Louisiana Style Crawfish Boil (Printable)

A Southern boil featuring crawfish, potatoes, corn, and sausage in a spicy, aromatic broth.

# What You Need:

→ Seafood

01 - 4 lbs live crawfish, thoroughly rinsed

→ Vegetables

02 - 2 lbs small red potatoes, halved if large
03 - 4 ears corn, cut into thirds
04 - 2 large yellow onions, quartered
05 - 1 head garlic, halved crosswise
06 - 2 lemons, halved

→ Sausage

07 - 1 lb andouille sausage or smoked sausage, cut into 2-inch pieces

→ Seasoning & Broth

08 - 1/2 cup Louisiana-style seafood boil seasoning (such as Zatarains or Old Bay)
09 - 2 tbsp kosher salt
10 - 1 tbsp cayenne pepper (optional, for extra heat)
11 - 3 bay leaves
12 - 1 tbsp whole black peppercorns
13 - 2 tbsp hot sauce (optional)

→ Other

14 - 6 quarts water
15 - 4 tbsp unsalted butter (for tossing after cooking)
16 - Fresh parsley, chopped (optional, for garnish)

# Directions:

01 - Fill a large stockpot (8-10 quarts) with 6 quarts of water. Add seafood boil seasoning, salt, cayenne, bay leaves, peppercorns, hot sauce, onions, garlic, and lemons. Bring to a rolling boil over high heat.
02 - Add potatoes to the boiling liquid and cook for 10 minutes until beginning to soften.
03 - Add sausage and corn to the pot. Boil for another 7 minutes to cook through.
04 - Add the live crawfish to the pot. Cover and cook for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crawfish shells are bright red and tails are curled.
05 - Turn off the heat. Let everything soak in the seasoned broth for 10-20 minutes (the longer the soak, the more flavor and spice absorbed).
06 - Drain the boil using a large colander. Discard lemons, garlic, and bay leaves.
07 - Transfer crawfish, potatoes, corn, and sausage to a large tray or newspaper-lined table. Drizzle with melted butter and sprinkle with fresh parsley, if desired. Serve immediately.

# Expert Suggestions:

01 -
  • The spicy broth soaks into every single ingredient creating layers of flavor
  • It is messy, communal, and forces everyone to slow down and talk with their hands
02 -
  • The soaking time is actually more important than the boiling time for flavor
  • Have plenty of napkins and wet towels ready because this gets gloriously messy
03 -
  • Buy an extra pound of crawfish because people always eat more than they expect
  • If you cannot find crawfish, shrimp work but reduce the cook time to 3 to 5 minutes

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