Justin Wilson's Boiled Crawfish

A backyard Louisiana crawfish boil with potatoes, corn, and plenty of spice, dumped out on newspaper.

Ingredients

• 30 lb live crawfish, purged and rinsed
• 3 lb small red potatoes
• 8 ears corn, halved
• 4 onions, halved
• 3 heads garlic, halved crosswise
• 4 lemons, halved
• 1 (3 lb) bag crawfish/crab boil seasoning
• 1/2 cup cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup salt
• 2 lb smoked sausage, cut into chunks
• Water to fill a large boiling pot

Directions

1. Fill a large boiling pot about two-thirds with water, add the boil seasoning, cayenne, salt, onions, garlic, and lemons, and bring to a hard rolling boil.
2. Add the potatoes and sausage and boil 10 minutes.

Add the corn and boil 5 minutes more.

1. Add the purged crawfish, return to a boil, and cook 3 minutes.
2. Turn off the heat and let everything soak 15 to 20 minutes so the crawfish absorb the seasoning; taste-test one for spice.
3. Drain and pour out onto a newspaper-covered table. Serve hot, pinching the tails and sucking the heads.

Notes

Adapted from Justin Wilson’s crawfish boil; the soak step is where the seasoning gets in.