I’m not sure it gets much simpler than this. Five ingredients plus some pasta and in about 30 minutes you have a super delicious dish of Sweet Daddy D's Crawfish Fettuccini Alfredo. Start with a simple cheesy alfredo sauce, add Louisiana Crawfish tails and South Louisiana seasonings, then toss it with some fettuccini. Done!
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Why Is This Recipe So Good?
This simple recipe is very similar to many common Alfredo recipes using heavy cream and grated Italian cheese. A traditional Italian Fettuccine Alfredo is made with only butter and grated parmesan cheese, leaving out the cream. Although that's even fewer ingredients than I use, it is a little more challenging to put that together with the fettuccine.
Sweet Daddy D’s Crawfish Fettuccini Alfredo starts with a basic alfredo sauce made with heavy cream and romano cheese. Romano has a sharper and saltier taste compared to parmesan, which I really like in this recipe. This is a perfect match for the Creole Seasoning and Louisiana Crawfish Tails. These ingredients add a slight reddish hue to the sauce and a ton of flavor. This is a recipe that's easy to make, delicious, and will be a hit with everyone you serve it to.
Here’s What You Need
Here are some of the key ingredients for this recipe:
A note on the Crawfish: Use only Louisiana crawfish, avoid imported crawfish. Frozen tails are available at the grocery or seafood market, or use leftover tails from a crawfish boil. Check out the Hints and Tips (FAQs) section below for where to find Crawfish Tails online.
A note on the cheese: It's common to see parmesan cheese in alfredo sauce recipes. I use romano cheese because I think the sharpness and saltiness are perfect with the crawfish. You can use parmesan or romano or a blend of both!
Check out the Hints and Tips (FAQs) section below for a word on substitutes.
Equipment
Here is some of the equipment I used in making this recipe:
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Here’s What You Do
First…you have a beer. Make this simple recipe even more simple by preparing yourself and all the ingredients before you start. Sit down with a beer and read the recipe all the way through. Make sure you have all the ingredients and equipment you need, and you know what you're going to do with each one. Do your mise en place and then all you have to do is assemble the recipe, and sip some more beer!
Mise en Place
Again, can you say “simple”?
- Sprinkle some Creole seasoning on the crawfish tails and set them aside.
- Chop the parsley.
- Measure the heavy cream, romano cheese, and Creole seasoning.
- Boil your salted water to cook the pasta according to the package directions for al dente. (You'll cook the pasta while you are making the sauce so that they are ready at about the same time).
Make the Alfredo Sauce
What happens in this step: A creamy, cheesy Alfredo Sauce is the key to this recipe. That's where we start.
Place a 12” saute pan (or similar) over medium-high heat and add the heavy cream. Just as the cream starts to simmer, lower the heat to simmer the cream until it starts to thicken. This will take about 10 minutes.
Add the Romano cheese a little at a time and whisk constantly until the cheese has dissolved into the cream. This will take about another 10 minutes.
Pro Tip: Now is a good time to cook the pasta al dente according to the package directions. The goal is to have the pasta cooked just after the sauce is ready so you can go right from the cooking water to the sauce.
Pro Tip: Resist the temptation to boil the cream. Once it reaches a simmer, lower the heat to maintain that simmer.
Add Crawfish Tails and Seasoning
What happens in this step? Now that we have a cheesy alfredo sauce, let's bring it home to South Louisiana.
To the simmering cheese sauce, add the Creole Seasoning and the crawfish tail.
Stir well to distribute the tails and seasoning evenly in the cream sauce and continue to simmer until the tails are heated all the way through. This will take about 5 minutes.
Pro Tip: The crawfish tails will be precooked, so all we have to do is warm them all the way through.
Toss the Pasta in the Sauce and Serve
When the sauce is ready and the pasta is ready, use a pasta server to add the pasta to the sauce. Let the pasta drain before adding it to the sauce. Mix the pasta and sauce together before adding each pasta ladle.
Pro Tip: If you drain your cooked pasta through a colander, reserve some of the pasta cooking water. Do not rinse the pasta in the colander. After mixing and blending the pasta and sauce, you may need to add up to ¼ cup of the reserved pasta cooking water. The starch in the cooking water helps to emulsify the sauce and coat the pasta better. Alternately, holding the pasta over the stockpot with a spaghetti server drains the excess cooking water. Then go right in the sauce and you won't have to add any additional pasta water.
Top with parsley and more romano cheese, and serve immediately.
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Hints and Tips (FAQs)
Shrimp are a great substitute for crawfish tails. The only change to the recipe would be to saute the shrimp (seasoned with creole seasoning) in butter for about 1 minute on each side in the same pan you will make the sauce in. Remove the sauteed shrimp, then add them back as you would the crawfish tails. The shrimp will finish cooking in the Alfredo sauce.
Leftovers can be kept in the fridge, in an airtight container, for 3 to 5 days. Reheat in a saucepan on the stove until warmed through. You may need to add a touch of milk or water to re-emulsify the sauce. Cream sauces usually do not freeze very well, so I do not recommend freezing leftovers.
It’s common to use grated parmesan cheese in Alfredo sauce and can easily be substituted for the Romano cheese, or use a combination of both. Also, you can substitute Half & Half for the heavy cream if that is what you have. You can also add a tablespoon of butter to the heavy cream if you would like.
Nope, use whatever pasta you like, but I would recommend a broad pasta that will easily blend with the sauce.
I recommend only Louisiana Crawfish Tails. You can use leftover tails from a boil and you will get the added flavor dimension of the crawfish boil seasoning. I usually use frozen Louisiana Crawfish Tail which can be purchased at many grocery stores and seafood markets in one-pound frozen packs or online at CajunGrocer.com (no affiliation) or on Amazon (of which I am an affiliate). Read the label carefully to make sure they are Louisiana crawfish. If all you can find is imported tails, rinse them in cold water before using them. Pat them dry and sprinkle on a generous amount of Le Bon Papa's Creole Seasoning.
Here are some great ideas for side dishes that go so well with Crawfish Fettuccini Alfredo! Don't forget the hot and crispy French Bread!
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Recipe
Crawfish Fettuccini Alfredo
Here's What You Need
- 12 ounces dry fettuccine noodles
- 1 pound crawfish tails
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup romano cheese plus some for topping
- 1 teaspoon Creole seasoning plus some for the crawfish tails
- 1 tablespoon Parsley
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
Here's What You Do
- Sprinkle crawfish tails with creole seasoning and set aside
- Cook pasta according to the directions for al dente
- Place a 12" skillet over medium heat.
- Add the heavy cream and heat until starting to simmer. Maintain the heat to simmer until beginning to thicken, about 10 minutes.
- Whisk in the romano cheese until it dissolves into the cream, about 10 minutes.
- Add the crawfish tails and creole seasoning. Mix well and heat for about 5 minutes.
- Add the pasta and mix well. (If you have drained the pasta, add about ¼ cup of pasta cooking water, if needed. See Notes
- Top with parsley and more romano cheese. Serve immediately.
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