Louisiana Crawfish Boil

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •60-quart stockpot with basket insert
• •Outdoor propane burner
• •Large cooler or washtub for purging
• •Long-handled paddle for stirring
• •Heavy gloves for handling hot basket

Instructions

1. 1

   Purge the crawfish

   Fill a large cooler or washtub with cool water and add one cup of the salt. Dump in the live crawfish and let them swim for about twenty minutes. They will purge mud and debris from their systems. You will see the water turn murky. Some folks say this is myth, but I have done it both ways, and purged crawfish taste cleaner. Drain and rinse them twice with fresh water until the water runs clear. Discard any dead crawfish. If they do not move when you poke them, they were dead before the boil. Do not cook them.

   A crawfish that has a straight tail after cooking was dead before it hit the pot. Throw it away. Live crawfish curl their tails when cooked.
2. 2

   Build the boiling liquid

   Set your largest pot over a propane burner outdoors. This is not indoor cooking. Fill with five gallons of water and bring to a rolling boil. Add the remaining cup of salt, all the cayenne, peppercorns, coriander, mustard seeds, bay leaves, allspice, and cloves. Squeeze the lemon halves into the pot and throw them in. Add the garlic heads, onions, and celery. If using liquid crab boil, add it now. Let this aromatic bath boil hard for fifteen minutes. Your yard should smell like Louisiana.

   The seasoning in the water is only the beginning. The real flavor comes during the soak at the end. Do not skimp on the spices.
3. 3

   Cook the potatoes and sausage

   Add the red potatoes to the boiling liquid first. They take the longest and need time to absorb seasoning. Boil for ten minutes, then add the andouille. The sausage releases smoky pork fat into the water, building another layer of flavor. Cook together for another ten minutes. Test a potato with a knife. It should slide in with just a little resistance. The potatoes will continue cooking during the soak.

4. 4

   Add the corn

   Drop in the corn pieces. They need only five minutes at a rolling boil. Fresh corn cooks fast, and overcooked corn turns mealy and sad. Keep the boil vigorous. The corn should be bright yellow and just tender when you bite into it.

5. 5

   Boil the crawfish

   Here is where most people go wrong. Add the purged crawfish to the pot, stir them down into the liquid, and return to a boil. Once the water boils again, cook for exactly three minutes. Not five. Not seven. Three minutes. Overcooked crawfish turn rubbery and the fat inside the head becomes grainy instead of creamy. Set a timer. When it beeps, turn off the heat immediately.

   The crawfish are not done cooking when you turn off the heat. They will finish during the soak. Trust the process.
6. 6

   Let them soak

   This is where the magic happens. Leave everything in the pot, off the heat, for twenty to thirty minutes. During this time, the crawfish absorb the spiced liquid. The longer they soak, the spicier they become. Start tasting at twenty minutes. When the heat level is right for your crowd, it is time to drain. For a milder boil, soak less. For fire-breathers, soak longer.

   Add a bag of ice to the pot during the soak if you want to stop the cooking and prevent overcooking. The cold also helps the crawfish absorb more seasoning.
7. 7

   Drain and season

   Lift the crawfish and vegetables out with a large strainer basket or scoop them out in batches. Let them drain briefly, then dump everything onto a newspaper-covered table. Do not plate this food. It goes straight onto the table. Sprinkle additional cayenne and salt over everything while still hot. Toss to distribute. The newspaper will soak up excess liquid and become part of the experience.

8. 8

   Eat with your hands

   Gather your people around the table. No utensils needed. Twist the tail from the body, pinch the end of the tail shell, and pull the meat free in one piece. Do not skip the head. Suck the fat and juices from inside. That is where the deepest flavor lives. My grandmother Evangeline called it liquid gold, and she was not wrong. Have cold beer ready. Plenty of napkins. Forget your manners and enjoy the mess.

Chef Tips

• •Buy your crawfish live from a reputable source. Louisiana crawfish season runs from late winter through early summer. If you cannot get live crawfish, do not substitute frozen. Make something else.
• •The size of your pot matters. You need at least a 60-quart pot for this amount of crawfish. Borrow one, rent one, or buy one and use it for the rest of your life. At Lagniappe, we use 100-quart pots.
• •Spice levels are personal. Start with the amounts listed and adjust the soak time. A twenty-minute soak gives moderate heat. Thirty minutes brings real fire. Taste a crawfish during the soak to check.
• •Save the boiling liquid. Strain it and freeze it. Use it as a base for gumbo, etouffee, or your next boil. That liquid holds so much flavor it would be a crime to dump it.
• •If you want to add extras, mushrooms and artichoke hearts go in with the potatoes. Some folks add whole heads of garlic for guests to squeeze onto their crawfish. The more, the merrier.

Advance Preparation

• •Make your spice blend up to one month ahead and store in an airtight container. The flavors will marry and deepen.
• •Prep all vegetables the morning of the boil. Keep potatoes submerged in cold water to prevent browning.
• •Crawfish must be alive until the moment they hit the pot. Buy them the day of your boil and keep them cool and moist in a cooler with damp newspaper or burlap.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 650g)