Bayou Butter Crawfish

Name: Bayou Butter Crawfish
Yield: 2 portions
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon salt; 3 quarts water; Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste; 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley; ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom; Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste; 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice; ¼ teaspoon ground allspice; 2 pounds crawfish, rinsed briefly in cold water; 4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter, melted; 1 teaspoon caraway seeds, crushed; 1 lemon, halved; 6 bay leaves; 1 teaspoon ground cloves; 2 teaspoons ground allspice; 20 allspice berries, crushed; Freshly ground black pepper, to taste; 2 teaspoons ground cardamom

Preparation info

2
portions

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

The New Basics Cookbook

By Sheila Lukins and Julee Rosso

Published 1989

About

Fresh crawfish from Louisiana are usually available between January and May—and the fresh are certainly the best! Roll up your sleeves, gather around the table, and eat away. Snap the head from the tail. Peel the shell off the tails in rings, and enjoy the sweet meat. Make sure you have finger bowls and lots of cold beer on hand!

Ingredients

3 quarts water
1 tablespoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Fish course
Pescatarian
May
January
Gluten-free

Method

Heat the water in a large pot, and add the salt, a generous amount of pepper, and the cardamom, ground allspice and berries, bay leaves, ground cloves, and caraway seeds. Squeeze the lemon into the water and add the halves. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes.
Add the crawfish all at once, and bring back to a boil. Reduce the hea