Mike's Shrimp Creole is a rich, spicy Cajun dish built around a deeply flavored bayou swamp sauce—butter, andouille, and bold seasonings—served over brined gulf shrimp with thick slices of garlic bread for sopping. The showstopper is the thick, salty broth loaded with heat and andouille that delivers authentic New Orleans flavor.
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Chef's Note: \n Other than the brining process, do not add any additional salt to this dish. The Lemon Pepper, Hot Sauce, Creole and Old Bay Seasonings will each have plenty of sodium within them.
For shrimp brine
Add 1 cup hot water, 4 tbs kosher salt and 3 tbs granulated sugar to a plastic bowl. Mix well until completely dissolved.
Place uncooked, frozen shrimp in bowl and add 4 cups of ice to it. Brine should be at 36° - 40° to be effective. Also, add just enough cold water to totally cover shrimp. \n Your shrimp are now dethawing and brining in this mixture. This method will plump your shrimp and lend that delectable fresh snap to them we all crave. \n Allow shrimp to brine for 2 hours.
Following brine - preheat oven to 350°
For vegetables, spices and bayou swamp sauce
Fine chop bell pepper, celery with leaves, garlic, white onions, chives, parsley and juice half lemon. \n Also, slice pre-cooked Andouille Sausage into bite sized pieces at a slant or angle.
In a large pan with tight fitting lid, place all other ingredients [except for shrimp, garnishments other lemon half] and simmer 1/2 hour stirring regularly.
In the last 15 minutes of Step #8, bring your 2nd pot with water and 1/2 squeezed lemon to a very rapid boil. Leave lemon half in pot. \n Add shrimp for 3 minutes. Drain shrimp in strainer immediately and quickly run cold water over shrimp to halt the cooking process.
Quickly peel shrimp and add to simmering Bayou Swamp Sauce. Let simmer on low for 2 minutes. Your shrimp will absorb the Creole seasonings as they tighten up. Stir occasionally.
Serve with sides of Tabasco Or Louisiana Hot Sauce and garnish plate with fresh chopped Parsley and Chives.
Chef's Note: Make certain you stir this dish well before serving each bowl. If not, all solid ingredients will sink to the bottom of the sauce pan once motion has stopped. At that point, all the oil from the butter will rise to the top.
For your garlic spread
Evenly slice French Bread into 3" thick slices.
Mix all ingredients in the Garlic Butter Seasoning category together very well. Slightly heat in microwave if need be.
Place bread on cookie sheet butter side down. Lightly sprinkle bread slices with Paprika for both color and spice if desired.
Bake 15 minutes at 350° or, until they're crispy and golden brown. Be careful to not over bake.
Enjoy!
Refrigerate cooled Bayou Swamp Sauce (shrimp, broth, and all solids) in an airtight container up to 3 days. Reheat gently on stovetop over low heat, stirring often to prevent scorching; do not microwave as it breaks the emulsion. Garlic bread does not store well; make fresh.
large pot with lid (for boiling shrimp) · large pan with tight-fitting lid (for simmering sauce) · large plastic bowl (for brining) · large strainer (for draining shrimp)
Yes, but reduce brining time to 1 hour since fresh shrimp will thaw faster. The goal is plumping and flavor absorption, not defrosting.
Lemon Pepper, Hot Sauce, Creole seasoning, and Old Bay all contain significant sodium. The initial shrimp brine provides what's needed without over-salting the final dish.
Brining plumps the shrimp, locks in moisture, and creates that fresh snap in texture. The salt and sugar solution also seasons them internally before cooking.
Yes. Prepare the sauce up to 2 hours before serving, keep it warm on low heat, and add the boiled shrimp just before serving so they absorb the seasoning.
The solid ingredients (vegetables, sausage, shrimp) sink to the bottom once the pot stops moving. Stirring redistributes them evenly and prevents all the oil and butter from pooling on top.
