Crawfish Boil...Now with Pics!..."Laissez les bon temps rouller"

alblancher said:

Jimmy my friend all I can do is tell you how I do them,  I like the way they come out and I never have a problem with over cooked crawfish.

If you do not have a burner outside you can use the stove top.  Just do them in smaller batches if you would like.  You need a pot large enough to hold the crawfish covered with water.  Like i said it isn't a sin to do two batches because you want the water to come to a good rolling boil

I don't add ice, I don't place them in an ice chest.  

Season your cold water.    Taste the water and see if you have enough salt.  For ten lbs crawfish I would say maybe 2 shy cups of salt.   Add cut up lemons, split garlic, celery and halved onions to the water.  Add your seasoning packs,  they may have salt and Cayenne in them so add them first and taste the water.  Bring the water to a good rolling boil and let boil for a couple of minutes.  The boiling water should have enough Cayenne in it that when you open the lid and take a whiff your lungs and sinuses clear up.  You can taste it again and check for seasoning.  Your a chef so I know you can adjust the seasoning the way you need to.  Crawfish take a lot of salt but you can always sprinkle a bit more on later so be careful..  if they are too salty you won't eat them

Ok  You have your water boiling good and hard, the seasoning is right, the room is full of great smells and your nose is a bit runny from the pepper,  You're all set.  Dump the crawfish in and cover them back up.  Make sure they are all taking a good hot bath, push them down gently with the back of your spoon or paddle to get them into the water.   When the water comes back to a boil let them go only until you get a good rolling boil,  If you do not get a good rolling boil don't go much longer then a couple of minutes at a solid simmer.  With our big jet burners it takes no time to get to the rolling boil but with a cook stove you have to make some adjustments.

Turn the heat off and open the lid.  let the crawfish sit in the hot spicey water but after about 5 minutes start tasting them.  The flesh of undercooked crawfish is crunchy or chewy.  The flesh of overcooked crawfish is soft and breaks up as you try to peel them.  The meat should slide out of the shell when you break the tail from the head, grab the meat with your teeth  and pinch the tail.  The crawfish are cooked but not yet fully spiced.   Lay them on the table in trays and let them cool down a  bit.  During this time all the good seasoning sitting in the head will distribute through the tail and season the meat.   I think is important to let them cool to the point that they are still warm but not overly hot when you try to peel them.  Some people will add additional seasoning at this point.  Fine with me, I'v saved a lot of under spiced crawfish that way over the years

I don't use ice because I think it dilutes the seasoning, personal preference,  you talk to a dozen different Coonasses and  you'll get a dozen different ways to boil them.  Good luck I hope you enjoy them.

BTW I cook shrimp the same way but the shrimp don't need as much seasoning and you can probably let them cook a bit longer in the boiling water.  Just don't over cook them or you will never get the shells off!

For a special treat take the seasoning water you used for the crawfish when you are done and boil a bunch of small red potatoes, corn on the cob, mushrooms and some sausage in it. You'll need to add some extra salt and Cayenne because the potats will soak it up.  The stuff is better then the crawfish in my opinion!

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