Remoulade is the soul of this salad. That tangy, mustardy, slightly spicy sauce that turns simple boiled shrimp into something people fight over at the buffet table. I have been making remoulade since I was tall enough to reach my grandmother Evangeline's counter, and I can tell you there are as many recipes as there are cooks in Louisiana. This one is mine.

The secret is balance. You need the sharp bite of Creole mustard, the heat from good Louisiana hot sauce, the punch of horseradish, and enough acid to make it all sing. Too much of any one thing and the sauce falls flat. But get it right, and you have something that coats each shrimp in pure Louisiana magic.

At Lagniappe, we serve this salad piled high on toasted French bread for lunch, and folks clean their plates and order another. It works just as well over crisp lettuce for a lighter meal or stuffed into a ripe avocado when you want to get fancy. The shrimp do the heavy lifting, sweet and tender from a quick poach in seasoned water. The vegetables add crunch and freshness. And the remoulade ties everything together with that unmistakable Creole flavor that tastes like home.