National Crawfish Day - Recipes

Today, I offer praise to the humble Mudbug, or Crawfish. Also known as Crayfish and Crawdads, there are even more colorful names depending on where you reside. I know Crawfish, and hopefully, you'll learn a few things about this delicious freshwater crustacean on National Crawfish Day.

     Click on any photo to see larger.

A Crawfish is like a miniature lobster. In Europe, they are known as Longastino. I can get them here is Los Angeles.

You can cook them the same way as a lobster, too. Normally, they are boiled in a spicy broth of water with a package of Crab Boil. There are spicy packages from Louisiana and milder types carried by most grocers.

And you feed on the Crawfish tail, just like a lobster. You can even get a sliver of claw meat if the Crawfish is large enough.

Peeling a Crawfish Tail

Due to their small size, Crawfish cook quickly like shrimp. They only take 10 minutes of boiling, and then you turn off the heat and let them stew in the spicy broth -- the longer they steep in the broth, the spicier the crawfish. 

Now it's time to eat the hot, tiny Crawfish tails. Just watch my video below to see how I do the deed. And a warning, I do suck the head of a Crawfish just like a real Cajun does - it's loaded with a whole lotta juicy flavor.

How to Eat a Crawfish - Video

I learned to peel a cooked Crawfish early on. When a bag of boiled Crawfish is dumped on the table, you'd better know how to make quick work to get the tail meat, or you will be left behind. Like with anything, the more you peel them, the speedier you will get.

     30-pound bags of live Crawfish

The meaty Crawfish tail is small like a bay shrimp, but milder in fishy flavor. Sometimes referred to as seafood, they are not from the salty water of the sea, but are from freshwater ponds, swamps, and bayous. These days, you are more likely to get them from Crawfish Farms that are just shallow freshwater ponds. 

In the wild, a mudbug, or crawfish, will burrow into mud and create a Crawfish Mound or Chimney. I have seen them in ditches or fields that flood. The burrows are for protection from predators. An adult crawfish digs deep, a foot or more.

I lived in Louisiana in my high school daze, where Crawfish culture has risen to edible art. Think of any recipe you would make with shrimp, and you can substitute Crawfish tail meat instead. 

During Crawfish Season, from about February to May, you can buy them at supermarkets and even gas stations with a deli counter. 

You can buy them live or already cooked. They cost anywhere from $3 per pound for live to $5 per pound for cooked whole Crawfish. My fave Louisiana local market, Rouse's Supermarkets, has good deals on freshly boiled crawfish sold in large coolers at the entrance and inside the store in the seafood section.

You can buy precooked and peeled Crawfish Tails in frozen 12-ounce or one-pound packages in the $10-$15 range. The cheapest packages come from China. The tail meat is usually smaller than locally raised crawfish. And they are somewhat controversial, as the low cost puts a financial strain on Louisiana-farmed crawfish. 

Crawfish are tasty any time of day, even in a breakfast Omelet with Cheese & Crawfish. A recipe by my brother from another daddy, the Swamp Chef.

While on the expensive side, they will provide an ample entree, enough to serve your family --especially if you follow Chef Tony's Crawfish Etouffee recipe, below. 

My family usually orders them cooked, but almost every local has attended or thrown a live Crawfish Boil in their backyard at one time or another. 

My niece Candyse (top center) and her family.

If you are feeding a party, budget about 3 pounds of whole Crawfish per person. A basic Crawfish Boil usually has lemon halves, corn, and potatoes that start in a spicy boil for an hour - the live Crawfish are added for about 10 more minutes or until they are bright orange/red and done. Turn off the heat and let it all soak up the spices for half an hour.  

I've yet to meet a local Louisiana adult or child who does not like cooked Crawfish. Now the exception is if Crawfish is extra-spicy, of course, so you may want to pull them early from the crab boil broth if you have kids or sensitive palates to contend with. Get out plenty of paper towels or napkins; it's a messy meal.

Cajuns in Louisiana have come up with tasty local Crawfish entree or appetizer recipes, everything from a spin on Fettuccine Alfredo with Crawfish to an Omelet stuffed with Crawfish, and even a flaky Crawfish Pie or Turnover.

My brother from another daddy, the Swamp Chef, has decadent Cajun Nachos made with, you guessed it, Crawfish. And it's built on a bed of tortilla chips topped with a can of red beans, cheese, Crawfish tails, and more cheese, oh, and don't forget the hot sauce!

 Be sure to hang in there past the wacky video intro with my nephew Zak and the Swamp Chef, followed by the Cajun Nachos recipe.

Cajun Nachos - Video

Crawfish for Thanksgiving? If you have had oysters in your Turkey Stuffing, then it's not too much of a stretch to make a Crawfish Stuffing!

A fave Louisiana potato chip purveyor, Zapp's, does a crawfish-flavored version. How do they taste? They are very salty, of course, and have a mild shrimp taste.

