He likes his food rich, and isn’t afraid to shout about it.

“We take it to the butter-load, baby,” boasted chef Paul Prudhomme at his world-famous French Quarter restaurant, K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen in New Orleans, Louisiana. The state has come under fire by health advocates for not banning trans fats used in cooking, seeing as it regularly appears in the top 10 most out-of-shape, overweight lists in the US.

Traditional New Orleans cooking just can’t do without a healthy dose of butter, bacon drippings, heavy cream or lard (or most of the above), but the introduction of trans fats into some cooking oils and margarine in order to give oil a longer shelf life and sustain higher cooking temperatures has also led to health concerns – namely, blocked arteries and risk of heart disease.

In December, New York City banned artificial trans fats at restaurants, and the likes of Starbucks, KFC, McDonald’s and Burger King say they will phase them out. Several states, including Michigan, California and Oregon, are studying a possible ban. But there has been no such talk in Louisiana.

However, New Orleans’ big-name restaurants say they don’t actually use trans fats for their haute Cajun and Creole cuisine. But that’s because they prefer the rich taste of natural oils and fats rathen than for any health concerns, it seems.

Prudhomme swears by a good roux – the flour browned in oil that helps give gumbo and Louisiana sauces their color and flavor – done with a natural oil, a favourite being peanut oil.

“And there’s nothing wrong with dripping a little pork loin in there,” continues the portly chef. Prudhomme’s signature dish at the restauarnt is the Blackened Louisiana Drum, seasoned and blackened in a cast iron skillet and served with drawn butter, potatoes and veggies. Certainly worth indulging in once in a while – but far from guilt-free.