Cajun Dishes

Noted by the popular Hank Williams' Jambalaya song, three of the primary dishes in Acadiana are "Jambalaya and-a crawfish pie and filé gumbo." One variation is that crawfish boils are more popular in the southern regons of Louisiana, while pies are favored further north.

[edit] Primary favorites

Boudin that has been smoked.

Seafood gumbo

Boudin
Boudin also spelled "boudain" is a type of sausage made from pork, pork liver, rice, garlic, green onions, and other spices. It is widely available by the link or pound from butcher shops. Boudin is usually made daily as it doesn't keep well for very long, even when frozen. Boudin is typically stuffed in a natural casing and has a softer consistency than other, better-known, sausage varieties. It is usually served with side dishes such as rice dressing, maque choux or bread. Boudin balls are commonly served in southern Louisiana restaurants and are made by taking the boudin out of the case and frying it in spherical form.
Gumbo
High on the list of favorites of Cajun cooking are the soups called gumbos. Contrary to non-Cajun, or Continental, beliefs, gumbo does not mean simply "everything in the pot". Gumbo exemplifies the influence of African and Native American food cultures on Cajun cuisine. The word originally meant okra, which is a word brought to the region from western Africa. Okra, which can be one of the principal ingredient gumbo recipes, is used as a thickening agent and for its distinct vegetable flavor.
A filé gumbo is thickened with sassafras leaves after the stew has finished cooking, a practice borrowed from the Choctaw Indians. The backbone of a gumbo is roux of which there are two variations: acadian, a golden brown roux, and creole, a dark roux, which is made of flour, toasted until well-browned, and fat or oil. The classic gumbo is made with chicken and the Cajun sausage called andouille, pronounced {ann-doo-wee}, but the ingredients vary according to what is available.
Jambalaya
Another classic Cajun dish is jambalaya. The only certain thing that can be said about a jambalaya is that it contains rice, some sort of meat (such as chicken or beef) and/or seafood (such as shrimp or crawfish) and almost anything else. Usually, however, one will find green peppers, onions, celery and hot chili peppers. Anything else is optional.