The Cajun stuffed fried bread roll common around Lafayette and Lake Charles is a pistolette.
A Cajun pistolette is a bread roll that is split or filled with seafood or meat, then fried. Crawfish is a popular filling, but versions may also contain shrimp, crab, seasoned meat, cheese, or jalapeños. The frying produces a crisp exterior while the filling remains rich and savory.
The word can be confusing because Louisiana uses “pistolette” for two different bread forms. In Cajun areas around Lafayette and Lake Charles, it generally refers to the stuffed fried roll. In New Orleans, a pistolette can instead mean a small submarine-shaped loaf often used for Vietnamese bánh mì and other sandwiches.
Neither version should be confused with a muffuletta, which is a round Italian-influenced sandwich, or a po’ boy, which is usually served on a long French-style loaf. Calas are different again: they are sweet rice fritters associated with New Orleans Creole foodways, not stuffed bread rolls.