell pepper, and celery. Mince the garlic.

Cut the Roma tomatoes in half lengthwise. Then, remove and discard the seeds. Dice the remaining tomato.

Also, slice green onions and chop the parsley.

Your veggie mise en place should look something like this.

Time to start cooking.

Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat. Once it’s hot, add the butter and let it melt. Then, add the onion, bell pepper, and celery. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. If the pan starts to run too hot, adjust the temperature to keep the vegetables from burning. Then, add the garlic and cook another 30 seconds, until fragrant.

Add the Roma tomatoes and cook another 2 minutes to soften them.

Then, add the crawfish tails and the seasonings and cook another 5 minutes.

Remove the crawfish from the fridge. Add the mayo, cheese, and herbs. Fold to combine.

Use a serrated knife to hollow out about 1/2 inch to 1 inch out of the center of the bread. Be careful not to go all the way to the crust. You can save the insides for croutons or bread crumbs. Or discard them.

Place the loaves on a sheet pan and fill each with half of the crawfish mixture. Bake at 400℉ for 10-13 minutes, until golden and melted.

Remove the bread from the oven and transfer it to a cutting board.

Use a serrated knife to cut each of the half-loaves into 8 pieces.

Serve warm and enjoy!

Storage and Reheating

Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days. 

To Reheat: Place slices on a sheet pan and heat at 400℉ until warm.

Recipe

Crawfish Bread

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Make this easy, cheesy crawfish bread to get a taste of New Orleans without leaving the comfort of your own home.

• Author: Mandi
• Prep Time: 25 minutes
• Cook Time: 25 minutes
• Total Time: 50 minutes
• Yield: 16 slices 1x
• Category: Appetizer
• Method: Baking
• Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1/2x1x2x3x

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 of a yellow onion, peeled and finely diced
• 1/2 of a green bell pepper, seeds removed and finely diced
• 1 stalk of celery, finely diced
• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
• 2 Roma tomatoes, seeds removed and diced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons creole or cajun seasoning*
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 12 ounces cooked crawfish tail meat*
• 1/4 cup of mayonnaise
• 2/3 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 2 green onions, green and white parts
• (1) 14–ounce loaf of soft French bread*

For the Garnish: 

• 1 sliced green onion
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
• Louisiana hot sauce

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Instructions

Make the Crawfish Filling

1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Once the skillet is hot, add the butter and let it melt. Then, add the onion, bell pepper, and celery and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. 
2. Then, add the garlic and cook until aromatic. Add the diced tomatoes and saute for another 2 minutes to soften.
3. Stir in the crawfish tails, Creole seasoning, pepper, and cayenne. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Remove from the heat and transfer to a mixing bowl. Refrigerate the mixture for 10 minutes to help it cool.
5. Remove the mixture from the fridge. Add the mayonnaise, cheeses, parsley, and green onions. Then, fold with a rubber spatula until everything is mixed.

Fill and Bake

1. While the crawfish is cooling, preheat the oven to 400℉.
2. Use a serrated knife to cut the French bread in half, lengthwise. Then, carefully cut out about ½ inch to 1 inch along the inside, making sure to leave the crust intact. Don’t scoop out too much. You don’t want it to be fully hollow.* Save it for bread crumbs or croutons, or discard it.
3. Then, place the loaves on a sheet pan and spread each half with the crawfish mixture.
4. Bake at 400℉ for 10-13 minutes, until golden and melted.
5. Remove the bread from the oven and transfer it to a cutting board. Use a bread knife to cut each of the half-loaves into 8 slices.
6. Garnish with more parsley and green onions.
7. Serve warm with Louisiana Hot Sauce.

Notes

*I like Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning. If you use a low-sodium seasoning blend, you’ll need to add salt to taste.

*Look for a long loaf of French bread in the bakery section. Ideally, an 18-inch loaf of soft French bread, not a baguette. If you can get New Orleans-style French bread, like the kind used for Po’ Boys, use that.

*If you’re using leftover crawfish tails from a crawfish boil, use 2 cups of cooked tail meat.

*See photos in full blog post.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 2 slices
• Calories: 309
• Sugar: 3.1 g
• Sodium: 977.8 mg
• Fat: 11.8 g
• Carbohydrates: 33.8 g
• Fiber: 2.3 g
• Protein: 16.6 g
• Cholesterol: 74.5 mg