Crayfish Salad with Cream Sauce

By

La Salade d'Écrevisses en Sauce Crème

Preparation: 30 minutes
Cooking: 15 minutes
Ease: Moderate
Cost: Expensive

Shopping: Crayfish, lobsterettes (langoustines), and large shrimp are best ordered in advance so that you can insist on their being alive upon purchase. A crustacean releases its waste soon after it dies, rendering it unsuitable for consumption. If you have the good luck to find wild crayfish, remove the intestines just before cooking them. To do this, hold the head in one hand, and with the thumb and index finger of the other hand take hold of the center flipper at the top of the tail and quickly pull backward, giving a quarter turn to remove the black shaft of intestines at the same time. This step is important for the farm-raised crayfish commonly purchased in fish stores; generally, they have not eaten for 2 or 3 days so the intestines are empty.

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  • 6

Ingredients

  • bouquet garni:
  • 2 medium cucumubers
  • coarse salt
  • 4 1/5 - 5 1/2 lbs crayfish or 4 1/2 lbs lobsterettes (langoustines) or large shrimp
  • 1 carrot
  • 1 small onion
  • 3/4 oz celery
  • 3/4 oz shallots
  • 8 tablespoons dry white wine
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 4 1/2 oz yogurt, well chilled
  • 1 tablespoon crème fraîche (or heavy cream), well chilled
  • 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped dill
  • 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped chervil
  • 1 hard-boiled egg, chopped
  • 3-4 sprigs parsley
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 sprigs thyme
  • 1 large bunch dill or tarragon

Preparation

Step 1

3 or 4 hours in advance: Peel the cucumbers and slice them thinly. Sprinkle the slices with 2 teaspoons fine salt and set aside to degorge. When their water has been rendered, rinse them in cold water and drain well.

In a casserole, heat 1 1/2 gallons water with 3 tablespoons coarse salt and the bouquet garni. At first boil, add the crayfish. Boil for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside for the crayfish to cool in the cooking liquid.

Meanwhile, prepare the nage. Very finely slice the carrots, onion, celery, and shallots. In a saucepan, heat 8 tablespoons of water, the white wine, salt and pepper. At first boil, add the vegetables. When the water comes back to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 2 minutes.

After cooling, store the bouillon and vegetables in the refrigerator.

20 minutes before serving: Combine the chilled bouillon and vegetables with the yogurt and crème fraîche (or cream), add salt and pepper to taste.

Shell the crayfish, set aside 6 heads for the presentation. Combine the crayfish tails, cucumbers, dill, chervil, and the sauce. Check the seasoning, adding salt and pepper if needed. Divide the salad among 6 chilled bowls. Sprinkle with chopped egg and decorate each serving with a crayfish head.

Improvise! I sometimes replace the dill with the same quantity of chopped tarragon.

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