Shrimp Etouffee
This is a healthy spin on the flavour packed Cajun dish that requires one pan and takes just 30 minutes to make! This Paleo Shrimp Etouffee is also Whole30, Keto, Grain Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free and Specific Carbohydrate Diet Legal.
Full disclosure: this is by no means an authentic Shrimp Etouffee but rather a healthy spin on the classic Cajun dish. I have had shrimp etouffee many times at restaurants but this was my first time trying to recreate the dish at home and I was so amazed at how easy it was. It is loaded with seared shrimp and tender veggies all smothered in a thick sauce. I highly recommend serving this Paleo Shrimp Etouffee with cauliflower rice to soak up all of the delicious sauce.
What is Etouffee
Etouffee is a French word which roughly translates to “to smother”. It is a dish popular in both Creole and Cajun cooking and can be made with any kind of shellfish including shrimp, crab, crawfish or mussels. The base of the sauce is traditionally a roux (a paste made with butter and flour) which was modified in this recipe to make it paleo and whole30. The roux is flavoured with the holy trinity of Cajun cooking, a mix of finely diced celery, green bell pepper and onion which is sautéed until tender.
To make a real deal Shrimp Etouffee you would traditionally use shrimp stock, which can be hard to find in stores and takes some time to make at home. To keep the cook time under 30 minutes for this dish I recommend using a good quality chicken stock instead.
Why you are going to love this Whole30 Shrimp Etouffee
- The flavour! I can’t get enough of the rich sauce, it’s so so good and has the perfect balance of salty, spicy and bold Cajun flavour.
- It’s perfect for weeknight dinner: This one pan 30-minute dish is so easy to make. It’s a great go to dinner to make when you are in need of a meal you can throw together quickly using ingredients that you likely already have in your kitchen.
- Leftovers are so tasty! They will last for 2 days in the fridge and reheat well too! You can reheat leftovers in the microwave or in a pot on the stove on medium heat. Just be sure not to overcook the shrimp when you are reheating as they will become chewy.
- It’s Whole30, Paleo, Grain Free and Dairy Free too! Arrowroot is used to help to thicken the sauce and for anyone on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet you can omit it and leave the sauce to reduce for longer.
Cajun Seasoning
There are lots of great premixed Cajun seasonings available at most grocery stores but if you don’t have one, don’t stress! You can stir together the following spices to make a fantastic Cajun seasoning. The below quantities will make more Cajun seasoning than is required for this Shrimp Etouffee recipe, but leftovers can be stored in a jar for up to 6 months.
Combine:
- 2 tsp paprika
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp cayenne
- 1/2 tsp thyme
Here are a few more shrimp recipes that you might enjoy:
- Pork & Shrimp Egg Roll in a Bowl
- Dynamite Shrimp Sushi Bowl
- Citrus, Fennel, Avocado & Shrimp Salad
- Coconut Shrimp with Sweet Chili Dip
- Spicy Shrimp Tacos
- Shrimp Burgers
- Asian Cabbage Slaw with Shrimp
If you make this recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Shrimp Etouffee
Ingredients
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pound peeled shrimp
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 2 tbsp arrowroot powder*
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 onion finely diced
- 1 cup celery finely diced
- 1 green bell pepper finely diced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 cup diced tomatoes
- 2 tbsp cajun seasoning
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 1 tbsp chopped parsley
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a skillet on medium high heat and once hot add in the shrimp and sear for 2 minutes per side until pink. Once the shrimp are cooked set them aside on a plate
- Add the ghee to the pan and once melted, add in the arrowroot powder and stir it with a spoon to ensure there are no clumps. Once a thick paste forms add in the diced green bell pepper, onion, celery, garlic, salt and pepper and sauté for 4 minutes until they begin to soften.
- Next add in the chopped tomatoes, Cajun seasoning and chicken stock. Leave it to simmer for 10 minutes until the sauce has reduced to a thick consistency.
- Add the shrimp back to the pan and leave them to cook for 2-3 minutes until they have heated through. Serve the touffee on cauliflower rice and garnish with fresh chopped parsley.
This was not only easy but very tasty. My husband is really hard to please when it comes to food and he loved it. I’m making it for the second time tonight because he keeps asking for it.
The only changes I made was instead of green peppers I used red, yellow and orange, as we don’t like green. I also added a bit of chicken bouillon to make it less “tomato”.
If your recipe includes ghee it is not dairy-free and you should edit your labels.
It was very tasty.
My niece helped prep so that wasn’t 8 minutes, hahaha, but it was a great time letting her play in the kitchen.
More of the cajun seasoning is better. Some family are sensitive to spices so the batch had a bit less than your recipe called for.
Seasoning added at the table made this a really tasty treat.
I really like it. 5 star
This is NOT non dairy! Ghee is butter. It starts with milk. For those of us with an allergy, this is a false claim.
Ghee is not non-dairy. I have made this with both vegan butter and olive oil in place of the ghee listed and it has worked wonderfully.
Thanks for the feedback Carrie! Strictly speaking ghee is not dairy free but many people who are lactose intolerant/dairy free can tolerate Ghee because all of the milk solids have been removed so it has very minimal amounts of lactose and casein. Happy to hear that this recipe worked with the adjustments, coconut oil is another great alternative to use.
Wow! Great recipe!!
Added some left over chicken thighs and is now one of my fav recipes!