My husband used to boil sacks of crawfish. Now we get boiled to go. Much easier.

He used Zatarain's liquid boil and Louisiana Crawfish & Shrimp boil along with fresh garlic, cayenne, salt, and lemons. Are you going to boil corn and potatoes too?

https://www.mccormick.com/zatarains/products/spices-and-seasonings/seafood-boils/concentrated-shrimp-and-crab-boil

https://store.louisianafishfry.com/products/seafood-boils/la-fish-fry-crawfish-crab-shrimp-boil.html

We boil shrimp on the stove using the Louisiana Fish Fry boil product and lemons.

ETA: Ok, I asked dh. He said he'd just use 2 packs of the LA Fish Fry boil mix. Forget the liquid boil. Add a little cayenne (tablespoon or more) if you want more heat. Couple quartered lemons too.

We are about 7 hours from the Gulf and there are a lot of places to go get platters and a lot that sell the live crawfish. Most sell in 30 lb bags. I'm not ready to try that many yet.

Yes, crawdads, crawfish, and crayfish are all the same thing. The ones from the Gulf are much larger than they grow here. I am used to doing Frogmore Stew/Low Country Boil done with shrimp. It is basically the same thing. The crawfish are usually spicier.

What I am really unsure about is one article said to clean them by putting in water with salt???

I have the Zatarain's boxes, garlic, lemons, and cayenne. Yes, I am doing the potatoes, corn, and andouille sausage. I do like them spicy and around here it seems that most place have cut back on the spice quite a bit.

I also just found a half a bottle of the liquid Zatarain's in the cabinet.

Cindy, thanks. Ask him about the soaking the live crawfish in water with salt. No rush, I don't get them until Thursday. The theory was it is to make them poop anything bad out. I can't see that any of the restaurants have been doing that here, since they come on the platter with the long pieces of grass included. LOL. I think they do wash the mud off.

I am the main crawfish eater. Hubby kinda nibbles at them. I am tired of so so crawfish (one week outstanding and the next yawn) and either rushing to eat them or watching him look bored and say " Oh no take your time."

What I am really unsure about is one article said to clean them by putting in water with salt???

Purging. Not necessary. Just rinse in cold water to clean.

"In conclusion, preparing crawfish for cooking by immersion in a water
bath, with or without salt, for a short time will often provide some
degree of cleansing, although this is mainly associated with exterior
surfaces and the gill cavity where debris can accumulate. The amount of
digesta in cooked crawfish subjected to an adequate wash may not be
discernible from nonwashed crawfish; however, washing will lessen the
amount of debris shed during the cooking process. There is no evidence
from this study that suggests the use of salt in cleansing crawfish was
beneficial, but results do indicate that a saltwater bath may contribute
to increased mortality, if washed crawfish are subjected to
refrigerated storage for several days prior to cooking. Conventional
commercialstyle purging for 12 hours or longer is the only known way to
significantly reduce the size of the hindgut in cooked crawfish, and
that method is usually not practical for consumers."

http://www.lsuagcenter.com/portals/communications/publications/agmag/archive/2014/winter/effectiveness-of-a-saltwater-bath-in-purging-crawfish

Thanks, that is what sounded kinda of the wall. (the salt thing) There will be no storage this time. I can get them at 10AM and they will be in the water as soon as I can get it hot and cook the potatoes! My first and last platter was Feburary 22nd.

I live in Baton Rouge and have only had them once this year.

Enjoy!

Thanks, CindyMac. They turned out very good, if not quite as spicy as I would like. Since I already had the Zatarain's I used it. Next time I will try the Louisiana brand.