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Real Cajun: Rustic Home Cooking from Donald Link's Louisiana: A Cookbook
An untamed region teeming with snakes, alligators, and snapping turtles, with sausage and cracklins sold at every gas station, Cajun Country is a world unto itself. The heart of this area—the Acadiana region of Louisiana—is a tough land that funnels its spirit into the local cuisine. You can’t find more delicious, rustic, and satisfying country cooking than the dirty rice, spicy sausage, and fresh crawfish that this area is known for. It takes a homegrown guide to show us around the back roads of this particularly unique region, and in Real Cajun, James Beard Award–winning chef Donald Link shares his own rough-and-tumble stories of living, cooking, and eating in Cajun Country.
Link takes us on an expedition to the swamps and smokehouses and the music festivals, funerals, and holiday celebrations, but, more important, reveals the fish fries, étouffées, and pots of Granny’s seafood gumbo that always accompany them. The food now famous at Link’s New Orleans–based restaurants, Cochon and Herbsaint, has roots in the family dishes and traditions that he shares in this book. You’ll find recipes for Seafood Gumbo, Smothered Pork Roast over Rice, Baked Oysters with Herbsaint Hollandaise, Louisiana Crawfish Boudin, quick and easy Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits with Fig-Ginger Preserves, Bourbon-Soaked Bread Pudding with White and Dark Chocolate, and Blueberry Ice Cream made with fresh summer berries. Link throws in a few lagniappes to give you an idea of life in the bayou, such as strategies for a great trip to Jazz Fest, a what-not-to-do instructional on catching turtles, and all you ever (or never) wanted to know about boudin sausage. Colorful personal essays enrich every recipe and introduce his grandfather and friends as they fish, shrimp, hunt, and dance.
From the backyards where crawfish boils reign as the greatest of outdoor events to the white tablecloths of Link’s famed restaurants, Real Cajun takes you on a rollicking and inspiring tour of this wild part of America and shares the soulful recipes that capture its irrepressible spirit.
Link takes us on an expedition to the swamps and smokehouses and the music festivals, funerals, and holiday celebrations, but, more important, reveals the fish fries, étouffées, and pots of Granny’s seafood gumbo that always accompany them. The food now famous at Link’s New Orleans–based restaurants, Cochon and Herbsaint, has roots in the family dishes and traditions that he shares in this book. You’ll find recipes for Seafood Gumbo, Smothered Pork Roast over Rice, Baked Oysters with Herbsaint Hollandaise, Louisiana Crawfish Boudin, quick and easy Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits with Fig-Ginger Preserves, Bourbon-Soaked Bread Pudding with White and Dark Chocolate, and Blueberry Ice Cream made with fresh summer berries. Link throws in a few lagniappes to give you an idea of life in the bayou, such as strategies for a great trip to Jazz Fest, a what-not-to-do instructional on catching turtles, and all you ever (or never) wanted to know about boudin sausage. Colorful personal essays enrich every recipe and introduce his grandfather and friends as they fish, shrimp, hunt, and dance.
From the backyards where crawfish boils reign as the greatest of outdoor events to the white tablecloths of Link’s famed restaurants, Real Cajun takes you on a rollicking and inspiring tour of this wild part of America and shares the soulful recipes that capture its irrepressible spirit.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published April 21, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
cookbooks
June 11, 2015The gumbo recipe would probably be better if I could cook the roux properly. The crawfish etouffe is not bad (not a seafood fan) and I made it for my Meats, Fish, and Poultry class instead of the one in the book.
The broccoli and rice thing with homemade mushroom soup is good. Of course, the mushroom sherry soup from school kicks ass compared to this stuff, but not bad. And I don't like mushrooms.
That's all I remember cooking out of this.
I love the pictures, the stories, everything. Dude, I love cookbooks. One of my favorites to page through. I want to save it when the library removes it from circulation so I can have it all for my own.
The broccoli and rice thing with homemade mushroom soup is good. Of course, the mushroom sherry soup from school kicks ass compared to this stuff, but not bad. And I don't like mushrooms.
That's all I remember cooking out of this.
I love the pictures, the stories, everything. Dude, I love cookbooks. One of my favorites to page through. I want to save it when the library removes it from circulation so I can have it all for my own.
April 24, 2012
Recipes sounded and looked good, but overall most of them needed tweaking to just be edible. Too much work! When I buy a recipe book I just want to cook the recipes as is (or at least w/ minimal tweaking) and not stand there and think, "How can I save this?"
So, instructions were clear and the photos were nice, but the recipes were far from delicious. So disappointing! I was really craving some New Orleans cuisine.
So, instructions were clear and the photos were nice, but the recipes were far from delicious. So disappointing! I was really craving some New Orleans cuisine.
September 25, 2018
I bought this book at the eatery "Butcher" in New Orleans, after having the best shrimp and grits in my life.
Note: The recipes are pretty fattening--but delicious.
Note: The recipes are pretty fattening--but delicious.
