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This recipe is for a traditional Southern crawfish boil. Rather than dividing the portions up onto plates before serving the table is spread with newspapers as a makeshift tablecloth and the contents from the crawfish boil is dumped on top for a communal feast. We have done this several times for fun and unique family gatherings. Even if crawfish aren’t native to your area they are easy to find online.
My brother graduated from the University of Alabama and frequented crawfish boils hosted by fraternities on their expansive lawns so he served as my authenticity guide.
Crawfish are in season during spring; specifically in Louisiana the season for wild caught crawfish runs from mid-January through early-July. I was having a difficult time tracking down whole live crawfish on the West Coast so I did what any normal person does these days, I turned to the internet. I was able to overnight live crawfish from Louisiana to my parents’ house in New Jersey where I would be staying for the week. Check out the website cajuncrawfish.com, although there are several other similar sites as well.
To eat the cooked crawfish:
When deciding how much crawfish to buy, you should plan for about 3 pounds per person for an entrée and 5 pounds if your guests are really hungry.
I recommend planning on about 3 pounds per person (5 if they can eat a lot and are hungry!) for this crawfish boil recipe. It may seem like a lot but each crawfish only yields a small amount of meat.
The crawfish cook in the pot for 5 minutes then sit for an additional 15 minutes to absorb the flavor. The vegetables are put in first because they take a bit longer to cook.
Simply twist and pull the tail from the head! Suck the juices out from the head then pinch or bite the meat from the tail.
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