Creamy Cajun Shrimp over Southern Fried Catfish

Happy Juneteenth, y’all! Today is a day of celebration! On June 19, 1685, Union Army Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, TX to inform the enslaved that the Civil War had ended and slavery had officially been abolished….two and a half years prior. For a more in depth history of Juneteenth, click here.

Now that everyone is up to speed, let’s get to the food! This meal is unapologetically Black. There are no pictures of me on this site, so in case anyone was wondering; I am a proud Black woman.

I wanted to honor my family with a dish that brought us all together— whether for a family fish fry where it seemed like everyone and their mama came through, or a more intimate Sunday dinner— Southern Fried Catfish. But again, it’s a celebration. So I couldn't only have fried catfish, no matter how good. I needed to add something else: Creamy Cajun Shrimp.

I used my recipe from Mother’s Day Madness for the catfish, and highly recommend you combine both recipes for an amazing creamy cajun shrimp over grits….or maybe that should be my next recipe…..

INGREDIENTS

Serves 4

Cajun Shrimp

• 1 Tbsp Cajun Seasoning

• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil

• 12 Shrimp, peeled & deveined

Creamy Cajun Sauce

• 1 Red Bell Pepper

• 3 Garlic Cloves

• 1 Yellow Onion

• 1/2 Cup Chicken Broth

• 1/3 Cup Heavy Cream

• 1/3 Cup Juice from Canned Tomatoes**

• 1/3 Cup Parmesan

• 3 Tbsp Butter

• 1 Tbsp Parsley

• Scallions

• S&P to taste

**Can use 1/3 cup of canned diced tomatoes and juice as well, had to tailor mine for someone who doesn’t like tomatoes (hi, Mom).

DIRECTIONS

1. Defrost, peel and devein your shrimp. Let sit in a plastic bag or metal bowl with 1 tbsp of Olive Oil and 1 Tbsp of Cajun Seasoning. Set aside until the rest of your ingredients are prepped.

2. Get a mixing bowl ready for the veggies and herbs. Roughly dice the bell pepper and onion, and mince garlic cloves. Chop about a handful of parsley (if using fresh, if dried—1 tbsp).

3. Time to cook! In a medium-high pan, add 1 tbsp of olive oil and 1 tbsp of butter. When hot, add the shrimp. Cook until pink, about 4 minutes. Once shrimp is done, remove from pan and set aside.

4. In the same pan, add the remaining 2 tbsp of butter. Add in the peppers, garlic, and onion. Cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. While these ingredients are cooking, make sure to stir them around so they collect the left over seasoning from the shrimp.

5. Next, pour in the juice from tomatoes and chicken broth. Cook until simmering.

6. Stir in heavy cream. Let boil, then turn down to low heat. Check the flavor. I added about a tsp more of Cajun seasoning at this point, but truly depends on your liking.

7. Stir in Parmesan cheese and parsley, and return shrimp to pan. Add S&P and Cajun seasoning to taste.

8. Plate over Southern Fried Catfish, top with thinly sliced scallions and a little more parsley.

9. Devour!