Classic New Orleans Turtle Soup
Turtle Recipe
1Setup & Prepare
About This Recipe
Traditional Creole turtle soup with dark roux, tomatoes, sherry, and hard-boiled eggs—New Orleans' most iconic soup.
Cultural Context
(155 words) Turtle soup represents New Orleans Creole cuisine at its most refined and historically significant. During the city's French colonial period, European turtle soup traditions merged with abundant local snapping turtles and Creole seasonings to create something distinctly New Orleanian. By the 1800s, turtle soup had become the signature dish of fine restaurants like Commander's Palace, Brennan's, and Galatoire's, where it remains on menus today. The soup features a dark roux, the Creole "holy trinity" of vegetables, rich turtle stock, tomatoes, and a finishing touch of sherry and hard-boiled eggs. Preparation is labor-intensive but rewards with complex, deeply satisfying results—silky texture, layered flavors, and the unique taste of turtle meat. This dish embodies New Orleans' culinary sophistication, transforming humble ingredients into haute cuisine through technique, time, and tradition. It's Louisiana cooking at its most elegant.
2Ingredients
Shopping List
3Cooking Instructions
- Place turtle pieces in large pot with water, quartered onion, roughly chopped celery, bay leaves, peppercorns, and salt. Bring to boil, then reduce to bare simmer. Cook for 2-3 hours until meat falls from bones.
- Strain stock through fine-mesh sieve, reserving liquid and turtle pieces separately. When cool enough to handle, pick meat from bones and chop. Discard bones and aromatics. You should have about 8 cups stock and 3-4 cups meat.
- Make roux: melt butter in large, heavy pot over medium heat. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 20-25 minutes until roux reaches deep peanut butter color. Watch carefully—don't burn.
- Immediately add diced onion, bell pepper, and celery to roux. Cook, stirring, until vegetables soften, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute.
- Add crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Gradually add turtle stock, whisking to incorporate roux smoothly. Add chopped turtle meat, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, cayenne, thyme, and bay leaves.
- Bring to boil, then reduce to gentle simmer. Cook uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until flavors meld and soup thickens slightly.
- Remove bay leaves. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, and additional cayenne if desired.
- Just before serving, stir in dry sherry, chopped hard-boiled eggs, and fresh parsley.
- Serve in warm bowls, traditionally accompanied by oyster crackers and additional sherry on the side.
4Chef's Notes & Pairings
Chef's Notes
- The roux must be properly cooked to peanut butter color—this provides authentic flavor.
- Don't rush the stock simmering; proper extraction takes 2-3 hours.
- Hard-boiled eggs are traditional, nodding to eggs sometimes found inside turtles.
- The sherry should be added at the end to preserve its delicate flavor.
- For Commander's Palace-style presentation, float lemon slice on top of each bowl.
Wine Pairing
Dry Amontillado Sherry or Chardonnay – The soup already contains sherry; continue the theme with chilled Amontillado, or try oaked Chardonnay.
Nutrition Facts
(per serving) Calories: 385 | Protein: 32g | Fat: 18g | Carbohydrates: 22g | Iron: 4.8mg
