Spicy Crawfish and Black Bean Phyllo Burritos with Cilantro Cream and Fresh Salsa
Take the South’s crawfish, the Southwest’s black beans, cilantro, and salsa, and crisp Middle Eastern phyllo dough. Combined they create crisp, flavorful wraps and a true fusion of ideas. Chef Tuttle serves his as an appetizer, on a pool of cilantro cream with fresh salsa. The same recipe could serve four for dinner.
Ingredients
- Salsa
- Plum Tomatoes - 6 ripe, chopped
- Red Onion - 1/2, peeled and minced
- Red Bell Pepper - 1/4, finely diced
- Yellow Bell Pepper - 1/4, finely diced
- Cilantro - 1/2 bunch, stemmed and chopped
- Jalapeno Peppers - 1, seeded and minced
- Juice of 1 lime
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Black Beans
- Black Beans - 3/4 cup, picked through and washed
- Fish stock or bottled clam juice - 5 cups
- Ground Cumin - 2 teaspoons
- Shallots - 2, peeled and minced
- Garlic Cloves - 2, peeled and minced
- Texas Pete hot sauce - 2 tablespoons, or other hot sauce
- Phyllo Burritos
- Phyllo Dough - 12 sheets
- Unsalted Butter - 2 cups, melted
- Red Bell Pepper - 1, roasted, skinned, seeded, and cut lengthwise into eighths
- Yellow Bell Pepper - 1, roasted, skinned, seeded, and cut lengthwise into eighths
- Jalapeno Pepper Cheese - 1 pound, shredded
- Crawfish Tails - 1 pound, cooked and peeled
- Cilantro Cream
- Clarified Butter - 2 tablespoons
- Shallots - 2, peeled and minced
- Salt and white pepper
- Heavy (whipping) cream - 2 cups
- Fresh Cilantro - 1 bunch, stemmed and chopped
- Fresh Cilantro - 8 sprigs
Instructions
To make the salsa: In a large non-aluminum bowl, combine the tomatoes, onion, bell peppers, cilantro, and jalapeno. Add the lime juice and mix thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Let sit for 30 minutes before serving. The salsa can be made up to 1 day in advance.
To cook the black beans: In a large heavy pot, soak the beans in cold water to cover by at least 3 inches for not less than 4 hours, or overnight. Drain the beans in a colander, rinse, and return to the cooking pot with the fish stock, cumin, shallots, garlic, and hot sauce. Bring to a boil over high heat. Skim off any foam that rises to the surface. Reduce the heat to medium and gently simmer the beans, uncovered, stirring occasionally until tender, 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes. Add more stock or clam juice as necessary to keep the beans submerged in liquid. Season the beans with salt and pepper during the last 10 minutes of cooking. Drain the beans in a colander. Cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
To make the burritos: Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Place 1 sheet of phyllo dough on a large cutting board. Keep the remaining dough covered with a damp towel to keep it moist. Lightly brush the phyllo sheet with melted butter and top with another sheet. Brush again with melted butter, Repeat again with a third sheet. Cut the phyllo in half. Place one piece of roasted red pepper on a stack of phyllo, top with 1 tablespoon of prepared black beans, sprinkle with 3/4 ounce of jalapeno pepper cheese, top with 1 ounce of crawfish meat, 1 tablespoon of black bean mixture, and 1 piece of roasted yellow bell pepper. Fold the phyllo over the filling and roll up burrito-style, tucking in the short ends as you roll. Seal the ends with a little more butter. Repeat with the remaining 9 sheets of phyllo dough. Place the burritos on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the burritos are well browned. While the burritos are baking, prepare the cilantro cream.
To make the cilantro cream: In a medium saute pan or skillet, heat the butter over medium-high heat and saute the shallots 2 to 3 minutes, until they are soft but not browned. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the cream, stir, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook until reduced by half, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the chopped cilantro and remove the pan from the heat.
To serve: Pool 3 tablespoons of cilantro cream in the center of each plate. Cut each burrito in half on the diagonal and place one piece standing up, cut side up. Position the second half lying down. Garnish the base of the burritos with salsa and a sprig of fresh cilantro.
