Gearing Up for July 4th...Featuring Texas-Creole Crawfish Potato Salad #july4th #potatosalad #crawfish #summereats

Looking at the calendar, I just realized that July 4th is literally around the corner! Today, I'm sharing one of the most popular recipes I've ever shared...and it's perfect for July 4th grilling. It's a modern spin on an American classic: potato salad. Don't get me wrong: I LOVE old-fashioned potato salad. But? Sometimes it's fun to try something a bit different. Texas-Creole Crawfish Potato Salad is my take on a recipe from Brennan's of Houston restaurant. This acclaimed restaurant is known for combining Texas and Louisiana Creole flavors in delicious, creative ways! I made a few tweaks to their recipe to suit our taste buds. It has enough classic potato salad ingredients to taste familiar: creamy mayo, boiled eggs, tangy pickles, and celery. Then? It takes a sharp detour with the addition of Cajun-spiced crawfish tails! I know you might be skeptical...but sometimes different is good.

Texas-Creole Crawfish Potato Salad

adapted from Brennan's Houston

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes
• 2 large eggs
• 3 slices cooked, crumbled applewood bacon
• 1 TBS + 1 TBS olive oil
• 1/3 cup sliced celery
• 1/2 cup diced shallot
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 lb. crawfish tail meat
• 1 TBS Creole seasoning [NOTE: I use Chef Paul's Seafood Magic]

For the dressing:

• 2/3 cups mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup Creole mustard [NOTE: I use Zatarains]
• Juice from half a large lemon
• 1/4 cup dill pickle brine
• 1/3 cup thinly sliced cornichons OR thinly sliced and chopped garlic-dill pickles

Directions:

Step 1:  Boil the potatoes and eggs in salted water. While the potatoes and eggs cook, make the dressing. Add the mayo, Creole mustard, lemon juice, and pickle brine to a large mixing bowl. Whisk to completely combine. Cover and refrigerate until you're ready to assemble the potato salad.

Step 2: Cook bacon until crispy; crumble and set aside. Drain the grease from the pan and the first tablespoon of olive oil. Cook the celery and shallot until they've softened a bit, but still a bit crunchy. Set the veggie mixture aside to cool. Add the second tablespoon of olive oil to the pan, then add the crawfish tail meat and 1 Creole seasoning. Cook over medium heat until the crawfish is heated through.

Step 3:  When the potatoes and eggs are cooked, cool for about 15 minutes. Peel and dice the cooled eggs and set aside. Place the cooled potatoes in a large mixing bowl and cut into bite-sized pieces. Add the reserved shallot, celery, and bacon. Finally, add the sliced cornichons, green onions, and warm crawfish. 

Step 4:  Pour the dressing over the top of the ingredients and stir well to combine. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours -- up to overnight. This allows the potato salad to fully chill and all of the flavors to combine. 

There's a reason why this unique potato is so popular with my readers: it tastes amazing! The earthy potatoes, creamy and tangy dressing, spicy and sweet crawfish, and smoky bacon work perfectly together. The addition of shallot and cornichons brings everything together perfectly. Every bite of this potato salad features a slightly different flavor and texture profile, depending on what's on your fork. I hope you'll add this to your July 4th menu...it's sure to be a hit with everyone who tastes it!