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ChefJohn Russ creates an updated version of crawfish creole by adding lemon grass, mint and allspice to the classic combination.
Photo: By Chris Waters Dunn /For the Express-News

With the height of mudbug mania upon us, John Russ, executive chef at Lüke, has shared two classic recipes featuring Louisiana’s much loved Lilliputian lobsters — Cajun Crawfish Boil and Crawfish Creole.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the subtle differences between Cajun and Creole cuisines, suffice it to say that a Creole chef would make a stock, discard the solids, strain the liquid and use it to make a sauce; a Cajun cook wouldn’t let anything in the pot go to waste, having grown, trapped, hooked or shot all of the ingredients.

Cajuns were originally “Acadians,” French colonists living in an area known as Acadia in what is now southeastern Canada and the northeastern United States. They were forced from their homeland by the British, and after much hardship, some began settling in Louisiana by the mid-18th century. Cajun cuisine is based on country French — rustic and earthy — reflecting a heritage of wasting nothing and making the most of whatever ingredients are available. For example, when celebrity Cajun chef Justin Wilson was asked what kind of wine he recommended for a particular recipe, he answered, “What kind of wine you got?”

Meanwhile, the term Creole, from the Spanish word, criollo (native born), originated in the 16th century to describe people of European descent born in the colonies. Over the years, the definition broadened to include people born in Louisiana of mixed European, American Indian and African heritage. Creole cuisine also has evolved but still retains its connection to classic French cuisine.


Recipe: Louisiana Cajun Crawfish Boil
Recipe: Lüke’s Crawfish Creole

Chef Russ, a New Orleans native, is equally adept at both cuisines, whether stuffing a pork loin at a Cajun boucherie or finessing a Creole shrimp étouffée at Lüke. He earned his chops — pork, of course — at John Besh’s renowned August restaurant, as well as around Europe and the United States and back in New Orleans as chef de cuisine for Besh before bringing his culinary acumen to the Alamo City.

In the crawfish boil recipe, Russ sets forth the definitive method for cooking up this celebratory meal. All that’s missing are newspapers to spread on the tables and copious amounts of Abita Turbodog to accompany the spicy crawfish, sausage, potatoes and corn on the cob.

Russ creates an updated version of crawfish creole by adding lemon grass, mint and allspice to the classic combination of heirloom tomatoes, red pepper flakes and the requisite Louisiana “trinity” of onions, celery and bell pepper. “The pope” also is amply represented (which is Louisiana kitchen parlance for garlic).

Both recipes illustrate what we’ve come to expect of anything from Russ, Lüke or Louisiana — “lagniappe,” a little something extra.

Lüke is at 125 E. Houston St. in the Embassy Suites by Hilton San Antonio Riverwalk-Downtown.
