eating my words
Behind the scenes and on the road with Southern Living Executive Food Editor, Scott Jones
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05/15/2008Cooking with my buddy Timmy
By Scott Jones
I've been blessed with many extraordinary food opportunities and adventures in my life, but few compare to a meal I recently shared with shrimper (and all-round super dude) Timmy Cheramie.
I hope y'all have had the chance to check out my story, "Fresh From The Bayou" in the June issue of Southern Living featuring Timmy, his family, and his insanely good recipes.
Well, I just couldn't help myself, so I paid a return visit to Golden Meadow, Louisiana a couple of weeks back to meet up with Timmy and his crew (and what a crew they are!).
I rolled into Golden Meadow around noon, and after a short, zig-zagging boat ride through the marsh grass-lined waterways of the bayou, I arrive at the camp of oysterman Jack Fillinich, who's one of Timmy's long-time friends. From there we did what most guys do in this setting: eat, talk about fishing, eat some more, sip a few cold ones, go fishing, sip a few more cold ones, solve all the world's problems, eat, and get rocked to sleep by a gentle bayou breeze. Pretty simple and harmless.
Among the many cool things I experienced over the weekend, perhaps the coolest was having the chance to ride shotgun alongside Timmy as he masterfully cooked up a batch of his famous Macaroni Étoufée. Now before I go any further, let me assure you that Timmy's definition of an "étoufée" is a little different from that of most folks. He uses the term to loosely describe just about anything he makes in his Dutch oven that begins with sweating down lots of onions before piling on a variety of tomato products, then slowly cooking everything down to a thick stew. There's no roux in his étoufée. Time and caramelization take care of everything. Timmy just layers flavor upon flavor upon flavor. It's honest, old-fashioned cooking that'll knock your socks off.
Check out this slide show for the blow-by-blow. If you're in the mood to fix your own batch of Macaroni Étoufée, don't get all hung up on the amounts. Just follow Timmy's lead -- go with your gut and taste as you go. Enjoy!
I'll have more tales and images from my trip to the Bayou posted soon (including accounts of the most amazing boudin balls and strawberry wine ever). Stay tuned.
Meantime, for dessert, watch this VIDEO OF TIMMY in action...it's a blast!
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Comments
Taylor that pot's a few years old...Timmy said it belonged to his grandmother, so I reckon she'd had it for a while before gifting it to Timmy. One thing's for sure, it's a beautiful piece of cookware!
Posted by:Scott Jones | 06/10/2008 at 11:18 AMYou might contact the Wild American Shrimp folks in Charleston, SC to see if they have T-shirts (or perhaps they can put you in touch with their reps in Louisiana). Thanks for the comment. Scott
Posted by:Scott Jones | 06/05/2008 at 06:42 AMWhere can I find a web-site to buy the shirt the children have on (take a walk on the wild side) ?
Posted by:donna | 06/03/2008 at 07:32 AMOh my. I just read and flipped through the macaroni etoufee recipe. It looks like glory. How old is the cast iron Oven?
Posted by:Taylor | 05/27/2008 at 08:36 PMHi Scott,
I'm Timmy's sister-in-law, I also have enjoyed many a great dishes in that black pot. Timmy is a wonderful cook and a great brother-in law.
Rhonda Cheramie
hi Scott,
I bet you never tasted food like that anywhere else. My Uncle Timmy is the bomb. I bet the camp was a change of scenery also, and hanging out with those crazy cajuns change you forever, hope you had the time of your life.
Scott,
I have ate out of that big black pot many times because it belonged to my grandmother. My Uncle Timmy makes the best Etoufee Macaroni you will ever lay your taste buds on. I am sure that you had the time of your life with that crew and had many stories to tell when you returned home.
Leah Callais
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