Creole Seasoning Blend Recipe With Fresh Vegetables
Flavor your food with fresh-cut vegetables in this robust Creole Seasoning Blend Recipe. Making this homemade blend is more economical than buying grocery-store brands and is a time-saver for easy meal prep. Try it in Cajun dishes, Creole cooking, and many of your favorite recipes.
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For recipes using this Creole Seasoning Blend, here's Wild Goose Gumbo: A Cajun, Field To Table Recipe. Cajuns have passed down the tradition of making gumbo with wild geese or ducks.
Another good use for this seasoning is in Chicken Gumbo With Sausage, Classic Cajun Recipe. The blend's chopped fresh veggies help save even more time in the kitchen.
These recipes and more are also found in this blog post: 20 Cajun Thanksgiving Recipes For Your Holiday Menu, including the Best Louisiana Rice Dressing Recipe. The Creole Seasoning Blend is convenient for your holiday food preparations.
At another time of year, there are recipes in this post, Crawfish Dishes, 10 Favorite Cajun Recipes to Make, that are a good fit for this Creole seasoning.
What Is Creole Seasoning Blend?
Well, it isn't the commercial brands of dried Creole spice mix or Cajun seasoning blends that are well-populated on grocers' shelves. Instead, this is a perfect blend of fresh-cut vegetables and different herbs. It gives food bold flavors as a base seasoning in cooking, and of course, it's better 'cause it's fresher!
The beauty of the Creole seasoning blends is that they're pre-cut and always ready to use. It's perfect for making a roux for gumbo and stews. You may have discovered them in the grocery store's produce or frozen food section.
Since these products are so convenient, I've made my homemade seasoning blend. It costs about half as much as store-bought brands, and I can save even more when using homegrown vegetables. It also lasts longer when stored in the freezer.
Also, there's less waste when I chop and store produce while it's at its freshest. This practice keeps the produce from spoiling in the refrigerator drawer before I cook. Know what I mean?
The Difference Between Cajun And Creole Cuisines
This easy recipe includes the simple Cajun trinity used in Cajun food prep, plus a few more flavors. It may be why it's called Creole instead of Cajun. Do you know there's a difference between the two? Some distinguish Cajuns who live in the country and Creoles who live in the city.
You see, Cajun cuisine originated in Acadiana, or central southwest Louisiana. These country people learned to cook with what the land offered. My Godmother says Cajun cooking isn't like Creole dishes because certain ingredients haven't always been available to the Cajuns. For instance, foods like fresh tomatoes and dried beans.
Creole cuisine is a little more complex. It originated in New Orleans and was influenced by the French, Spanish, African, and Caribbean people. With the city's access to shipping ports, suppliers shipped foods from around the world to meet the diverse cooking needs of the city's residents. This is Creole cuisine.
The name Creole in this Seasoning Blend may come from Creole foods requiring more complex or diverse flavors. Besides their differences, both styles borrow and complement each other's culinary methods beautifully. They are what make Louisiana so unique and exceptional.
Ingredients For This Fresh Creole Seasoning Recipe
- Chopped onion - white or yellow will do.
- Chopped green bell pepper - the second member of the Cajun trinity.
- Chopped celery - the third member of the tri.
- Chopped red bell pepper - for sweet flavor and bright color.
- Fresh parsley - chop the leaves only; the stems are slightly bitter and tough.
- Garlic - fresh is always best, and getting tiny bits of garlic by pushing a clove through a garlic press ensures even distribution.
The specific amounts for ingredients and nutritional information are in the recipe card below.
Instructions For This Recipe
A lot of savory cooking begins with sautéing onions, celery, and peppers - aka the Cajun holy trinity. It's pretty tasty and has an added bonus of a tantalizing aroma as it cooks. You may have been cooking with it for years without realizing it by its Cajun name. Now you do!
Sometimes the thought of chopping vegetables keeps me from cooking. And I don't know about you, but my eyes always water when cutting up an onion. And I don't like crying for no good reason!
My solution is to wear onion goggles that protect my eyes. This helps when chopping large batches for this robust blend, including red and green bell peppers, celery, garlic, and parsley. I chop them into small pieces and stir them in a big bowl. They make a beautiful pile of fresh flavor and aroma.
"What about a food processor?" you may ask. That's an option, but it tends to pulverize the vegetables too much, making them uneven and watery. Hand-chopping gives a more unified size, which I prefer. My younger sister, Virginia, says the food processor makes the food taste different. I agree!
Top Tip
Wear onion goggles that protect your eyes when chopping large batches of onions. You'll have tear-free chopping!
How To Store The Blend
After chopping, I divide the mixture into portions and store it in the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for months. It conveniently saves time and money and keeps my eyes from watering like a whale!
I find that this vacuum sealer machine is the best option for freezer storage. It removes the air and seals the bags, preventing freezer burn. These flattened bags stack nicely in my freezer, so I can store them conveniently.
Now, there's less hesitation when cooking with chopped vegetables. I just go into the kitchen, grab a bag, and cook.
Recipes For Dry Homemade Spice Blends
If you came here looking for a dry seasoning for your spice cabinet, try my Pink Cajun Seasoning Blend. It's a delicious seasoning of spices, not just for Cajun recipes! I use pink salt here, but regular kosher, table, or sea salt can be substituted.
Related Recipes
Here are some delicious suggestions for cooking with the Creole Seasoning Blend Recipe.
📖 Recipe
Creole Seasoning Blend Recipe With Fresh Vegetables
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 10.5-cups 1x
- Category: vegetables
- Cuisine: Cajun/Creole
Description
A large batch of fresh-cut vegetables prepared ahead of time to cook with in your favorite savory dishes.
Ingredients
- 4.5 cups chopped onions or 3 large onions
- 2.5 - 3 cups chopped celery or 1 bunch of celery
- 2 cups chopped green bell peppers or 2 large green bell peppers
- 1 cup chopped red bell pepper or 1 large red bell pepper
- .75 cups chopped parsley leaves or ½ bunch parsley
- 3.5 - 4 tablespoons pressed garlic or 1 bulb of garlic
Instructions
- Mix all together in a large bowl.
- Divide into 3.5-cup servings and place into airtight plastic containers or bags.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for up to 2 months.
Notes
- Use 3.5 cups of the seasoning blend for 1 Chicken Gumbo recipe.
- Defrost the blend if frozen before cooking.
- Some seasoning blends call for green onion; this can be included here or added at the finish of a cooked dish for garnish and extra onion flavor.
- Using a vacuum sealer machine to store individual 3.5-cup servings is convenient for cooking and storing.
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