This is our favorite fare for a summertime party and we usually do this dish on Bastille Day. Grab yourself a bucket of beer and order some live crawdads, if you don’t have a trap and live next to a bayou. Most grocers can special order them or there are various places online in Louisiana and Texas. I found one of the best places was to order from King Soopers through their meat department. We have a new store Crawfish Market in Denver, which I am going to use next time for crawfish jumbo 5 for $29 frozen in winter, live next February until July $5.50 per pound.
Make sure they are purged and triple washed, otherwise it is time-consuming to do this task on your own.
Ingredients
Stock:
- 3 gallons water
- 2/3 c. salt
- 1 T. black peppercorns
- 2 packages dry crab boil
- 1 c. liquid crab boil
- 1 T. hot sauce
- 1 T. Essence, recipe follows
- 2 bay leaves
- Crawfish, vegetables, and sausage:
- 12 pounds live crawfish
- 8 new potatoes
- 2 ears of corn, cut into thirds
- 2 artichokes
- 1 foot of andouille sausage, cut into 8 equal links
- 3 lemons, halved
- 2 medium size yellow onions, peeled and quartered
- 1/2 lb. raw peanuts (optional)
- 3 whole garlic cloves, split in half
- 1 c. melted butter
- Couple of bottles of Abita Beer or your favorite beer
Directions
For the stock: In a large stock pot with a basket insert on high heat, add the water, salt, and peppercorns. Add the rest of the seasonings, cover and bring up to a boil. When the stock is at a boil, add the potatoes, corn, and artichokes. Cover and bring back to a boil, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, except for the crawfish. Cover the pot and bring back up to a boil, about 5 minutes. Taste the stock for seasoning and adjust if needed. Add the crawfish, cover and turn off the flame. Allow the mixture to steep for 5 to 30 minutes. To assemble, place brown paper bags on the counter, lift the basket out of the stock and drain. Dump the boil directly on the counter. Serve with plenty of melted butter, beer and paper towels.
Emeril’s ESSENCE Creole Seasoning (also referred to as Bayou Blast):
- 2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
Combine all ingredients thoroughly.