Recipe Roundup

Our 47 Best Recipes for Mardi Gras

Get your fill on Fat Tuesday with these New Orleans–inspired favorites like King Cake, shrimp etouffée, and crawfish seafood cocktail.

By The Epicurious Editors

March 5, 2019

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Anders Overgaard
1/47
Crawfish Gravy
The foundation of this étouffée-like dish is a brown roux that lends a deep, nutty flavor. The gravy pairs well with Grits Dressing and biscuits.
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Christina Holmes
2/47
Grandma Flaxel's Crispy Fried Oysters
This recipe of oysters breaded in saltine cracker crumbs works best with medium to large oysters. Have your fishmonger shuck them for you.
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Photo by Ditte Isager
3/47
Shrimp & Grits
At Peels in New York City, chefs Preston and Ginger Madson tweak this Low Country favorite with two secret ingredients: a little Budweiser and a lot of tasso, a Cajun-spiced ham. You can sub in andouille sausage if tasso is not available.
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Ellen Silverman
4/47
Buttermilk Beignets
Don't skimp on the rain of powdered sugar sprinkled over these tender Louisiana-style doughnuts.
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Photo by Marcus Nilsson
5/47
Shrimp Po'Boy
The paper-thin crust and pillowy crumb of a New Orleans-style French roll is essential to this classic sandwich, as is Crystal hot sauce.
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Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson
6/47
Triple-Cherries Jubilee
Flaming desserts-like this one were all the rage at fine dining establishments in the sixties. The title here refers to the sweet cherries, dried cherries and cherry juice-enhanced by vanilla bean and orange peel-that provide such terrific flavor.
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Photo by Cedric Angeles
7/47
Chicken-Andouille Gumbo
Homemade stock made from a whole bird has two upsides: You get a rich, balanced liquid for the gumbo, and plenty of tender poached chicken meat.
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Brian Finke
8/47
Broiled Crawfish with Horseradish Cocktail Sauce
Crawfish cocktail > shrimp cocktail.
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Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Ali Nardi
9/47
Mike's Milk Punch
Bourbon-spiked milk punch is a classic New Orleans tipple.
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Photo by Maura McEvoy
10/47
Skillet Chicken and Rice Two Ways: Plain and Dirty
Liquid from the grated corn enriches and helps thicken the grits; fresh corn added at the end makes for nice bites.
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Ditte Isager/EdgeReps
11/47
Green Onion Sausage and Shrimp Gravy
In South Louisiana, any sauce is called gravy. Serve this gravy over biscuits and you've really got something.
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Brian Finke
12/47
Gâteau de Sirop
This simple "syrup cake" is a Cajun classic. The dessert's name comes from the cane syrup that gives the cake its texture and flavor. If at all possible, use Steen's syrup.
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Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Michelle Gatton
13/47
Sazerac
This celebration deserves a Sazerac. Here's a classic recipe, though if you're looking for a twist, we also recommend this nontraditional riff on the New Orleans cocktail.
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Photo by Kamil Bialous
14/47
Fried Oysters With Bacon, Garlic, and Sage
Holding the raw oysters in the rice-flour dredge is a genius do-ahead trick, allowing you to shuck and coat the oysters hours ahead of fry time.
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A 6-Foot Sandwich for Mardi Gras-Sized Crowds

Got hungry Mardi Gras revelers coming over? Super-size a muffaletta.

Adina Steiman

King Cake Old Fashioned

Abigail Gullo, the head bar chef at SoBou in New Orleans, shared this recipe exclusively with Epicurious. In keeping with Mardi Gras tradition, Gullo occasionally sneaks a plastic baby (like those found in actual King Cakes) into the glass when she makes this drink at Sobou. "I tell people if you get the baby, you have to buy the next round." At home, another option is to freeze the baby into the large ice cube that chills the cocktail. For more on Gullo and her King Cake Old Fashioned, see A Cake Cocktail That's King.