You may not be down in the bayou, but you can definitely make your house and dreams smell like it with this delicious cajun crawfish boil! What we got here is a boil that can go toe-to-toe with any in the country and to top it off... I made a cajun spicy butter ready to knock ya socks off!
INGREDIENTS:
Boil Seasoning:
1/3 cup smoked paprika
3/4 cup old bay seasoning
3 Tbsp ground cayenne
2 Tbsp mustard powder
3.5 Tbsp kosher salt
2 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp ground black pepper
1 Tbsp ground coriander
2 Tbsp dried thyme
Spicy Cajun Butter:
1 lb unsalted butter
12 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp boil seasoning
1 Tbsp smoked paprika
2 Tbsp old bay seasoning
Boil:
Water
2 lemons, sliced
2 garlic heads, halved
2 yellow onions, roughly chopped
6 ears corn, peeled and halved
2 lbs smoked cooked sausage
1 King crab (optional)
2.5 lbs crawfish
1 cup hondashi
1 cup shiro dashi
5 bay leaves
Boil seasoning
Salt to taste
2 Tbsp crystal hot sauce
15 whole red potatoes
2 lbs head on shrimp
INSTRUCTIONS:
Method:
For seasoning; in a medium-sized bowl add smoked paprika, old bay seasoning, ground cayenne, mustard powder, kosher salt, sugar, freshly ground black pepper, coriander seeds (lightly toasted), and ground and finally dried thyme crushed. Whisk together.
For spicy cajun butter, add unsalted butter to a medium-sized saucepan. Heat over medium heat and let your butter sit until completely melted.
Add in peeled garlic, let it cook for 2-3 minutes stirring often. Add in smoked paprika and old bay seasoning. Stir that together and let it cook for another 30 seconds or until the spices are lightly toasted and fragrant.
For boil, take a very large pot and a perforated insert. Fill your pot up with water until it reaches a little over the top of your strainer that’s inside. Place on a stove and turn the heat on to high to get the water boiling.
For vegetables; first cut lemons into slices, heads of garlic cut in half, roughly chopped yellow onions, and ears of corn that have been peeled and cut in half.
For the sausage; cut two pounds of large smoked cooked sausage into 2-3 inch segments.
For the seafood, break down your crab into two meaty clusters. For your crawfish, cover them with water and let them sit for 8 minutes, and then drain the water. Fill it again to cover, gently stir and drain. Once more, simply fill and drain for a total of two rinses.
Once your water is steamy, add in your sliced lemon, onions, *optional* one tablespoon of handashi and one cup of shiradashi, garlic, and 5 bay leaves. Using a passel, give your water a gentle stir.
Next add in your boil seasoning and hot sauce, giving it a thorough stir. Taste and season accordingly.
Once your water reaches a rolling boil, add red potatoes to the pot and let them cook for 10-15 minutes or until they are almost cooked through. Once your potatoes are ready, add in your sausage, crawfish, king crab legs, head-on shrimp; giving it all a gentle stir.
Cover lightly and reduce the temperature. Let your pot gently boil for 10 minutes. Once that time is up, immediately turn off the heat and add in your corn. Gently stir once more and let the corn sit in the mixture for 5 minutes or until it is nice and hot.
On your table, roll out butcher paper or newspaper to cover the surface. Carefully lift up your pot and drain your boil out of its liquid. Then, dump your boil all over your table. Serve with your spicy butter.
