One of the most popular pastimes in Sothern Louisiana is having a big ol’ crawfish boil. I think that was one of my favorite things to do growing up, other than playing Nintendo.
My mom was the tax lady of the town and sometimes her customers would come bearing gifts — huge 10lb sacks of crawfish! I’d get so excited and I couldn’t wait to hear the sounds and smells of the butane tank burning. Here’s our family, back in the 1980s, enjoying a crawfish “bawl” in our backyard.
So let’s look at what happens during a crawfish boil. First thing, you get a couple 10lb sacks of crawfish from a local farmer or crawfish stand. Rule of thumb is generally about 3-5lbs per person.
Next, and this was one of my favorite things to come home to, we’d throw the crawfish in the bathtub to “purge” them. In order to do this, we’d throw the crawfish in the bathtub, fill it with water and empty about 1 container full of salt into the water. I guess salt water makes the crawfish “purge” all of the stuff that’s in its intestinal track and thus, we don’t have to worry about pulling out the “poo” when we eat the tails. In the picture below, they used an outside tub to clean the crawfish.
Again, fellow Cajuns, if I missed anything, let me know 🙂
PS. For a super detailed look at having a crawfish boil, which includes catching the crawfish in your own traps (with pictures!) check out William Reed’s webpage.
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