Published: · Modified: by Melanie Cagle · 49 Comments
Crawfish Boil - you don't get any more Southern than that. A delicious blend of crawfish, seasonings and vegetables mixed with good friends, get ready to fall in love with this crawfish boil recipe.
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In South Louisiana, most kids grow up learning how to boil crawfish! For many others who don't grow up with this boiling tradition, the idea of being in charge of a Louisiana crawfish boil recipe is quite scary.
I want to ease those minds though, it's really not as scary as it seems - as long as you follow the basics I'm going to give you some tips that will help you through your first 'crawfish boil' - and after that you will never look back.
It really is a crowd-pleaser, something to pull out when you want to get everyone together and pass a good time!
At a crawfish party unloading the boiled crawfish onto a picnic table lined with paper is common.
Jump to:
- 🧅 Ingredients
- 🥣 Instructions
- 🔄 Substitutions and Variations
- 🦞 Crawfish Dipping Sauce
- 🔌 Crawfish Boil Equipment
- 🧊 Storage
- 👩🍳 FAQ's
- 💡 Tips
- Flavorful Crawfish Boil Recipe
- 💬 Comments
Boiling crawfish is dependent on one thing - Crawfish season. Usually, you're looking at January to June. It's slow going in January (and so expensive) but it starts gearing up into February, just in time for Mardi Gras and Fat Tuesday.
It's good to be gluttonous the day before lent and so you'll find a lot of people throwing huge get togethers to boil crawfish and have a good old time and this is the best crawfish boil recipe.
Another thing - during lent most Catholic followers do not eat meat on Fridays and so can be a tradition to have crawfish boils every Friday!
If you're looking for recipes for those leftover crawfish tails, look no further. I have a full list of the crawfish recipes I have on my site at the bottom of this post.
🧅 Ingredients
I didn't include the crawfish in this ingredients shot - Just imagine a big ol' bag of fresh crawfish with about 30-40lb of live crawfish next to all these ingredients.
- Carrots
- Small Red Potatoes
- Garlic
- Yellow Onions
- Ears of Corn
- Mushrooms
- Oranges
- Lemons
- Smoked Sausage
- Live Crawfish (30-40 pounds of crawfish is in one sack)
- Crab Boil Louisiana (Louisiana Crawfish Seasoning)
- Cajun Seasoning (optional)
See recipe card for quantities (including ingredients for a seafood dip).
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🥣 Instructions
- Step 1: Untie the sack of crawfish and empty into a large ice chest. Fill with fresh water and stir the crawfish around with a paddle.
- Step 2: To the crawfish boil pot with the basket - Add the crawfish boil seasoning to enough water to fill and apply a high heat to get a rolling boil - at this point add the veggies and sausage.
- Step 3: After boiling, remove from the water and wedge the basket to be able to drain for a few minutes then transfer to an ice chest to keep warm.
- Step 4: Add the live crawfish to the basket.
- Step 5: Drop the crawfish into the reseasoned water and bring to a rolling boil - at which point time 4 minutes. Turn off the burner and soak in the hot water for a further 10 minutes.
- Step 6: Lift the basket out again and wedge to allow to drain.
- Step 7: Add the crawfish to the veggies in the ice chest, to keep warm.
- Step 8: Add to serving platters as needed. Don't forget the seafood dip (recipe below).
Boiled crawfish season in Louisiana is from around the end of January through to about May (spring time). This is when the best crawfish is in abundance in the seafood markets and they're nice and big (and cheaper).
Hint: This crawfish boiling recipe gives a good bite to the veggies and crawfish. We like to have just enough of a kick for our lips to tingle but no more than that. If you like a lot of heat increase the seasoning and the same in reverse. If you like it milder, reduce the seasoning.
🔄 Substitutions and Variations
- Shrimp - if you prefer to boil shrimp instead you can use roughly the same ingredients. Don't add the seasoning though during the boil. Just boil the shrimp for 2 minutes then turn off the heat. Add the seasoning at this point (and just half of that in this recipe, shrimp have a much thinner shell and absorb easier). Allow to soak for 5-10 minutes and remove. You'll see a little bubble appear on the back of the shrimp when it fills with the seasoning. That's a little indicator that the shrimp boil is ready.
