This crawfish boil recipe is hearty and flavorful with the perfect blend of seasonings, lots of red potatoes, corn, and andouille sausage, a crowd pleaser!
Crawfish Boil Recipe
Have you ever thrown a good old fashioned Crawfish Boil? A crawfish boil is the perfect way to entertain a crowd during crawfish season, where groups of people get together and boil sacks of fresh crawfish in a seasoned broth with lots of additions, like andouille, corn on the cob, and red potatoes.
It's also something you can make at home for yourself or a small group of friends and family.
The key to a great Louisiana crawfish boil is the blend of seasonings that imparts so much flavor, and that is one of my specialties.
The great thing about this recipe is that it is very customizable, allowing you to add in as much or as little of the sausage and veggies as you'd like, even add new ones into the mix. It also scales beautifully if you do decide to throw a big crawfish boil party.
Let's talk about how to do a crawfish boil step by step, shall we?
Crawfish Boil Ingredients
The full recipe list with measurements is listed in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Water. Use 12 quarts (3 gallons) for this recipe.
- CRAWFISH BOIL SEASONINGS
- Spices. Cayenne Pepper, Mustard Seeds, Allspice, Garlic Powder, Paprika, Crushed Red Pepper Flakes, Clove, Onion Powder, Salt, and Black Pepper. You can omit garlic powder and onion powder if you prefer, as we're using fresh garlic and onion in the recipe. You can also use a nice Cajun seasonings blend.
- Dried Herbs. Dill, Coriander, Thyme, Oregano, Bay Leaves.
- FOR THE CRAWFISH BOIL
- Crawfish. Live crawfish, thoroughly cleaned, is ideal if you can obtain it. If not, this recipe works great with frozen crawfish.
- Onions.
- Lemons.
- Red Potatoes.
- Fresh Garlic.
- Butter. A half stick will make the crawfish easier to peel.
- Crystal Hot Sauce. The best for this recipe! Though you can use other hot sauces. Crystal is a Louisiana staple.
- Corn.
- Andouille Sausage. You can use other smoked sausage.
How to Make a Crawfish Boil - the Recipe Method
Add the water to a large pot along with the crawfish boil seasonings, potatoes, onions, lemons, garlic, butter, and hot sauce. Bring the pot to a rolling boil, cover, and boil for 15 minutes.
Add the crawfish, corn, and andouille sausage to the boiling pot. Press down beneath the water to cover. Boil for 2-3 minutes.
Turn off the heat, cover, and let sit for 15-20 minutes.
Drain and serve onto trays or a newspaper lined table. Enjoy!
Serve it all up with a nice butter sauce or your favorite seafood boil sauce and you're good to go!
Boom! Done! Your crawfish boil is ready to go! Dig on in, my friends, before it gets cold. Everyone is going to love you for this recipe.
Recipe Tips & Notes
- If you are unable to find live crawfish, frozen crawfish works perfectly with this recipe, so feel free to use your frozen stock, or order them online.
- This recipe works with any of your favorite seafoods, so feel free to customize by adding jumbo shrimp, whole crab or crab legs, white fish, or others.
- The seasonings used here are great for any seafood boil. See my seafood boil seasonings recipe.
How Long Do You Boil Crawfish?
Crawfish only needs to be boiled for 3-5 minutes to cook through, depending on the size of the crawfish. For larger crawfish, it could take longer, up to 10 minutes.
When is Crawfish Season?
Crawfish season varies from year to year depending on rainfall and other factors, but it can run from November through July in various parts of the U.S., though shorter seasons are more usual.
Storage & Leftovers
Store any leftover crawfish boil ingredients - crawfish, corn, potatoes, andouille - in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can gently reheat it on the stove top or in the microwave to enjoy again, or just enjoy it cold.
Leftover crawfish tail meat is more often used to incorporate into other recipes, like soups, stews, or casseroles.
Try it with these crawfish recipes of mine:
- My Seafood Gumbo Recipe is the best around, loaded with seafood in a thick and rich gravy.
- My Crawfish Etouffee Recipe is loaded with crawfish in a thick and creamy sauce made with a roux.
- My Crawfish Bread Recipe is the perfect party pleaser with lots of crawfish in a creamy, melty, cheesy topping.
That's it, my friends. I hope you enjoy my seafood boil recipe. Let me know if you make it. I'd love to hear how it turned out for you, and if you decided to spice it up!
Try Some of My Other Popular Recipes
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.
Crawfish Boil Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 quarts water 3 gallons
CRAWFISH BOIL SEASONINGS
- 1.5 cups salt
- 1/4 cup cayenne pepper
- 1/4 cup mustard seeds or use 4 tablespoons ground mustard
- 3 tablespoons ground coriander or 4 tablespoons whole coriander seeds, ground
- 3 tablespoons ground allspice or 6 tablespoons whole allspice, ground
- 3 tablespoons ground dill or 6 tablespoons whole dill seeds, ground
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder You can omit if using whole garlic in your boil
- 2 tablespoons paprika
- 2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons black pepper or 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns, ground
- 1 tablespoon ground cloves or 1.5 tablespoons whole cloves, ground
- 12 bay leaves crumbled
FOR THE CRAWFISH BOIL
- 2 large onions peeled and quartered
- 2 lemons halved
- 2 pounds small red potatoes halved or quartered
- 3 medium heads garlic cut in half lengthwise
- ½ stick butter 5 tablespoons
- 1-2 bottles Crystal hot sauce 5 ounces, or use your favorite Louisiana-style hot sauce
- 10 pounds live crawfish thoroughly cleaned (or use frozen, thawed)
- 6 ears corn shucked and cut in half
- 1 pound andouille sausage sliced
Instructions
- Add the water to a large pot along with the crawfish boil seasonings, potatoes, onions, lemons, garlic, butter, and hot sauce. Bring to a boil, cover, and boil for 15 minutes.
- Add the corn, andouille sausage, and crawfish. Press down beneath the water to cover. Boil for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 15-20 minutes.
- Drain and serve onto trays or a newspaper lined table. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition Information
Jason Walsh says
this was amazing, my new favorite feast.
Mike Hultquist says
Excellent! Glad you enjoyed it, Jason! Boom!
Lee D. says
Hi Mike, I love your recipes and am glad I found your website. I share it with everyone I talk to. On this Crawfish boil recipe, you might need to clarify a very important step. All Cajuns will tell you that Crawfish need to be burped (Purged) before boiling. There are alot of websites which will walk someone through the process. You might let your readers know to toss any dead crawfish before boiling, these are ones you definitely don't want to eat. Again, I am glad I found your site. Keep the recipes coming.
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks, Lee. From my understanding, purging crawfish is a matter of personal preference. I appreciate the comments.
Ramya says
Cant wait to make this soon for me can i use vegan butter / mushrooms and tofu i never had crawfish boil before perfect for my after office meals love your recipes as always brightens up my day everyday after work