Crawfish Chowder and Louisiana

As you will be able to tell thru out my blog, I am going to be posting lots of Cajun/Creole recipies. I love Louisiana and I am hoping that one day I will be able to live there (maybe my husband's job will make that possible). Some of my fondest memories occured there and I love the culture. Being from Arkansas, I get a little bit of the Cajun "Southern" culture. One of which, food is the center of everything.... weddings mean food, baby showers mean food, funerals mean food, tailgating means food (Geaux Tigers!). We look for any excuse to cook and eat. I myself love a good family reunion or potluck.
There is a resturant in downtown Little Rock by the name of the Flying Fish. The first time that I ate there I ordered the Crawfish Chowder. Yum Yum! Creamy, crawfishy, hardy, extremly filling. I fell in love. So I came home and started searching. I found something super close to theirs. This recipe uses corn like Flying Fish uses but when I make it I ommit the corn. It's amazing.

Crawfish Chowder 
                                                                                    
1/3 c. vegetable oil                                                             
1 1/3 c. red potatoes (Peeled and Cubed 1”)                                     
1/2 c. bell peppers, diced
2/3 c. yellow onion, diced                                                           
2/3 c. celery, diced
2 tsp.salt                                                                                                 
1/2 tsp. pepper                                                                 
1/2 Tbsp. dry basil
2 tsps. Garlic, minced                                                           
1 c. chicken broth                                                                               
1/3 c. all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning                                                                           
1 q. half and half                                                                                   
2/3 c whole kernel corn                                                                         
1/2 lb. pre-cooked crawfish tails  (110/150)                                 

Pour oil into cooking pot, add potatoes and cook on medium heat. Stir potatoes until half cooked. Add bell peppers, onions and celery to potatoes and continue to cook on medium heat. Stir potatoes and veggies continuously until ¾ cooked. Add salt, pepper, basil and garlic and mix completely.  Add chicken broth, flour and Cajun seasoning and mix thoroughly until product thickens. ***Be sure to stir continuously to prevent sticking or burning. *** Add half and half and mix with a whisk over high heat for 10 minutes. Lower to medium heat and add crawfish meat and stir continuously.  As product continues to thicken, add corn and continue to mix. ***To test for proper thickness, tap the whisk on the side of the pot. If the product runs slowly down the side of the pot, you are ready to go. *** Remove from the burner and continue to stir for 5-10 more minutes.