Glossary of Cajun and Creole culinary terms

As displaced New Orleans cooks spread across the U.S. in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, they are bringing traditional Cajun and Creole fare to new locales. Here is a glossary of Cajun and Creole culinary terms to help decipher the menu:

_Cajun: A combination of French and Southern cooking styles that features robust flavors and relies heavily on animal fat and dark roux, a slow-cooked mixture of flour and fat used to thicken soups and sauces.

_Creole: Similar to Cajun but with heavy emphasis on butter and cream. Creole cooking uses more tomatoes, while Cajun involves more spices. Both rely on the "holy trinity," chopped green peppers, onions and celery.

_Beignet: A square of dough, deep fried and dusted with powdered sugar, served three at a time and with coffee at New Orleans' Cafe du Monde.

_Gumbo: A thick stew of meat and vegetables that can have many ingredients, including okra, tomatoes, onions, chicken, sausage, ham, shrimp, crab or oysters. All good gumbos begin with a dark roux.

_Jambalaya: A rice-based dish with a variety of ingredients including tomatoes, onions, green peppers and almost any kind of meat, poultry or shellfish. The dish varies widely from cook to cook.

_Etouffee: A silky, rich stew of crawfish and vegetables served over white rice. Its deep color and flavor come from the brown roux.

_Dirty rice: Rice cooked with ground chicken or turkey livers and gizzards, onions, chicken broth, bacon drippings, green pepper and garlic.

_Muffaletta: An oversized sandwich on a round loaf of crusty Italian bread, split and filled with layers of provolone cheeps, Genoa salami and ham, then topped with olive salad, a chopped mixture of green, unstuffed olives, pimientos, celery, garlic, cocktail onions, capers, oregano, parsley, olive oil, red-wine vinegar, salt and pepper. The olive salad is what sets the muffaletta apart.

_Po'boy: A submarine- or hero-style sandwich typically filled with fried fish or shellfish and served on a fresh baguette. Ordering it "dressed" means it will come topped with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, mayonnaise and pickles.

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Sources:

Food Network: http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/ck_encyclopedia/

Cafe du Monde: http://www.cafedumonde.com/