Patout's Boiled Crawfish

* Exported from MasterCook *

PATOUT'S BOILED CRAWFISH

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 8 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Cajun Main Dish
Fish

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
-----FOR THE BOIL-----
40 lb Live crawfish
1 c Salt
1/2 c Ground white pepper
1/2 c Ground red pepper
1/2 c Ground black pepper
5 lb Small white onions
12 ea Ears of corn, shucked
5 lb Small new potatoes
-----SPRINKLE-----
1/2 c Ground white pepper
1/2 c Ground red pepper
1/2 c Ground black pepper
2 c Salt

Alex Patout describes Crawfish as "a delicacy made for
sharing-- in fact, in Cajun country, boiling crawfish
for only two people counts as a venial sin."
Wash the crawfish well and pick out any fish bones or
other debris. Fill a great big (40-quart) Stockpot a
quarter full of water. Add the salt and peppers and
bring to boil. Add the whole onions, the corn, and
the new potatoes (it will be easy to remove them later
if you put them in a cloth sack). Return to boil,
cover, lower heat to medium, and let cook for 8
minutes. Add crawfish, cover again and raise heat to
high. After steam begins to escape from under the
lid, cook 7 minutes more. Remove from heat and let
sit for 4 minutes. Do *NOT* remove the lid until this
point!
Remove the onions, corn, and potatoes to a bowl
and drain the crawfish. Place the crawfish in a large
insulated container (an ce chest works well, as do the
thick waterproof boxes chickens are shipped in, which
your butcher may give you for free). Have your
*SPRINKLE* ready and sprinkle over the crawfish and
mix them well to coat. Cover and let sit for 7
minutes.
Serve immediately with the onions, corn, new
potatoes, and lots of French bread on a large table
covered with plenty of paper. When everyone has eaten
his fill, everyone "peels for the house." The peeled
tails can then be used in cold crawfish cocktail or
salad or for Fried Crawfish the next day. Serves 8-10
NOTE: Most of the salt is not added until after the
cooking process because too much salt added during
cooking makes the flesh of the crawfish adhere to the
shell. From Alex Patout's "Cajun Home Cooking" --
Random House



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