Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Tastes: Exciting Flavors from the State That Cooks Book

Chef Paul Prudhomme put Louisiana cooking on the map. Fifteen years have passed since the publication of his groundbreaking Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen. Now Chef Paul returns to his culinary roots to show us how Louisiana cooking has evolved.

Today, the culinary influences of Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and many other cuisines are being integrated into "traditional" Louisiana cooking. Chef Paul explores how Louisiana cooks have incorporated such newly available ingredients as lemongrass, fresh tamarind, and papaya into their dishes. As Chef Paul says, any Louisiana cook worth his or her salt will work with what's available—familiar or not—and turn it into something delicious. Andouille Spicy Rice gets its zing! from chipotle and pasilla chile peppers, and Roasted Lamb with Fire-Roasted Pepper Sauce is flavored with jalapeno peppers and fennel. Classic jambalaya, etouffee, and gumbo are reinvented with such far-flung ingredients as star anise, cilantro, yuca, plantain, and mango.

Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen. is an exciting exploration of the new flavors that have made Louisiana cooking even better.

Publishers Weekly

In the 15 years since Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen first appeared, even traditional Louisiana tastes and flavors have gracefully accepted international influences, as the recipes here attest. Now there are parsnips, banana peppers and poblano chiles in Chicken and Oyster Gumbo; a quarter-cup of sliced ginger adds a lively punch to Stuffed Sirloin Tip Roast; yuca is a key ingredient in Lamb Stew with Greens.Even so, just about every recipe here employs blends of garlic powder, cayenne, dried herbs and other flavors that preserve the ' Creole/Cajun heritage. Recipes are as simple and solid as Vegetables and Chicken Ole!, in which all ingredients are combined and baked in one pan, and as time-consuming as Stuffed Flounder, in which deboned fish are layered with smoked Cheddar cheese topped with pureed crawfish tails (or shrimp) and vegetables. Desserts include Sweet Potato Custard and Apple Pie with Chiles and Cheese, which is tailor-made for Prudhomme's spice-loving fans. Author tour. (Feb.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.