- Vegetables- any vegetables can be added depending on your preferences. Some popular ones are cauliflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts, green beans...
- Eggs - Add some eggs and make boiled eggs in this delicious seasoned water. You'd be amazed at how good those eggs are.
- Tamales - Poke a few holes in a bag with tamales and toss them in there at the end.
- Allspice - this is a nice addition.
- Turkey Necks - A turkey neck infused with the flavors of the crawfish boil is absolutely delicious!
- Hot Dogs - I know a lot of people that will throw some hot dogs in with the boil.
- Crawfish Seasoning afterward - It can be popular to shake some crab boil seasoning all over the crawfish after it has cooked, it doesn't affect the flavor of the crawfish but it does get all over fingers etc and can bump up the spice consumed from contact with your fingers.
See this recipe for Crawfish Monica on my website!
🦞 Crawfish Dipping Sauce
The dipping sauce you use for your crawfish is important. I have the perfect recipe nailed down - I actually use it for all my seafood. See my recipe here.
🔌 Crawfish Boil Equipment
It's important you have the right equipment (especially pot size) before you even get started on a traditional crawfish boil.
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The most basic way (and cheapest) for a crawfish boil is to use a large aluminum pot with a basket insert and an outdoor propane cooker (burner) for underneath - you'll need to supply the propane tanks.
This gorgeous Cajun Crawfish Cooker (crawfish boil pot) and seafood boiler is more extravagant and is on most Cajun guys ultimate wish list! Talk about the perfect present! It makes the whole crawfish boil experience just so much easier. You'll also need a propane tank.
You will definitely need an ice chest to keep the boiled crawfish warm while everyone is chowing down.
Eating boiled crawfish can get really messy. Serving it up on these trays is the most popular way to keep everything together.
An important part of any crawfish boil, you need to be able to stir those crawfish around.
🧊 Storage
Once cooled completely add ice to the ice chest (large cooler) and store this way instead of using up refrigerator space. As long as it stays iced and the water can drain they will stay good for 2 days.
Get that leftover crawfish peeled and store in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months.
👩🍳 FAQ's
How many pounds of crawfish per person?
Obviously everyone's different, but average is about 3lb per person. Around here though, the guys can easily put away 5-8lb!
How many crawfish are in a pound?
Typically about 20-30 crawfish in each pound. Although depending on the time of the crawfish season it can be as many as 40 when they're really small - or 12-15 when they're huge!
💡 Tips
Expert Tip: After everyone has finished eating and the crawfish has cooled completely add ice to the ice chest instead of trying to find room in your refrigerator. This way you can get to peeling the crawfish and making crawfish pies or something with the leftover crawfish tails!
Host your own crawfish boil. Or have you already tried thisBoiled Crawfish recipeor any other great recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section below, how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers!
You can also follow me onPINTEREST,FACEBOOKandINSTAGRAMto see more amazing recipes!
Flavorful Crawfish Boil Recipe
Crawfish Boil - you don't get any more Southern than that. A delicious blend of crawfish, seasonings and vegetables mixed with good friends, get ready to fall in love with this crawfish boil recipe.
Prep Time1 hour hr
Cook Time24 minutes mins
Additional Time10 minutes mins
Total Time1 hour hr 34 minutes mins
Servings: 6
Cuisine: Seafood
Author: Melanie Cagle
Video
Ingredients
- 1 sack +/-40lbLive crawfish
- 3 lb Red Potatoes
- 3 lb Onions
- 6 Bulbs Garlic
- 3 lb Carrots
- 3 lb Whole Corn
- 16 oz Whole Mushrooms
- 3 lb Smoked Sausage
- 10 cups Zatarains Crab Boil Seasoning
- 8 oz bottle Zatarains Lemon shrimp & crab boil
- 8 oz bottle Zatarains Garlic & onion shrimp & crab boil
- 2 Whole Oranges halved
- 2 Whole Lemons halved
Instructions
Soak live crawfish in fresh cool water for about ½ hour, removing dead crawfish. Drain and soak again for a further ½ hour.
