The Ancestral Table: Traditional Recipes for a Paleo Lifestyle (30 page)

3. Arrange the shrimp, mussels, and clams on top of the paella, then loosely cover with a lid or foil and simmer for another 10 minutes or until the mollusks have opened and the shrimp has turned pink. The mollusks will add liquid to the paella as they open, so remove the lid and reduce the liquid for 2 minutes before serving. Stir in the parsley and serve with lemon wedges.

Crawfish Étouffée

Étouffée is a Cajun dish in which a main ingredient (usually shellfish) is smothered in a chunky sauce made of stock, tomatoes, peppers, and onions. Crawfish is the most popular version of étouffée; shrimp is easier to find and equally delicious.

As mentioned in my Dirty Rice recipe (
see here
), Cajun cuisine comes from Acadian immigrants deported from Canada to Louisiana in the 18th century who brought French culinary techniques to locally available ingredients. Crawfish étouffée is a prime example of a perfect pairing of the two cultures. Serve it with white rice (
see here
) or Cauliflower Rice (
see here
).

Given the number of ingredients in this dish, make sure to chop your vegetables and portion out your spices ahead of time.

SERVES:
4
PREP TIME:
20 MINUTES
COOKING TIME:
25 MINUTES

6 OZ. BACON (6 SLICES), CHOPPED

2 TBSP. BUTTER

1 ONION, FINELY CHOPPED

2 STALKS CELERY, FINELY CHOPPED

1 RED OR GREEN BELL PEPPER, FINELY CHOPPED

1 TOMATO, CHOPPED

1 SHALLOT, MINCED

4 CLOVES GARLIC, MINCED

1 TSP. PAPRIKA

1/2 TSP. CAYENNE PEPPER

1/2 TSP. DRIED THYME

1/2 TSP. DRIED OREGANO

3 BAY LEAVES

1/4 CUP WHITE RICE FLOUR

3 CUPS CHICKEN BROTH (
SEE HERE
)

1/2 TSP. SEA SALT

1/2 TSP. BLACK PEPPER

2 LBS. CRAWFISH TAILS OR RAW SHRIMP

1/4 CUP HEAVY CREAM

2 TSP. WORCESTERSHIRE SAUCE (5 SQUIRTS)

1-2 TBSP. HOT SAUCE, LIKE FRANK’S REDHOT OR TABASCO (5-10 SQUIRTS)

1 SMALL HANDFUL FRESH PARSLEY, CHOPPED

1. In a large skillet, sauté the bacon on medium heat until crispy, about 6 minutes. Add the butter, onion, celery, and bell pepper and simmer until slight softened, about 4 minutes. Add the tomato and shallot and sauté until the tomato softens, another 5 minutes. Add the garlic, paprika, cayenne pepper, thyme, oregano, and bay leaves and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.

2. Stir in the flour and continue to sauté until the flour imparts a toasted smell, about 2 minutes. The mixture will be really dry at this point, and some of the flour may start to stick to the skillet, which is fine. Stir in the broth, salt, and pepper and simmer until the sauce thickens and reduces to the consistency of gravy, about 6 minutes.

3. If using crawfish tails, gently stir them in and simmer until warmed through, about 2 minutes. If using shrimp, stir them in and simmer until cooked through, gently stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. You’ll know that the shrimp are fully cooked when they are pink and opaque and start to curl.

4. Remove the heat and stir in the cream, Worcestershire, hot sauce, and most of the parsley. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Serve with white rice or cauliflower rice and extra hot sauce, scattering the remaining parsley on top right before serving.

Grilled Lobster

Lobsters have been caught and enjoyed as a delicacy worldwide throughout history, but the discovery of the American lobster in New England brought a lot of attention its way in the 1800s. Today, twice as many American lobsters are consumed annually as compared to the second most harvested lobster, the Norway lobster.

If you’ve never cooked a live lobster before, be prepared for the visceral experience of dunking a lobster in boiling water; it’s not often that we physically kill an animal with our bare hands, and many home chefs find it unnerving. One pair of recipe testers almost ended the evening with two pet lobsters because they had a hard time serving as executioners.

Freezing the lobsters ahead of time will make them docile, though whether freezing numbs the pain of boiling is a subject of debate. Some chefs like to stab into the lobster’s brain before boiling, but since the lobster has several nerve centers, it’s widely believed that this technique neither kills the lobster nor renders it unconscious. Meanwhile, some scientists believe that lobsters have such simple nervous systems that they don’t feel pain.

While many Western lobster eaters shy away from eating tomalley (also known as “mustard” or guts), it is full of intense, delicious flavor. Adding the tomalley to the butter sauce before grilling the lobsters is an easy way to dramatically increase the tastiness of this dish. If the idea of eating tomalley is unappealing, simply omit it from this recipe.