I'll leave you with a selection from the deli case of Rouses Market in Gonzales, Louisiana - a great local grocer with a fine selection of frozen Crawfish Entrees.

Swamp Chef Crawfish & Cheese Omelet

When in Louisiana, it's all about Crawfish. Cajuns eat Crawfish morning, noon, and night. My latest recipe serves Crawfish for breakfast. It only takes a handful of these crustaceans to make a Crawfish Omelet.

Hello there, this is a Swamp Chef, and I'm taking over with a recipe from deep in the Spanish Moss-covered bayou. I talked my way into Mom's kitchen to make a breakfast recipe, I guarantee, you are gonna like.

There's nothing to it, really. Make an Omelet your way with your favorite cheese and add a dozen small Crawfish, plus a Trinity of sautéed veggies.

Crawfish are similar to small Bay Shrimp, but milder in flavor, as Crawfish are raised in freshwater instead of saltwater like shrimp. All the meat of a Crawfish is in the tail, and you cook and peel them like you would a shrimp.

Here in Louisiana, Crawfish are bought cooked and peeled in 12 to 16-ounce packages sold in the frozen seafood section of most grocery stores. All you do is add some at the end of cooking the Crawfish Omelet, as they are ready to eat, and need only heating through.

 A combination of chopped onion, celery, and bell pepper is called the Trinity in Louisiana. Again, just a handful of sautéed veggies are added to the Crawfish Omelet.

Besides eggs, the last thing to add is some cheese. I would normally add a slice of American cheese, but I had partied heartily the day before and had some leftover fancy cheese. Use any favorite cheese. 

 

As for the egg part, I cook mine the French way. That is, I pour the beaten eggs into a low-heating pan and slowly stir the eggs like I would a scramble. 

The trick is to keep the eggs moving until almost done, but still damp. Then add the cheese, sautéed Trinity, and Crawfish. Finally, close up the Crawfish Omelet and cook until it reaches your desired doneness. I like mine slightly moist when done.

You can cook the Crawfish Omelet any way you like, even old-school, well done, diner style. All the extra flavor is in the Trinity plus Crawfish. 

I do like Omelets with cheese and seafood. If you don't have access to Crawfish, it's okay to substitute with small cooked shrimp. 

Cooked Shrimp             Cooked Crawfish       Click on any photo to see larger.

Check out how this Cajun cooks a Crawfish Omelet - straight from the swamp!

Crawfish Omelet - VIDEO                 Play it here, video runs 5 minutes, 48 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients

• 3 Eggs - lightly beaten. Okay to make a 2-egg omelet.
• 1/4 cup of Trinity - chopped onion, bell pepper, and celery.
• Crawfish - cooked and peeled, about 12 per Omelet. Crawfish are quite small. Okay to substitute with small, cooked, and peeled shrimp.
• Soft or Semi-Soft Cheese - about 3 tablespoons.  I happened to have leftover Herb & Garlic Goat Cheese from a party. Okay to use a slice of American Cheese, or any soft or semi-soft favorite, like Mozzarella, Cheddar, Swiss, Provolone, Ricotta, and Monterey Jack. 
• 2 Teaspoons of Oil - a tablespoon each to saute the Trinity veggies and a tablespoon to cook the omelet.
• Salt and Pepper - to taste. Cheese is salty enough for me, so I leave salt out. 

Directions

Chop the Trinity veggies of onion, bell pepper, and celery. Add a tablespoon of oil to a medium-sized pan over medium heating pan.

Saute veggie until soft, about 2 to 3 minutes. 

Add cooked and peeled Crawfish to the veggies and mix. Saute Crawfish for a minute, just to heat through.

Remove veggies and Crawfish while you make the Omelet.

I like to make my Omelet with 2 to 3 eggs. I whisk them in a bowl to blend the eggs.

Add a tablespoon of oil to a low/medium-heated pan. I like my Omelet soft, so I cook it over a lower heat than normal so I can control the dampness of my Omelet. This is a French-style Omelet. It's okay to cook the Omelet your favorite way, well done or slightly damp.

Add the mixed raw eggs and slowly stir the eggs in the pan. When they are cooked, but still soft and moist, I spread out the eggs to cover most of the Omelet pan. Fill in any holes of the Omelet with soft egg. 

Add salt and pepper if you like. I find cheese is salty enough to my taste, so I leave it out.

Now is the time to bring it all together. Add the cheese first, so it will melt. I add the cheese to half of the Omelet. Spread it out a bit. 

I add the cheese first, so it will melt. Next, add the sautéed Trinity vegetables and Crawfish over the cheese. 

I like to slide a spatula under the cooking Omelet as it gets close to finishing to loosen it from the pan. When the Omelet reaches doneness, it's okay if the eggs are slightly damp. I gently fold the Omelet in half to cover the cheese and veggies. 

I let the folded Omelet cook another 30 seconds or so. You can slice into the Omelet to check for desired doneness. 

If you want to gild the lily, then slather a little butter on the Omelet.