9 Responses to Cajun Crawfish Boil & an Étouffée Recipe

1. czarina33 says:

   May 10, 2019 at 11:53 am

   The thing about crawfish boils is everyone uses the recipe their daddy did. Note: this is not a “mama’s recipe” since, like fried turkey, it is a men’s cooking event.
   WHERE ever did she get the mayo and ketchup dip idea!!! Never saw that anywhere in Louisiana! Nobody dips crawfish in anything! Horrors!
   Also, do not try this without the seasonings. Mudbugs taste like, well, bland mud without seasoning.

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2. czarowniczy says:

   May 10, 2019 at 11:24 pm

   Foist, ya gotta use Rex or Zatarains crab berl (goot use da local IN-flexion) and the 2-quart jars of powdered cayenne us’ly sold next to da crab berl. A good load of kosher salt goes into the pot too, a whole lot, and a lotta heads of whole garlic.

   Starter: https://www.mccormick.com/zatarains/recipes/main-dishes/zatarains-crawfish-boil

   The crawfish should be purged first, we do that by letting them shuffle around in salt waster for a while. Some say it works, some say it don’t but it adds salt to the bugs. Folks also add raw turkey necks along with the sausage but that’s up to you. If you do make sure you cooks dem neckses and sausage real good. Make sure the water comes back to a boil before adding sequential items and do not be afraid of over cooking the veggies, the red potatoes (red ones are authentic but you won’t be faulted for using small golf ball-size yellow ones) can be – and frequently are – soft. The garlic can be peeled and eaten too, it’s really great.

   You may have to experiment as you have to overseason the water, each generation of additions saps the flavor and hotness. Some folks will add more boil/salt/cayenne as the boil goes on to maintain an even flavor, just remember the bugs are generally the last thing in and if they’re not heavily flavored they taste like somewhat fishy cardboard. Oh, it’s also best if, when you turn the fire off, that as you let the bugs, et al., steep you hose down the pot with cold water, it changes the density and the bugs fall to the bottom and absorb the flavor better as they steep.

   You can use the recipe stovetop as I do with a 2-gallon pot to boil shrimp or turkey necks. You do a crab boil base (celery, garlic, onion,cayenne, salt water, crab boil) and do the shrimp right there. You can easily do a few pounds at a time, you’re only cooking them until they turn pink, not cooking them to death. I generally don’t cook them until they have the rubbery quality and hotness of crawfish. I find crawfish by itself of limited taste but shrimp have a sweetness all of their own and don’t want to ruin it.

   Boiling turkey necks is a great patio meal, hot or room temp with a cold beer. You can do potatoes and corn with the necks, make it a pot luck thing…don’t forget the garlic and onions. You can practice with chicken necks, cheaper way to perfect your skills and easier for the dog to eat if it don’t turn out all that gooder. Remember, this neck/crawfish thing isn’t about fine bouquet, it’s about FLAVOR!!!!! Highly seasoned as are the vegetables, eaten off a communal tray with ice cold beer.

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   • stella says:

     May 11, 2019 at 7:52 am

     I always buy extra turkey necks at the butcher at Thanksgiving, as that is the only time I can get them. Freeze for later use in stock.

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     • czarowniczy says:

       May 11, 2019 at 11:40 am

       That’s what I used to do but they’re something of a staple down here. They used to be po’ folks food, like pork chops, just a short few years ago but as their local-ish popularity has picked up they’re about as expensive as the turkey wings now. There are folks who just have turkey neck boils.

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       • stella says:

         May 11, 2019 at 12:47 pm

         They really are delicious. Lots of bones, though – but that makes for good stock.

         Making Lebanese style lentil soup today. My house smells like spices – cinnamon, cumin, coriander, cardamom and lemon.

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         • czarowniczy says:

           May 11, 2019 at 5:18 pm

           Gonna do my version of a fajita, as if there’s a standard.
           Nasty, thick, wet, low running rain clouds, flooding just a few miles up the road north of us with I-59 closed just a few miles north of that due its being flooded. Good night for fun food.

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         • czarowniczy says:

           May 11, 2019 at 5:20 pm

           BTW, turkey necks with potato salad (especially if you have boiled the small red/yellow potatoes in a crab boil mix) and corn either boiled in regular slightly sugared water or the crab boil, along with an ICE COLD beer is a great summer party food.

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   • stella says:

     May 11, 2019 at 11:02 am

     Now, how awesome would it be if YOU would do a video, and I could use yours instead of a northern woman’s video!

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     • czarowniczy says:

       May 11, 2019 at 11:38 am

       Dig around, there should be lots of them for the subject. I’ll see if I can find a few and when Zatarains and Rex open on Monday I’ll check and see if they have any.

       We’re the folks whose access to the internet is using our phones as hot spots, remember.

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