re: The Origin of Crawfish Etouffee

my grandma still makes fun of us for loving crawfish.

I agree with you. In Chef Folse's Encyclopedia of Cajun & Creole Cuisine, which most Louisiana cooks and culinary schools use as a first resourse, he states that crawfish was made popular when the WPA projects of the Great Depression encouraged cajuns to fish and process crasfish for retail. Up to that point anyone wanting crawfish had to go out and fish the shellfish and the swamp, take it home and then work to boil, peel and then cook the dish. Ettouffee comes from the French phrase "to smother or braise" which is what was done with many meat and fish dishes prior the the retail sales of peeled crawfish. One would ettouffee chicken and corn, duck and turnips, and later crawfish when it became more available. It is for this reason, Folse states, that crawfish etouffee made it's way to menus throughout New Orleans and South Lousisiana after the 1930-40 era. Hope this helps.