In The Kitchen

Although maque choux is normally thought of as a corn soup, the Cajuns cooked a similar vegetable flavored with the freshwater shrimp of the Mississippi River.

Ingredients:

8 ears fresh corn
2 cups (70-90 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup bacon drippings
1 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup diced garlic
1/4 cup finely diced andouille sausage
2 cups coarsely chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato sauce
1 cup sliced green onions
salt and black pepper

Select tender, well-developed ears of corn and remove shucks and silk. Using a sharp knife, cut lengthwise through the kernels to remove them from the cob. Scrape each cob using the blade of the knife to remove all milk and additional pulp from the corn. This is important since the richness of the dish will depend on how much milk and pulp can be scraped from the cobs.

In a 5 quart cast iron Dutch oven, melt bacon drippings over medium-high heat. Sauté corn, onions, celery, bell peppers, garlic and andouille sausage approximately 15-20 minutes or until vegetables are wilted and corn begins to tenderize. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and shrimp.

Continue cooking until juices from the tomatoes and shrimp are rendered into the dish, approximately 15-20 minutes. Add green onions and season to taste using salt and pepper. Continue to cook an additional 15 minutes or until full flavors of corn and shrimp are developed in the dish.

Serve as a vegetable or add stock to create a soup.