Sweetbread & Crawfish Recipe

Soak and clean

Rinse sweetbreads briefly under cold running water. Place in a bowl and cover with cold water and 1 tablespoon kosher salt; refrigerate for 1 hour to draw out blood. After soaking, drain and gently press to remove excess water.

Poach

Place soaked sweetbreads in a small pot and cover with milk and thyme sprigs. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat; poach for 12–15 minutes until firm but tender. Remove from milk and cool slightly. Reserve poaching milk for use in other components if desired.

Trim and press

When cool enough to handle, remove any excess membranes or gristle and cut sweetbreads into 4–6 even portions. Optional: press between parchment-lined weights for 15 minutes to compact for even sear.

Sear

Heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon neutral oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Pat sweetbreads dry, season lightly with salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Sear sweetbreads 2–3 minutes per side until deeply golden and crisp. Finish with remaining 1 tablespoon butter and a squeeze of lemon; baste briefly and remove from pan. Keep warm.

Rehydrate morels

Place dried morels in a small bowl and cover with 1 cup warm water. Let soak 20–30 minutes until softened. Strain mushrooms through a sieve lined with paper towel or fine cloth, reserving the soaking liquid. Rinse mushrooms to remove grit, then pat dry and roughly chop larger pieces. Reserve about 1/4 cup of the soaking liquid, decanted carefully to leave grit behind, for stock use.

Sauté aromatics and mushrooms

In the skillet used for sweetbreads (wipe clean, keep fond), melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add minced shallot and sauté until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add sliced green garlic and cook 1 minute. Add rehydrated morels and cook 3–4 minutes until they begin to brown and concentrate.

Deglaze and reduce

Deglaze the pan with 1/4 cup dry white wine, scraping up any browned bits. Allow the wine to reduce by half, then add 1/2 cup crawfish or seafood stock and reserved 1/4 cup mushroom soaking liquid if desired. Simmer 2–3 minutes to concentrate flavors.

Finish with crawfish

Add the cooked crawfish tails to the pan and stir gently to heat through (1–2 minutes). Add 1/4 cup cream and 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice; simmer 1–2 minutes until sauce coats the back of a spoon. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Keep warm.

Build sauce

In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon butter. Add 1 minced shallot and sauté until soft, about 2 minutes. Add 1 minced garlic clove and cook 30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in 1 teaspoon tomato paste and cook 30 seconds to caramelize.

Spice and acid

Add 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, 1 teaspoon hot sauce, 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire, and 1/2 teaspoon sherry vinegar; stir to combine. Pour in 1/4 cup crawfish or reserved mushroom soaking liquid/stock and bring to a gentle simmer. Reduce slightly, about 2–3 minutes.

Finish sauce

Whisk in 1 teaspoon cold butter off heat to slightly thicken and gloss the sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a pinch of black pepper. Keep warm; sauce should be bright, slightly spicy, and tangy.

Place seared sweetbreads on warm plates. Spoon a generous portion of crawfish and morel mixture alongside or atop each sweetbread portion so flavors mingle.

Drizzle the sauce piquante around the plate and a little over the sweetbreads (use sparingly to taste, this is a supplement-forward flavor). Dot with the extra 1 teaspoon butter in the warm crawfish pan to gloss the mixture if desired.

Garnish with chopped chives and microgreens. Serve immediately with lemon on the side.