Cajun Corn Hash

This is a Cajun style fried shucked corn. I first heard about this dish from a TV show on a Cajun cooking and celebration show from Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations (Anthony Bourdain No Reservations Cajun Country) The person making this corn hash showed the recipe quickly and I am making this just from the TV show and I will let you know how it comes out.

Recipe

• 3 or 4 ears of corn shucked and cut off of cob
• 3 different colored bell peppers chopped
• 1 or 2 onions chopped
• Tasso I made my own (Tasso that I made) cubbed
• Cajun seasoning 1 tbsp and or cayenne pepper to tase
• butter at least 1 cube maybe more

First off shuck and cut corn off of cob and chop all your vegetables

Melt some butter in a pan and add corn.

Brown or toast the corn depending on how you like it. A lot of flavor is released by doing it this way.

Cut up your Tasso

Once you get the corn how you like it add the rest of vegetables and a bit more butter. Add seasoning and cook until the vegetables are soft.

Add Tasso

Cook until Tasso is brown and blended in well with vegetables. Check for seasoning you may want to add more.

Great with rice and as an accompaniment to other Cajun foods.

You could change the order of adding the ingredients to cook if you like. This is what I saw being done. They also add cayenne pepper to everything and I did not. If you don't add enough seasoning or salt the sweetness of the corn and peppers will out shine everything but ultimately it depends on your taste. So go out and make this your dish!

Tasso

This is a smoked and spiced Cajun style pork that can be used in dishes or enjoyed by itself. I first heard about this pork from a TV show on a Cajun cooking and celebration from Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations (Anthony Bourdain No Reservations Cajun Country) The person using the tasso was making a corn hash and that is what I want to use to make my corn hash. I found a picnic shoulder with skin and bones and decided to use this cut. It will have good fat and plenty of flavor. I dry rubbed it with kosher salt, smoked paprika and Cajun spice. Since I'm in a bit of a rush and this is a dry rub I'm not going to wait too long before I smoke it. Some recipes I have seen on line brine their pork over night, others do things like cut it up in chunks but I'm just going to try it out this way and see what happens. I have a feeling that everyone who makes this has their own twist that makes it theirs. I may change this but I will let you know how it turns out.

Picnic shoulder, pork leg, ham

I cut a piece off

I seasoned this and let it set out for a while but if you brine it over night with the seasoning in water and salt it will pick up more intense flavor.

I smoke some sausage as well that I used to stuff some ducks with for about 3 hours.

Cajun Stuffed Duck

I saw a show on TV that inspired me to make this. It was a No Reservations show that high lighted pig. I was hard pressed to find a recipe and I just had clips of the show  to go on showing someone making this dish. So this is sort of an experiment I will let you know how it comes out. I keep thinking about the best way to make this and every time a light bulb goes off in my head. Bits and pieces of the show just keep flashing back to me. Here is the full show with all the Cajun food in it not the pig show from all over the world. This is inspiring as well. (Anthony Bourdain No Reservations S07E16 Cajun Country) The recipe is below I'll simply call it Cajun stuffed duck

Cajun Stuffed duck

• 3 wild ducks cleaned or you could try using other wild birds. A domestic store bought duck is bigger so only one of those
• Sausage, enough to stuff the ducks or birds cavities I'm going to use mile Italian for the first try but if you gave home made game sausage so much the better. Try different kinds I know I will in the future. (Sausage I smoked)
• Some citrus like mandarin or orange slices to stuff ducks with optional or stuff them with some of the bell pepper and onion. It depends on how gamy you think the ducks are and most important what you like.
• 5 slices or so chopped bacon or some tasso or lard. I'm sure what was at hand was what was used at times.
• 2 bell peppers sliced
• 2 onions chopped
• 2 stalks celery chopped
• beer to de-glaze the pan
• beef or chicken broth
• 1 tbsp Cajun spice, this could be Old Bay  with maybe some gumbo file' there are a few out there. You could make up your own up. Adjust this to your liking but this is the absolute minimum. Less and the dish will be bland.
• 2 tbs flower for gravy or roux
• chopped green onions for garnish
• white rice to serve ducks with

I first rinsed out the ducks and stuffed them with a little sliced bell pepper, onion and sausage. The sausage I used was mild Italian that I smoked but you can use what you like. While enjoying this dish I noticed the sausage went well with the duck.