October 27, 2015
I've been wanting to eat Cajun food again ever since I spent a week in Lafayette in spring of last year. Where I live now, there's no way I'm going to get Cajun food unless I make it myself. I've especially been craving some nice jambalaya--and was so grateful and excited to find a recipe for it in this book! I think Link's recipe could feel daunting, since step 1 is to roast a chicken and step 2 is to make stock with the carcass, but I just happened to have already done both those things and sailed off to jambalaya-land this morning. I liked the results and I'm looking forward to trying more of his recipes. If those also go well I might feel qualified to come back and give another star.
August 11, 2016
This book had sumptious rich recipes but it is not ¨Real Cajun¨. Most of the recipes are modernized and fusion.
They almost all use Mexican or Oriental chiles and herbs not part of the Cajun tradition.
They almost all use Mexican or Oriental chiles and herbs not part of the Cajun tradition.
June 21, 2009
When I read Frank Bruni's 2008 review of Cochon, one of Donald Link's New Orleans restaurants, I actually started salivating. When I visited later in the year, it did not disappoint. Neither does Real Cajun, which features a few of Cochon's recipes, as well as some from Herbsaint, and some from Link's family, friends, and local favorites. Despite New Orleans' reputation for excess (and Link's obvious appreciation for fried oysters, fried chicken livers, fried chicken, and pork belly cracklins), not every recipe in this cookbook is unrealistic for everyday eating. The German Festival Ham and White Bean Stew is delicious and healthy, as is the Vietnamese Marinated Shrimp and the Summer Crab and Tomato Salad. And I couldn't help but like Donald Link himself, whose personality is very present in the book, as is his love for food and for Louisiana.
Between the two of us, my wife and I have one culinary degree and a great deal of cooking experience, so we rarely cook from cookbooks and don't buy them much anymore. But I can't seem to let this one go back to the library without promising to get a copy of my own.
Between the two of us, my wife and I have one culinary degree and a great deal of cooking experience, so we rarely cook from cookbooks and don't buy them much anymore. But I can't seem to let this one go back to the library without promising to get a copy of my own.
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July 29, 2011I think this is the best cookbook for the genre that I have seen--it came out this year with fellow New Orleans chef Jeff Besh's cookbook--they were both nominated as best American cookbook for both the IACP and the James Beard award--one won one, the other the other, so maybe it is just as good--We have made the dinner rolls, the biscuits, the jambalaya and the shrimp creole and they have all been spectacular--so it is more like Cochon food than Herbsaint--but very good and I would highly recommend it if you come home from the Crescent City and want to recreate some of the food.. This cookbook makes it possible to do that .
June 17, 2017
James Beard Award winning chef, paddling his pirogue right out of the Atchafalya Basin, shares his family's recipes from the bayou. Great stories from where these recipes came and I can't wait to get in my outside kitchen and get into his boudin bourre chicken thighs, crawfish etoufee, and dirty rice.
I'll let y'all know when me, Marie, and Boudreaux pass a good time and get to cookin' and we'll plan a fais do do. We'll satisfy the envie and catch up on ya momma an' them. We'll even get you a little lagniappe at The Flying Pigs Lounge and celebrate joie de vivre.
Laissez les bon temps rouler! Aaiiee!
I'll let y'all know when me, Marie, and Boudreaux pass a good time and get to cookin' and we'll plan a fais do do. We'll satisfy the envie and catch up on ya momma an' them. We'll even get you a little lagniappe at The Flying Pigs Lounge and celebrate joie de vivre.
Laissez les bon temps rouler! Aaiiee!
November 24, 2009
If you've been to to any of the Link eateries (Herbsaint, Couchon and Butcher) then you know that Link is the man when it comes to traditional Cajun. With great writing, pictures you could eat and a nice selection of some of Link's favorite southern cooking, if you buy this book, get a bike or a gym membership.
May 15, 2014
Great recipes. Amazing photography. I felt it was liking reading a family history book with lots of background information about the recipes and the ingredients and the people. Although not listed as an ingredient in any recipe in this cookbook - it seemed to me that there was a large spoonful of love stirred into every dish.
February 9, 2017
This cookbook provides an interesting description of Cajun culture and food. Although the recipes I tried worked well, I found them too rich for my personal health choices. In several cases, the author takes the traditional recipe and makes it even more fattening by adding lots of cream. However, I will use a couple of the dessert recipes for special occasions.
January 2, 2013
I haven't tried any of the recipes in this book yet (I can't wait!), but I loved reading it. I felt like he was describing my family and my childhood; it was so similar to my experiences growing up in a Cajun family in Louisiana. Great book!
January 14, 2010
awesome Cajun down home cookin'!
March 12, 2012
Only halfway through this & have already marked quite a few recipes for future use.
February 10, 2012
the green bean casserole was a HUGE hit at the potluck.
August 9, 2016
The stars are for the writing. Haven't made any recipes from here yet.
November 30, 2015
Simple, easy recipes that are rustic and full-flavored. The heat for the spicier recipes is easy to adjust for milder tastes.
