Classic Cajun Culture and Cooking

In the pages of this cookbook, Mrs. Lucy Zaunbrecher has done much more than just assemble a group of recipes. She has included much of the history not only of her own family but also of the Cajun people as a whole. Here you'll learn not only the foods the Cajuns love but - more importantly - the reasons they love them. You'll learn how the Cajuns came from France to Nova Scotia to Louisiana and you'll learn how their culture and cuisine developed to match new and untamed land. And, you'll learn how these recipes developed over three generations of Cajun cooks in one family. If your goal is to truly understand the Cajuns as well as to cook like them, look no further than "Classic Cajun" by Mrs. Lucy Zaunbrecher.

Lucy Zaunbrecher shares generations of family cooking secrets on her series Lucy’s Classic Cajun Culture & Cooking. Born and raised on a rice farm in Gueydan, Louisiana, the “Duck Capital of America,” Ms. Lucy shares both home-style recipes and Louisiana history just as a friendly next-door neighbor might: with plenty of tips, asides, and humor-laced anecdotes.

In each show Ms. Lucy prepares an entire Cajun meal including salads and desserts, with an emphasis on such Louisiana staples as seafood, game, rice, sweet potatoes, and fresh produce. Her creations emphasize good taste and ease of cooking rather than presentation of exotic ingredients.

“The difference between me and a chef is that I have to do my own dishes,” Ms. Lucy laughs as she vigorously stirs a pot of Jambalaya. Even born-and-bred Louisiana cooks can learn something new from this show. For instance, one of Ms. Lucy’s “mama’s tricks” is to add caramelized sugar to the rice when making Pork Chop Jambalaya. Other recipes include Bouille, Duck Gueydan, and Crawfish in Heaven.

In addition to her cooking show, Ms. Lucy has authored a cookbook and writes a nationally syndicated cooking column.
Lucy’s Classic Cajun Culture & Cooking is underwritten by the Louisiana Seafood Promotion Board and the Louisiana Department of Economic Development.


206 pages 1994 Lucy Henry Zaunbrecher