Chef notes
Various methods for boiling crawfish are sacred in southern Louisiana. Everyone has their staunch beliefs about the best way to boil crawfish and they are all deeply personal. I have picked up techniques from many close friends over the years and combined them for this recipe.
Technique tip: The frozen corn holds up better than fresh and it also helps cool the crawfish down so they don't overcook.
Swap option: You can always swap crab or shrimp for this boil.
Ingredients
- Boil spice, to taste
- Boil concentrate, to taste
- Salt, to taste
- 4 new potatoes
- 1 onion, cut in half
- 1 head garlic, top cut off
- 12 pounds crawfish, placed in an ice chest and rinsed under running water for 30 minutes, or until the water runs clear
- 2 links smoked sausage, cut into 4-inch pieces
- 4 pieces frozen corn on the cob
- 6 button mushrooms
- 4 sunchokes
- 1 lemon, cut in half
- 1/2 pineapple, peeled and cut into 4-inch thick slices
- 1/2 cup Creole seasoning mix
Preparation
1.Fill a large, 8-gallon pot a little over halfway full with water.
2.Add spice mix, boil concentrate, salt, potatoes, onions and garlic to the pot. The boil water should taste a little salty and a little spicy. Simmer for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are fork tender.
3.Add the crawfish, bring the pot to a boil, then cut the heat immediately and add the sausage, corn, mushrooms, sunchokes, lemon and pineapple.
4.Let the crawfish soak in the boil liquid for 20 minutes, then strain them into an ice chest or lidded food container.
5.Add the creole spice, close the lid and shake the crawfish around to evenly coat all the food with spice. Dump the boil out onto a table lined with clean paper bags or a table covering and dig in.