April 6, 2021
For anyone who enjoys or has an interest in Cajun food, this cookbook is the real deal & lives up to its title. Some books are too "cheffy", written more to impress than for practical use by home cooks. This book is definitely not one of those, even though Link is a renowned professional chef, restaurateur, & two-time winner of the James Beard Award. There is understanding & deep appreciation for the family & cultural roots that shaped who he is & what he does. Since Paul Prudhomme first popularized Cajun cuisine in the 1980s, it's suffered greatly from that wild popularity with poor imitators. In this book Donald Link brings these classic dishes back to what they always were.
'Real Cajun' is also an engaging read. Link explains a bit about his innovative urban restaurant Herbsaint, & also about his much more traditional ("rustic") restaurant Cochon. I especially enjoyed the personal stories about certain recipes - the importance of food to memory, culture, & identity. I think this is especially true in subsistence cultures such as South Louisiana where meals revolve around the seasons. You eat whatever is locally available & have to make sure everyone gets fed.
'Real Cajun' is one of those classic foundational cookbooks that every cook - & enthusiastic eater - should take a look at.
'Real Cajun' is also an engaging read. Link explains a bit about his innovative urban restaurant Herbsaint, & also about his much more traditional ("rustic") restaurant Cochon. I especially enjoyed the personal stories about certain recipes - the importance of food to memory, culture, & identity. I think this is especially true in subsistence cultures such as South Louisiana where meals revolve around the seasons. You eat whatever is locally available & have to make sure everyone gets fed.
'Real Cajun' is one of those classic foundational cookbooks that every cook - & enthusiastic eater - should take a look at.
February 3, 2021
Indispensable. Stellar, approachable recipes for Cajun standards and newer dishes from a changing Louisiana. The crawfish etoufee recipe is imprinted in my brain at this point, as is the one for shrimp stock, fig and ginger jam, jambalaya, Cathy's shrimp, corn, and tomato chowder. I own a lot of cookbooks. This one, I cook from.
February 17, 2022
I'm not sure these recipes manage to take the same ingredient list as mediocre cajun food and turn it into something absolutely delicious with minimal fuss, but somehow they do. You won't regret getting this book.
August 31, 2020
I gave a good review to Link's newer book, but i took a long time being uncertain about his earlier book...
but I've never said no to an Alice Waters review!
“Donald Link is rediscovering traditional Cajun food in all of its diversity and simplicity. His flavors come from backyard organic vegetables, local fish, and heritage breed pork. The essence of Cochon’s cooking is beautifully revealed in this inviting book.”
—Alice Waters
but I've never said no to an Alice Waters review!
“Donald Link is rediscovering traditional Cajun food in all of its diversity and simplicity. His flavors come from backyard organic vegetables, local fish, and heritage breed pork. The essence of Cochon’s cooking is beautifully revealed in this inviting book.”
—Alice Waters
December 17, 2015
Took me back to when I visited family in New Orleans, great recipes and must have!
March 27, 2017
This is one of the cookbooks that I want to own, (even though I have to restrain myself from buying cookbooks-only 1 per years). First, the cover really catches my eyes, then Mr Link's intention to make Southern foods easier for home cooks to follow, his clear instructions, awesome pictures and a very smart selection of Southern recipes made me feel if I can only afford 1 Southern cookbook, this should be the one.
I'm new to Southern, Cajun and Creole foods; reading several books on Southern/Lousiana cuisine, traveling there several times doesn't give me as much experiences and knowledge about the South and its cuisine as I would like to. Here and there I notice Chef Link calling for some ingredients that could be considered non-authentic to Southern/Cajun cuisine such as Mexican chile, yet he makes me believe his recipes can't be more authentic and they're what Southern people would cook and eat at home because: 1> Southern vital foods/ingredients such as rice, crawfish, pork, and duck are called for in many recipes throughout the book 2> Southern staple foods such as gumbo, dirty rice, pork sausage, jambalaya, and grit are fully and well represented. 3> The pictures, gorgeous pictures that help to present Southern foods as it is: utterly flavorful and unpretentious food focused on local ingredients with finesse and attention to details. Chef Link just simply makes readers want to cook and try all his recipes right the way.
I've so far cooked 2 of his recipes, and plan on the third in the near future. Very happy with the results.
I'm new to Southern, Cajun and Creole foods; reading several books on Southern/Lousiana cuisine, traveling there several times doesn't give me as much experiences and knowledge about the South and its cuisine as I would like to. Here and there I notice Chef Link calling for some ingredients that could be considered non-authentic to Southern/Cajun cuisine such as Mexican chile, yet he makes me believe his recipes can't be more authentic and they're what Southern people would cook and eat at home because: 1> Southern vital foods/ingredients such as rice, crawfish, pork, and duck are called for in many recipes throughout the book 2> Southern staple foods such as gumbo, dirty rice, pork sausage, jambalaya, and grit are fully and well represented. 3> The pictures, gorgeous pictures that help to present Southern foods as it is: utterly flavorful and unpretentious food focused on local ingredients with finesse and attention to details. Chef Link just simply makes readers want to cook and try all his recipes right the way.
I've so far cooked 2 of his recipes, and plan on the third in the near future. Very happy with the results.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews