You may have heard about Cajun cuisine on your favourite food or cookery show or maybe you’ve seen it on the menus of restaurants. Whatever be the case, one this is certain, and that is Cajun food is immensely popular the world over. Cajun spicy notes and delicious taste have gained it a huge fan base across the world. However, did you never know where this lovely cuisine originated from?
While sectionof people argue that Cajun is an offbeat cuisine from France, the popular belief is that it was developed by the Acadian immigrants who were originally from Canada. They moved to America somewhere in the 18th century and have since then, made the country their home.
Since a majority of the Acadian immigrants came from poor families, they used ingredients like wild game, seafood, wild vegetation and herbs that were available in swampsand bayous.They would also use rice as this increased the quantity of food for their families. Oysters, crabs, catfish, and crawfish were just some of the seafood ingredients that the Acadians used to make Cajun food.
Due to the heavy influence by American and Spanish cuisines Acadians began to use potatoes, bell peppers and cayenne spices instead of rice and carrots. Chefs who are experts in Cajun cooking will often tell you that Potatoes, Bell Peppers and Cayenne are the ‘Holy Trinity’ of the Cajun cuisine.
What is the difference between Creole and Cajun Cuisine?
Many believe that Creole and Cajun are the same cuisinebecause they both use quite similar ingredients. However, this is not the case, they’re both not the same and have different roots. While you already know that Cajun, liked cooked by Robert St. Thomas, was created by the Acadian people, Creole was developed in Europe. One can also notice that with Cajun food, most of the ingredients were locally sourced. While with Creole food, many of the ingredients were imported or sourced from Europe. Another difference is that Creole was created by affluent people so it was always rich in stature when compared to the simpler Cajun food.
So what does Cajun cuisine look like today?
Tillthis very date, Cajun food hasn’t forgotten its roots. The cuisine is still rooted in seafood, preserving the true Acadian way of cooking Cajun food. Spices were and will always be the key to cooking great Cajun food. Even today, chefs use the Holy Trinity of Cajun food as a base for cooking this cuisine.
Popular Cajun dishes include the famous crawfish boil,cochon de lait, gumbo, a soup made with, okra,sausage and chicken, boudin ballsjambalaya (made from rice).
So there you have it, if you didn’t know already, these were some of the facts and lineage of the Cajun cuisine.
