Crawfish Bread Recipe

Crawfish bread has been a Louisiana festival classic for decades. Originally created by Louisiana baker John Laborde, the snack became an instant classic at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. If you haven’t been to Jazz Fest to try it for yourself yet, imagine ooey, gooey melted cheese, crawfish and Cajun seasoning wrapped in buttery-soft French bread. Now you can make this crawfish bread recipe at home!

Watch the instructional video and get the full recipe below.

Ingredients for Crawfish Bread:

• ¼ cup olive oil
• ¼ cup butter
• 1 cup chopped green onions (tops and bottoms)
• ½ cup finely chopped celery
• ¼ cup finely chopped green bell pepper
• ¼ cup finely chopped red bell pepper
• 4 cloves finely chopped garlic
• ¼ cup white wine
• 1-pound peeled Louisiana crawfish tails, with fat
• 8 ounces cream cheese, cut into small squares
• Cajun seasoning, to taste
• 1 (11-ounce) roll refrigerated French bread dough
• 8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

Method of Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet, sauté chopped vegetables in olive oil and butter until wilted, about 5 minutes.
2. Add crawfish tails and wine. Stir ingredients well.
3. Add cream cheese and stir until it has melted.
4. Add Cajun seasoning and cook until all is thickened, just a few minutes. Remove from heat, cool and let flavors blend.
5. Carefully roll out French bread dough on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with half of the shredded cheese.
6. Spoon crawfish mixture onto center of dough. Sprinkle on remaining shredded cheese, reserving 1 tablespoon.
7. Fold dough over mixture and tuck ends under to make a loaf. Use the remaining tablespoon of cheese to sprinkle on top.
8. Cut five to six small slits in dough across the top of the loaf.
9. Bake about 20 minutes at 350 degrees or until loaf is golden brown.
10. Remove from the oven. Allow bread to set for a few minutes. Slice into serving-size pieces. Serves 5-6.

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