Crawfish may look quite unusual for some people, but in fact, it is delicious and nutritious seafood.
Finding crawfish in a body of water would be a sure sign that the water is fairly clean – crawfish rarely choose to reside in polluted waters. But do you know how long to boil crawfish?
Crawfish have the same appearance as lobsters, though smaller. They are low in fat and can be a good source of important vitamins, minerals, and protein as well.
There are different ways in cooking crawfish, but most people who are experts on knowing how long to boil crawfish, just so while mixing in some flavors-adding ingredients do.Read on to learn all about boiling crawfish you’d be excited to go to the market to whip up a yummy crawfish dish!
How long To Boil Crawfish? Know It Here in Easy Steps?
Do’s And Don’ts Of Boiling Crawfish
Boiling crawfish would require some careful consideration. From buying to cleaning to boiling it, you’d have to know a considerable amount of information to be guided in how to successfully prepare and how long to boil crawfish. Here are some do’s and don’ts of boiling crawfish for you:
Things To Do
Do buy live crawfish, if possible. When you do buy some live crawfish, sort them out.
Use the live ones for cooking, and you have the option to use the dead ones in making a stock (only if you’d like to).
Do clean your crawfish very well. Crawfish can get muddy or gritty, and you wouldn’t want to have those textures in your mouth as you’re trying to enjoy your meal.
It would be a good idea to wash and rinse your crawfish at least 4-5 times until you’re confident that they are completely clean.
Do measure the water level when boiling crawfish. When boiling crawfish, you’d need to add spices to the water and too much water will dilute your mixture.
Also, having too much water will make it difficult for you to get the right level of heat. A good amount of water is when you place all your crawfish in and about a quarter of them is above the water.
Do make use of the same water to boil the second batch of crawfish. Just add a bit more seasoning to the water and you can boil more crawfish in it.
Things Not To Do
Don’t use salt in cleaning your crawfish. This not only kills the small crawfish in the bunch but adding salt doesn’t actually clean out the poop vein.
An ideal way to clean the poop vein is to keep the crawfish alive for about 12 or 14 hours so they empty out their digestive tracts.
Don’t over or undercook your crawfish. You’d have to know how long to boil crawfish otherwise you’d end up with crawfish which has a different and usually undesirable texture.
Don’t leave your crawfish in hot water after boiling. Doing this would allow the crawfish to keep on cooking. What you can do is cool down your water by placing the whole pot in a bucket of ice then allow your crawfish to soak.
Don’t hasten the soaking process. Let your crawfish soak in the water you cooked it in for about 20-40 minutes. Just make sure you’ve cooled the water enough.
Don’t use the same water to boil a third or fourth batch of crawfish – you’ll just end up with very salty seafood.
Steps In Boiling Your Crawfish
Step 1: Prepare The Boil For The Crawfish
Make use of a patio stove, a propane cooker or a gas burner to make the boil. You’d need a good, sturdy cooker and pot to boil Crawfish.
Step 2: Fill The Pot With Water And Other Ingredients
Put your pot on the stove and allow it to boil. Add in the seasonings of your choice, stir it a bit then let it come to a boil once again. Once the seasoned water is boiling again, add in the vegetables of your choice.
Crawfish would wind up being tastier when cooked along with vegetables such as potatoes or corn. You have your choice of adding whatever vegetables you’d like or even other yummy ingredients such as sausage slices.
Step 3: Place The Crawfish In The Boil
Now it’s time to know how long to boil crawfish. You must first place the crawfish in a crawfish basket then lower the basket into the pot.
This is so your crawfish can be boiled at the top part of the water while all the other ingredients are cooking at the bottom, allowing all the flavors to blend together.
If you don’t have a crawfish basket, a big strainer could work as well, as long as it fits on the top of your pot.
It would be ideal to let your crawfish cook in the rolling boil for about 3-5 minutes only.
Step 4: Let The Crawfish Cook To Perfection
Take the whole pot out of the flame and cool it down, allowing the crawfish to cook with the remaining heat and as soon as it has cooled down, allow the crawfish to soak up all the flavors of the seasonings and other ingredients which you have used.
Step 5: Ready Or Not?
You know the crawfish is cooked when it’s easy to remove the shell and the flesh is soft and succulent.Try a piece!
If it’s a bit rubbery, it’s not yet cooked enough. But if it’s mushy, it means it’s already overcooked so you have to completely remove the crawfish from the mixture.
Conclusion – So How long To Boil Crawfish?
The short answer is – just about 3-5 minutes. As you can see, the preparation takes a longer time. You’d have to sort the crawfish first, clean them then prepare the mixture for the crawfish boil.
Once those are ready, you would need very little time to boil your crawfish so that you don’t end up with an unappetizing pile of mush. Happy cooking and enjoy your yummy crawfish.
Read more: How to Thicken Gumbo?
