Coonass Shrimp & Corn Soup

.....The longest, coldest winter in Louisiana since 1904, thus explaining the 2 back-to-back soup recipes. I mean snow in Baton Rouge...TWICE!! I live this close to the equator so that the only place ice is made is in my freezer. Anyway, back to the food. A couple of weeks ago, I went to visit my sister, Ayme, & brother-in-law, Jess, in Shreveport.
Right when I arrived, we all piled in the kitchen to cook shrimp and corn soup from La Cuisine de Memere, a cookbook from our hometown of Lutcher.

Shrimp Corn Soup
2 lb river shrimp (unpeeled)
2 dozen ears of corn (cut off the cob)- don't skimp on this step, nothing beats fresh corn
1 cup diced tomatoes
1 cup butter beans (for those lacking culinary vocab (aka my sister) these are also called Lima beans)

2 medium sized potatoes, cubed
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup onions
1/2 cup celery
1/2 cup shallots
Sprig of parsley
3 qts of water

Make sure you have all your vegetables cut and shrimp ready to go. We chose to go with shelled shrimp which we peeled by hand and boiled the shells in about 2 quarts of water and drained to create a shrimp stock.



Now, the roux. Now there's alot of folks out there that hear the word "roux" and cower but honestly its not hard at all, it just requires a little patience. All rouxs start off with a 1:1 ratio of flour and oil. Cook the mixture on medium-high heat and stir with a flat head spoon (usually in my case, a spatula). YOU MUST CONSTANTLY STIR, do not stop even to scratch an itch! Your roux should go from white, to cream, to tan, to caramel, to brown .
For little midgets like myself, a foot stool is necessary for this step.


For gumbos & soups you want the roux to be chocolate brown which usually takes 15-20 min (lighter color is favored for stews). At this point you want to throw in the vegetables and turn down the heat to medium, for this recipe that includes the corn, tomatoes, onions, shallots, and celery. Stir often and cook until veggies wilt (5-10 min).


Then add the shrimp & cook until they just turn white.


Throw in your shrimp stock, 1 qt of hot water, parsley, potatoes, and beans and let it cook for 45 min.


Bon Appetite, Cher!