Eating hot, boiled crawfish is the ultimate Louisiana experience that makes mouths water and northerners cringe.
With the onset of spring, Cajuns know what to expect and exactly how to prepare for crawdads, mudbugs, crayfish or whatever you want to call them.
Procambatus clarkia, as crawfish are scientifically known, are supposedly descendants of lobster having traveled to the United States via Acadians from Nova Scotia. During the voyage, the lobster became malnourished and shrunk, resulting in the crayfish.
The crayfish were then distributed into various waterways as food for sports fish and as the population flourished, became a popular Louisiana delicacy.
Boiled, stewed, in a bisque, etouffee or mixed up with rice, Cajuns can put crawfish into just about any dish. Served with potatoes, sausage, corn, onions, garlic or lemons, most Louisiana natives cannot resist. Instructions like suck the head and pinch the tail are given out without remorse. The popular delicacy is either beloved or despised.
There are many ways to eat a crawfish. It takes some practice to figure out the best method and how to rip apart the animal without gettting spices in your eye or crawfish cuts on your fingers: grab the head, pinch and twist tail, pull, peel, and eat. Repeat.
Then there is the controversial decision of whether or not to suck the heads. Most Louisiana natives do not even think about it; they just do. It is not the most appealing vision watching others defile the poor creature, but for those who are comfortable, it seems delightful.
This is possibly the reason many non-natives have trouble accepting the concept of eating critters with beady eyes that crawl around in the mud. Let alone to suck their heads.
Either way it is a part of the culture. However you take your crawdads, you become a part of tradition.
What do crawfish and compound sentences have in common? -At least two clawses.- John Doucet, dean of arts and sciences
Crawfish Jambalaya
from crawfish.org
1 lb.- sliced smoked sausage
1 cup- chopped green bell pepper
1 cup- chopped celery
1 cup- chopped onions
1/2 cup- chopped green onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup- uncooked rice
1 tsp.- hot pepper sauce
2 cup- water
1, 15-oz. can tomatoes
1/2 cup- stewed tomatoes
1 lb.- Louisiana crawfish tailmeat
2 tsp.- Cajun I Creole seasoning
Saute’ sausage, bell pepper, celery, onions and garlic in a large skillet. Cook until vegetables are tender but not brown.
Stir in remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Stir once or twice, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the rice is tender. Mixture should be slightly moist. Adjust seasonings and fluff with a fork. Serves 10.
