A Food Writer's Fish Tale

In setting out to create 'the definitive guide to New Orleans seafood' the most anticipated reviews were those from the local community. Ralph Brennan's New Orleans Seafood Cookbook isn't a restaurant cookbook, it's a book to define the cooking of New Orleans most valuable culinary asset- our local seafood.

New Orleanians may have a laid-back attitude a la Laissez ke bon temps rouler, but we take our food very seriously. New Orleans has a competitve and challenging culinary community, which may be why the book took nearly a decade to finish from concept to printing.

Interested to see what local food critic Ian McNulty thought about the cookbook? Did Ralph Brennan achieve his goal to create 'the definitive guide to New Orleans seafood'?

Read "Ralph Brennan's Seafood Cookbook helps tell the story of our evolving local mania."

Walker Weighs In...

While restaurant, food and cookbook critics nationwide will be commenting on Ralph Brennan's cookbook the most anticipated reviews are those from New Orleans. In creating this cookbook the Ralph Brennan team sought to capture the essence of seafood cooking beyond their restaurants and across the city... no small feat in a celebrated culinary community known for spectacular seafood dishes.

Judy Walker, Restaurant and Food Editor for The Times-Picayune New Orleans' daily newspaper, evaluates the book in "Seafood City: New Orleans Recipes Abound in Ralph Brennan's Cookbook"

Walker's story headlined the newspapers' living section this week and shares the story behind the cookbook... from Ralph's first New Orleans experiences with seafood to compiling a book through the challenges of Hurricane Katrina. The review supports the cookbook and it's comprehensive coverage of local seafood.

Following Walker's post-Katrina commitment to share recipes from New Orleans the article lists several recipes from the cookbook:
- Crabmeat and avocado with spicy vinaigrette
- Louisiana seafood boil
- Grilled redfish and crabmeat with lemon-butter sauce

We thank Judy Walker for sharing the story behind Ralph Brennan's first cookbook and look forward to hearing what other locals have to say about the book.