A Healthy Way to Cook Crawfish & Shrimp

A crawfish and shrimp boil is healthful and simple to prepare.

A crawfish and shrimp boil is healthful and simple to prepare.

Crawfish, also known as crayfish, and shrimp are crustaceans common in Cajun cuisine. Their meat is sweet and it goes well with powerful seasonings. You can cook crawfish and shrimp together for an easy meal. Provided you don’t load them with salt, a small helping of four shrimp with eight crawfish isn’t going to ruin your diet.


Crawfish are best cooked live, but before you boil them, you must purge them by placing them in cold, fresh water for 15 minutes. This causes them to expel the foul-tasting contents of their intestines. The cold water also rinses muck off their shells and makes them sluggish so that they don't move around as much when you cook them. If you only have access to frozen crawfish, the purging process is unnecessary. For shrimp, either live or frozen is fine.


Adding seasonings to the water in which you boil the crawfish and shrimp ensures that they have a powerful flavor. Mustard seeds, whole peppercorns, quartered lemons, celery seeds, garlic cloves, dried oregano, chopped ginger root, dried bay leaves and crushed red peppers create a pleasant taste. Wrap at least 1/2 cup total of seasonings in cheesecloth and tie it closed. This dispenses the flavor without making the water muddy. Alternately, purchase a low-sodium, boil-seasoning blend, use your favorite spices and herbs or dump a bottle of your favorite hot sauce in the water.


You need a large stockpot with a strainer insert to properly boil crawfish and shrimp. If you don’t have a strainer, though, cooking them in a stockpot without one will work. The stockpot should be about half full of water before you place it over high heat. Traditionally, you would use an outdoor propane burner, but high heat on the stove works too. Add some vegetables to the water with the seasoning bag; you will serve these as the side dishes with the crawfish and shrimp. Quartered onions, whole potatoes and halved corn on the cob are healthful choices.


Once the vegetables have begun to soften, which shouldn't take longer than 10 minutes, you're ready to add the live or frozen crawfish. When the crawfish are done cooking, they’ll turn bright red; this shouldn’t take more than eight minutes. The shrimp go in next; they’ll turn bright pink when they’ve finished cooking. You should remove the pot from the heat, add as much ice as you can fit and let everything cool for several minutes. This lets the seasonings soak into the crawfish and shrimp. Once everything has cooled, remove the strainer from the pot and dump its contents onto a newspaper-covered table or a large platter. If you didn’t use a strainer, a slotted spoon will allow you to you remove everything.

Nutrition and Tips

Make a meal with four shrimp, eight crawfish, a whole potato, a small onion and two corn on the cob halves. Each complete meal will have about 250 calories, 14 grams of protein, 1.25 grams of fat, 6 grams of fiber, 200 milligrams of sodium and 64 milligrams of cholesterol. All of the sodium is naturally from the ingredients; the sodium content will increase if you add salt to the boiling water. Instead of boiling the crawfish and shrimp, steam them. Use a stainless steel or bamboo steamer and place the crawfish in the basket after it has preheated. When they're bright red, you're ready to add the shrimp, and let them cook until they turn bright pink. No matter what cooking method you use, if your meal isn’t flavorful enough, sprinkle seasonings over everything. Crushed red pepper, ground black pepper, lemon juice and garlic powder are tasty, healthful choices.

Photo Credits

Suggest a Correction