SERVES:
2
PREP TIME:
10 MINUTES
COOKING TIME:
20 MINUTES

2 LIVE LOBSTERS, 1–1 1/2 LBS. EACH

1/4 CUP SALT PER 1 GALLON WATER

6 TBSP. BUTTER

1 TBSP. OLIVE OIL

4 CLOVES GARLIC, COARSELY CHOPPED

1/2 TSP. RED PEPPER FLAKES

JUICE OF 1 LEMON (2 TBSP.)

1 TSP. LEMON ZEST

1 SMALL HANDFUL FRESH PARSLEY, CHOPPED

BLACK PEPPER TO TASTE

1. In your largest stockpot, add enough cold water to fill the pot three-quarters full, adding salt until it tastes like seawater, then bring to a boil. Prepare an ice bath in a large bowl.

2. Place the lobsters in the freezer for 10 minutes before boiling to make them docile. Carefully drop 1 lobster into the boiling water, holding it under the water with a wooden spoon; parboil for 3 minutes, then remove and place in the ice bath to stop the cooking process. Repeat with the second lobster.

3. Heat the butter, olive oil, and garlic in a small saucepan on medium-low until no longer frothy, about 5 minutes.

4. Using a large, sharp knife, slice the lobsters in half lengthwise and either crack or cut slits in the claws. Remove the tomalley and reserve. Remove the butter sauce from the heat and stir in the red pepper flakes, lemon juice and zest, parsley, and tomalley.

5. Grill the lobsters cut side down on direct high heat for 2 minutes, then flip them and generously apply the butter sauce; grill for another 3 minutes or until the lobster meat is opaque. Serve with fresh-ground pepper and any leftover butter sauce.

Chili Mussels

A popular appetizer in Australia, chili mussels celebrate the multinationality of that beautiful country. Taking cues from Asian and European cuisines, this dish is both comforting and exotic with its use of wine, tomato sauce, and a hot chile pepper. See the notes in my Clams in White Wine Sauce recipe (
see here
) about why farm-raised clams and mussels are preferred over wild-caught.

This dish pairs well with Pão de Queijo (
see here
) formed into breadsticks to sop up the extra sauce (pictured on
see here
).

SERVES:
2 AS A MAIN COURSE, 4 AS AN APPETIZER
PREP TIME:
10 MINUTES
COOKING TIME:
10 MINUTES

2 LBS. LIVE MUSSELS (~50)

3 CUPS BASIC RED SAUCE (
SEE HERE
)

1 BIRD’S EYE CHILE, SEEDS AND RIBS REMOVED, MINCED (OR 1 TSP. RED PEPPER FLAKES)

2 TBSP. BUTTER

2 CLOVES GARLIC

1/2 CUP WHITE WINE

1 TSP. CHOPPED FRESH OREGANO (DRIED IS OKAY)

1 LEMON, CUT INTO SLICES

1. Scrub the mussels under cold water, discarding any that are open and do not spring shut when squeezed.

2. In a small saucepan, heat the red sauce on low until warm, about 20 minutes. Stir in the chile or red pepper flakes.

3. Melt the butter in a stockpot on medium heat for 1 minute, then add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the wine, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a simmer, then gently add the mussels using a slotted spoon. Cover and steam, shaking the pot occasionally, until the mussels open, about 7 minutes. Uncover, stir in the red sauce, and gently toss to combine. Garnish with chopped oregano and serve with lemon slices.

Clams in White Wine Sauce
(Palourdes au Vin Blanc)

While clams, wine, and butter are all delicious, the combination of the three is truly divine. This dish, developed in the Provençal region of France, is the quintessential marriage of these rich, decadent flavors. It is equally tasty when prepared with mussels.

Though wild and sustainably caught seafood is generally ideal, it’s better to buy farm-raised clams and mussels. They are raised on ropes suspended above the sea floor, which makes them less gritty than wild clams and mussels dredged from the ocean floor. Dredging up wild clams and mussels can also damage the ocean’s ecosystem.

This dish pairs well with Pão de Queijo (
see here
) that have been shaped into breadsticks (pictured on
see here
).

SERVES:
2 AS A MAIN COURSE, 4 AS AN APPETIZER
PREP TIME:
40 MINUTES
COOKING TIME:
20 MINUTES

4-5 LBS. LITTLENECK CLAMS (~50)

6 TBSP. BUTTER, DIVIDED

2 SHALLOTS, FINELY CHOPPED

6 CLOVES GARLIC, MINCED

1 CUP WHITE WINE

2 BAY LEAVES

1/3 CUP HEAVY CREAM

2 TBSP. CHOPPED FRESH PARSLEY

1/4 TSP. BLACK PEPPER

1. Scrub the clams with a stiff brush and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Soak in cold water for 30 minutes, then drain and rinse again.

2. In a stockpot, melt 2 Tbsp. of the butter on medium heat for 1 minute. Add the shallots and sauté until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for another 30 seconds, then add the wine and bay leaves, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 5 minutes to allow the flavors to marry.