Smoked Italian Sausage

Stuff the cavity with sausage and vegetables

Fasten the opening with bamboo skewers or tooth picks or you could sew them up with cotton twine

Get a large dutch oven or large skillet and fry up some bacon.

Remove bacon

Brown ducks in bacon grease and start adding beer to make your reduction

Use the beer you like. This one is a mild dark beer.

This will take a while so don't be in a rush. Keep turning the ducks and adding beer. You don't want to burn stuff just keep adding liquid.

Now that we have our reduction we sauteed the vegetable until they are soft in the reduction.

Now add the flour a bit at a time and cook, making the roux or gravy thicken up and form. Also you will add your broth now. Keep some in reserve. Stir while the gravy thickens. Also now is a good time to add your seasonings and mix everything well.

Now add the ducks and more broth. I would add enough broth to just under cover the ducks because more liquid will form. Once the ducks are in for a while and cooked taste the sauce for seasoning. This flavor will go into the ducks as well.

Chop up some green onion.

Once ducks are cooked add green onions and turn off the fire.

The inside once cooked and a good way to serve them in half's.

I hop you enjoy this tasty dish.

Duck Gumbo lighter and Simpler

Duck Gumbo

•         6 to 8 ducks split and cleaned
•        Chicken or beef broth
•        6 TBS Old Bay
•        2 TBS garlic powder
•        1 TBS oregano
•        1 TBS salt
•        3 TBS gumbo file’
•        5 bay leaves
•        2 large yellow onions chopped
•        1 bell pepper chopped and a couple of celery stalks
                                                           with leaves chopped
•        1 cup extra virgin olive oil
•        1 ½ cups flour
•        1 ½ lbs  sausage sliced, any sausage you like, try turkey

Put ducks in a large pot with enough water to cover them and 
bring to a boil. Lower the fire and simmer for 3 to 6 hours 
depending on the ducks. You want to be able to pull the meat 
off the bones. Take the ducks out of the pot, save the liquid 
in the pot, drain them and let them cool enough so you can 
handle them. Pull the meat from the bones and coarsely chop 
the duck meat, set aside. Strain the liquid you boiled the ducks
 in and put into another pot along with chicken or beef broth 
to have about 3 quarts. You will need to judge this and you 
may need to add some more chicken or beef broth or liquid 
later. Heat the broth and add Old Bay, garlic powder, oregano,
salt, gumbo file’, bay leaves. I sauteed the onions, pepper and 
celery until tender in  a little olive oil and then add to the broth 
and continue cooking. Brown some sausage and set aside.

Heat 1 cup extra virgin olive oil over medium heat and slowly
 add the flour and  using a whisk stirring constantly until the 
roux is chocolate brown and not burnt. This last step makes 
the gumbo authentic almost more than the rest of the 
ingredients. Remove the roux from the fire and let it cool 
completely. The roux can be made lighter and lower in fat  
and calories by simply browning the flour with either a
microwave and the flour in a glass dish or pan or a skillet 
placed in an oven at 400 degrees. You must watch it and 
make sure it does not burn. Things can happen fast so
 check every 2 minutes or so.

Then stir the roux into the pot and add the chopped duck 
and sausage. Simmer for 10 more minutes and it is ready. 
Serve over white rice for a treat. Leftovers are great the
 next day or freeze the extra after it’s cooled down.

Boil the ducks whole

Until the meat is falling off the bone about 3 to 6 hours

Chop the cooked duck after removing from bone

Add the broths to a pot along with seasonings and heat

Saute the vegetables until tender in a little olive oil

Add vegetables to pot of broth and spices

Brown some sausage

Olive oil to start the roux

heat the oil and whisk in the flour

There is a fine line between chocolate brown and burnt. The roux keeps cooking a bit after you turn off the flame to err on the side of lite chocolate brown.

Add the roux first and then the cooked duck and sausage

Simmer for about another 10 to 20 minutes and it's done.