When Camryn Clements’ husband, an internal medicine doctor in training at the time, faced a series of health issues, the couple decided to switch to a plant-based diet. Within weeks, his cholesterol levels normalized, and his liver, which had been affected by nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, began to recover.

But when the couple moved back to Clements’ native Lake Charles from Texas, they found their new and healthy diet and lifestyle was difficult to keep up. 

“Our options were incredibly limited,” Clements said. “We can’t find vegetables here,” she thought when scanning the menus of local restaurants.

The Clements family moved back to southwest Louisiana after the region had been pummeled by back-to-back disasters, bringing a number of closures in their wake. The local dining scene has recovered significantly since, offering more options for the community to choose from. 

However, the dilemma they encountered remains: Today’s variation of traditional Cajun cuisine is rich in fatty and fried ingredients and low on vegetables and nutrients.

Is it possible to eat a healthy Cajun diet?

Dietitian Daphne Olivier, who has offices in Lafayette and Baton Rouge where she helps clients develop eating habits that support their health, said the “Cajun diet” can be healthy. 

“Ultimately, everybody wants to be able to wake up every day and feel like they’re ready to conquer the day,” she said. 

Olivier added that eating a balanced diet, getting enough sleep and being active is crucial to achieving that goal.

“There’s space for us to be able to still enjoy our culture, but we need to also balance that with other lifestyle aspects,” Olivier said.

Many traditional Cajun dishes originated during a time when most people worked hours of hard manual labor every day. Therefore, saturated fats and carbohydrates dominate much of the cuisine. 

“Most of us are sitting down for the majority of the day,” Olivier said. “We don’t have any flexibility to be able to consume that level of fat on a regular basis.”

However, exercise can help balance out the high caloric intake that comes with eating traditional Cajun dishes.

Reviving traditional recipes

When families maintained their own gardens, meat and starch were often paired with home-grown vegetables, like greens and okra. Making sure those ingredients are still incorporated into home-cooked Cajun dishes adds much-needed vitamins and nutrients back to meals, Olivier noted.

Organ meats have also fallen out of favor in modern kitchens but played a key role in traditional Cajun cuisine and added nutritional value.

“Traditionally, whenever things were hunted and killed, we used all of (the animal),” Olivier said.

If the idea of eating gizzards or liver by themselves seems daunting, Olivier suggests mixing in some organ meat, like liver, with ground meat for meatballs, burger patties or meatloaf.

“That’s a more modern way to bring in some of those nutrient dense foods,” she said, adding that just 4 ounces of liver mixed with 1 pound of ground meat can make for a healthier meal without being overwhelming in taste.

“We do little, tiny steps toward improving the overall lifestyle,” Olivier said of her work with her patients, imploring those trying to eat a healthier Cajun diet to do the same.

Cutting back on drinking helps too.

“So much of our social culture revolves around having alcohol,” Olivier noted. “That can put a burden on our health.”

While ice chests of beer and alcohol are likely to remain staples at the tailgate and crawfish boil, there are now many nonalcoholic alternatives for those looking to drink less.

In the end, it all comes down to awareness and moderation.

“Any culture that finds themselves with such pride in their food, we feel like there’s no other way,” she said. “Sometimes we have to open people’s eyes to recognize that there are other paths. We don’t have to eat rice and gravy every single night.”

Capturing Cajun roots

Being open to doing things differently is how Clements solved her family’s dilemma in Lake Charles. After researching plant-based Cajun recipes online, she wasn’t satisfied with her options. None of the recipes captured the traditional flavor profiles of her Louisiana upbringing.

So, she started dissecting traditional recipes to identify the key elements of Cajun cooking and using them in her plant-based dishes. Using the “holy trinity” of onions, bell peppers and celery, as well as dark roux and plenty of spices and fresh herbs, Clements was able to replicate the classic Cajun flavor profile.

Through her meal-prepping service, The Plant-Based Cajun, Olivier offers her take on traditional dishes, alongside other plant-based options.

Smoked paprika, fresh pepper and liquid smoke can add some of the flavor profiles traditionally brought by smoked sausages and seared meats.

Rather than trying to replicate the flavor of meat-containing dishes, Clements said she’s looking toward the roots of Cajun cuisine to capture its unique appeal.

“What are the flavors of our Cajun culture?” she said. “What are the ingredients that my grandparents used?”