Remoulade sauces vary widely all over New Orleans. Some are mostly oil and paprika; others are based on mayonnaise. Almost all have finely minced vegetables, usually the trinity -- celery, onion and bell pepper - or sometimes pickles. The color ranges from vivid red to pale pink. And then there's white remoulade!
This is a recipe that was shared with us in 2011 by a lovely woman on the West Bank, Bea Breaux. She was an owner of Pat's Blue Marlin restaurant in Westwego, which closed in the early 1990s. The restaurant was known for its excellent shrimp remoulade.
Based on mayonnaise, this remoulade has a balanced flavor, tangy as well as sweet, from ketchup, horseradish and bell pepper. It will last at least two weeks in the refrigerator.
In our latest video in which I teach Diya Chacko how to make classic New Orleans dishes, we also demonstrate how to boil shrimp and two ways to peel them. We use the remoulade in a cold seafood salad, with our boiled shrimp, as it was served at Pat's Blue Marlin.
However, the recipe makes a lot, even though I've cut Bea's recipe in half again since she shared it. You can also use this mixture as a dip with vegetables; as salad dressing for greens or sliced avocado, tomato, onions, etc. It enlivens sandwiches (even hot dogs) when you use it instead of mayonnaise. And should you have a boiled lobster handy, you're in for a treat.
Pat's Blue Marlin Remoulade Sauce
Makes 2 quarts
3/4 stalk celery (1/3 cup minced)
1 small white onion (3/4 cup minced)
1/4 green bell pepper (1/3 cup minced)
6 tablespoons horseradish
2 tablespoons Louisiana brand hot sauce
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1-1/2 cups ketchup
1 quart (30 ounces) Blue Plate mayonnaise
In a food processor, finely chop celery, onion and bell pepper. Combine in a bowl with remaining ingredients. Add mayonnaise last, adding enough to make a pale pink sauce.
The restaurant would marinate the remoulade for one week before use. We can't wait that long.
Pat's Blue Marlin Shrimp Remoulade
Makes 1 serving
1/2 head iceberg lettuce
1 tomato, quartered
About 2 dozen shrimp, boiled, peeled
Remoulade sauce (above)
Detach a large cupped leaf from the outer lettuce head and place in a shallow bowl. Break more lettuce into bite-size pieces to fill the leaf. Heap shrimp on top and surround with tomato. Add remoulade and serve.
A week after we made our In Judy's Kitchen video, I still had some remoulade sauce, and some broccoli that needed to be used. Lately, I've been making broccoli salad with celery, mayonnaise and a few other things. My family really liked this similar version of Remoulade and Broccoli Salad, with remoulade sauce subbed for the mayo. I had leftover almonds from another project, which gave it some crunch.