Bring large pot of water to boil.
While crawfish are soaking prepare vegetables - chop carrots into long pieces. Cut onions in half. Chop sausage into long pieces.
Add 2 cups of crab boil to water.
Put potatoes, garlic, onions, carrots and sausage into basket and drop into the water. Boil for 10 minutes. Add corn and mushrooms and cook for another 10 minutes.
Take vegetables out and put into ice chest to keep warm.
Add another 8 cups of crab boil to the water and the two bottles of liquid crab boil, to boil the crawfish in.
Dump crawfish into basket (that the veggies were in) and when the water is back boiling drop the crawfish.
Cook crawfish for 4 minutes (timed once the water gets to boiling point again).
Turn off heat and allow crawfish to soak in the pot for a further 10 minutes.
Remove crawfish.
Serve immediately with vegetables and seafood dip.
Notes
It takes about 7 pounds of live crawfish to produce 1 pound of peeled tails.
You do have to be concerned about cholesterol. Crawfish tend to be higher in cholesterol than most other shellfish. And what you put in the pot can add to the mix.
Nutritional information below does not include the vegetables.
Add some Cayenne Pepper to make it even hotter! Use Andouille Sausage too.
Don't forget that roll of paper towels. You're going to need it.
See video below on How To Peel Crawfish:
Nutrition
Serving: 1bls | Calories: 1463kcal | Carbohydrates: 154g | Protein: 66g | Fat: 70g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 37g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 274mg | Sodium: 3210mg | Fiber: 24g | Sugar: 42g
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Kids really love to play with the crawfish before they go into the pot. It fascinates them. My two love to try to catch them without getting pinched then they're so proud of themselves and parade around with it before dropping it back and trying to catch another.
Check out this list of Amazing Cajun Seafood Recipes.
More Crawfish Recipes
- Crawfish Sauce
- Crawfish Pistolettes
- Creamy Crawfish Monica
- Crawfish Pie Recipe
Reader Interactions
Comments
Tara Noland says
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shirleydale says
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Gloria Duggan says
Loving the sound of the southern recipe. I have never tried crawfish. I know this would be a hit for dinner any night of the week.
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Melanie Cagle says
Oooh, yes I could eat crawfish every day!!
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Sharon says
One of my favorite things to do is recreate dishes I have on vacation. I cannot wait to make a crawfish boil right at home with these detailed instructions.
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Melanie Cagle says
Glad you like it Sharon, Let me know how it goes!?
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Eva says
How interesting! Here in Sweden it is traditional to host crayfish parties at the end of summer. Those who know how to fish them will have the best experience, but as a novice last summer I bought them frozen and enjoyed them really much. Thank you for this recipe, maybe next year I'll look for live crayfish and try to cook them from scratch myself! Looks pretty simple to make.
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Melanie Cagle says
Eva, you're right, it is pretty simple. As long as you have the timing and the seasoning right everything else is 'Lagniappe' as they say here in Louisiana!
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Adriana says
What a feast! A few years back, a friend of ours invited us to a crawfish boil, and it is fantastic. I have always wanted t replicate it at home, but now I have teh scoop on making it the authentic way.
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Melanie Cagle says
Hi Adriana, glad this made your day! Happy boiling!
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Jenny says
I have never tried to make crawfish, and I found your post fascinating to read. My husband is a great fan of Louisiana cooking, so I am seriously thinking of making them. I will follow your instructions to the letter. Thanks so much!
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Kushigalu says
Thanks for detailed instruction on how to boil crawlfish. Very useful post. Thanks for sharing.
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Melanie Cagle says
Glad you enjoyed it!
