21 Cajun and Creole Recipes That’ll Make You Love New Orleans Even More (2024)

FAQs

What is the most famous Creole dish in New Orleans? ›

Primary favorites. Gumbo—Gumbo is the quintessential stew-like soup of Louisiana. The dish is a Louisiana version of West African okra soups which the dish gumbo is named for.

Today, common understanding holds that Cajuns are white and Creoles are Black or mixed race; Creoles are from New Orleans, while Cajuns populate the rural parts of South Louisiana. In fact, the two cultures are far more related—historically, geographically, and genealogically—than most people realize.

New Orleans is famous for a lot of foods, and chief among them is the traditional rice dish known as jambalaya.

Gumbo (guhm-boh)

Fun fact: gumbo is the official dish of Louisiana. Watch this 60-sec gumbo recipe video. Where to find it: Gumbo is so ubiquitous, you're bound to find it wherever in Louisiana you're traveling.

The "holy trinity" in Cajun cuisine and Louisiana Creole cuisine is the base for several dishes in the regional cuisines of Louisiana and consists of onions, bell peppers and celery. The preparation of Cajun/Creole dishes such as crawfish étouffée, gumbo, and jambalaya all start from this base.

The Legacy of Justin Wilson

With three TV cooking series and ten published cookbooks, Justin has entertained millions with his instructional cooking and whimsical Cajun stories., poetry, and Louisiana heritage. Justin is famous for the catchphrase I Garontee® and How Yall Are®.

Cajun Food

Think of meals with lots of smoked meats as well as meat-heavy, one-pot dishes like jambalaya or the rice-filled, spicy pork sausage known as boudin. The backyard crawfish boil is also another byproduct of Cajun culture.

Two main categories of jambalaya exist: Creole (or red) jambalaya, which is associated with the city of New Orleans and contains tomato, and Cajun (or brown) jambalaya, which contains no tomato and is more common in other parts of Louisiana.

Similarly, in Creole and Cajun cuisine, the onion, celery, and green bell pepper are three parts of a single flavorful base. The Holy Trinity in cooking is also often called The Cajun Trinity or The Holy Trinity of Cajun Cooking.

What is a Louisiana dish? ›

These Famous Louisiana Foods include beignets, po'boys, King cake, gumbo, jambalaya, andouille sausage, and praline pecans. These popular recipes will remind you of being in Louisiana.

Due to the rapidly shrinking number of speakers, Louisiana Creole is considered an endangered language.

The Population

According to EMSI population data, New Orleans is more racially diverse than the U.S. as a whole. In 2021, an estimated 59% of the population in New Orleans is Black, while 31% are White non-Latino/a/x, 4% are White Latino/a/x, and 3% are Asian.

Louisiana (LA)

As a whole, residents of Louisiana are Louisianians. You might run into neighbors who call themselves Cajuns or Creoles, too!

With a base diet of coconut milk/oil, rice, beans, chicken, fish and other game meats, such as “gibnut” (agouti paca), the Creole culture includes bits and pieces of other cultures making the taste a unique one. “Kriol” was originally considered a mixture of the British settlers and African settler.

Perhaps more than anywhere else, New Orleans is a city filled with iconic dishes. Po' boys, jambalaya, gumbo, beignets — these dishes define the city's cuisine and culture to the outside world.

It is worth noting that while Beignets may be the top must-eat food in New Orleans, hearty Jambalaya is our favorite local dish and one we often order even outside of Lousiana.