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Loreto Nardelli says
Wow that boilooks so good. Talk about finger licking good! Where I work we have an office in Houston and they always talk about the crayfish boils on the beach. I always get so hungry and mouth watered when I hear about sucking all that juice and meat out of those dwells!
Very Yummy!Reply
Melanie Cagle says
Hope you get to try it soon!
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Jessica (Swanky Recipes) says
The hubs family makes one spicy blend made with plenty of seasoning. We enjoy the feast every year and look forward to standing around a table with our serving trays, good company and delicious food in hand.
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Melanie Cagle says
Yes indeed!!! Glad you enjoy it too!
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Cindy says
We really enjoyed this over the weekend and loved how flavorful it was. Thanks for the detailed instructions.
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Melanie Cagle says
So glad you enjoyed it!!!
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Naiby says
It's amazing how kids grow up doing different things depending on the culture. Thanks for your recipe. You make it look like child's play.
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Alina says
I have never tried crawfish. If I will, I will definitely refer to your recipe! I need to figure out how to eat those, too 🙂
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Beth says
This was so helpful! I’m so excited to give this a try!
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Mirlene says
Always wanted to learn the SL style... I've tried many crawfish recipes before but somehow I get a feeling that this recipe will be the one I will keep for a long time!
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Melanie Cagle says
I believe you will! This recipe has never failed us yet!
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Biana says
Thank you for sharing step by step instructions! They will make it easy for me to make this delicious recipe.
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Sara Welch says
Made this for dinner last night and it did not disappoint! Was such a tasty feast; loved all the flavors of Louisiana!
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Melanie Cagle says
Glad you enjoyed it Sara.
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Amanda Dixon says
Thanks for all the tips! Growing up in Houston, we lived off crawfish boils in the spring, and this looks perfect -- just like home! Can't wait to put on a boil this spring.
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Melanie Cagle says
I'm with you on that one! I'm thinking maybe this Friday, lol!
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Marta says
A seafood store up the road from us sells crawfish by the bag and I'm always hesitant to buy them because it looks like so much work. This post makes it more approachable.
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Melanie Cagle says
I hope you do! It's so much fun and absolutely delicious!
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Chef Dennis says
My family enjoys crawfish recipes so much! Thank you for sharing this. I am so excited to let them try this Boiled Crawfish.
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Julia says
Ooh I've only ever had a crawfish boil at a restaurant so I'm glad I'm able to set it up at home now!
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Kathryn says
I didn't realize how easy this is to make! Perfect for a summertime crawfish boil!
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Lori | The Kitchen Whisperer says
Oh my gosh yes! I love a killer seafood boil! Yours looks amazing and I’m crushing hard on your pics! I need to make this very soon!!! Thank you for this!
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Tammy says
I've never cooked crawfish before honestly so this is such a great guide! I love seafood boils though...a perfect dish for the warmer weather coming up!
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Amy Casey says
I've made a seafood boil, but never a crawfish boil. I can't wait to give this one a try. And the sauce!! It puts this recipe over the top!
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Melanie Cagle says
Thanks Amy, hope you enjoy it!
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Leslie says
This is the heart and soul of southern food right here! Gosh, what a beautiful recipe!
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Moop Brown says
I'm a huge crawfish fan and love how detailed and thorough this recipe is for boiling. Thank you for sharing!
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Moop Brown says
I'm a huge crawfish fan and love how detailed and thorough this recipe is for boiling. Thanks!
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Melanie Cagle says
Thanks Moop, glad you like it!
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Donnie says
Great recipe! When do you add the two 8oz jars of liquid seasoning?
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Melanie Cagle says
Thanks Donnie! Great catch, we add the liquid crab boil at the same time as when we put in the second batch of seasoning... right before the crawfish drop! Thanks for pointing that out, I'll update the recipe!
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Donnie says
No problem. I kind of figured that’s when it would go in. Just wanted to make sure. Everything came out great! Thanks again for posting this recipe.
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Tammie says
Whats your recipe for the dipping sauce?
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Melanie Cagle says
You can find my recipe here: Seafood Sauce for Dipping
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