Boiled crayfish is an excellent beer snack and a delicious delicacy that is not always available. But if you were lucky and you had live crayfish in your hands, then all you have to do is to cook them correctly - and your beer party will succeed in glory.
But do not think that cooking crayfish is so easy. In preparing the dish has its own subtleties, and the most important of them is the choice of crayfish themselves.
How to choose the crayfish
The most piquant moment in the literal and figurative sense of the word - crayfish must be alive! Of course, not every person can easily chop chickens or lower live boiling water into boiling water. But you have to accept the idea that only live crayfish are suitable for cooking. This is the only way to get both a tasty and healthy snack.
Dead or fallen asleep crayfish can be a source of serious food poisoning.
When buying crayfish you need to pay attention to the following:
- The shell of the animal must be brilliant and clean, with even color, the claws should not have signs of damage and growths;
- crayfish have a bluish-green or brown color, their tail is pressed tightly to the belly;
- crayfish should be in constant motion, move their whiskers and limbs, it is better to refuse sedentary individuals;
- Crayfish weighing up to 100 grams and ranging in size from 10 to 15 cm have the best taste;
- The crayfish hunt season begins in May and ends in October; the most delicious are the crayfish caught in the fall;
- it is best to choose females, as they are juicier and tastier than males, - females can be distinguished by their wide tail.
It is not worth buying boiled crayfish, since you cannot determine the freshness of the product by eye. The common myth that if a boiled cancer tail is bent, it is cooked alive, has nothing to do with reality: in the dead and sick individuals, when cooked, the tails bend in the same way.
If the crayfish are in an aquarium with water, the temperature of which is less than +10 degrees, they can be slow-moving. In such cold water, crayfish are stored for no longer than 48 hours, then they will hibernate or die. As soon as you bring home cold crawfish need to be burned out in warm water at room temperature.
Frozen crayfish can be stored in the freezer for up to three months.
How to cook crayfish
- After you bring the living crayfish home, let them out into the basin with cool water for two hours - it will be easier to wash them. Then we wash the crayfish under running water, but with great care: live cancer can easily bite your finger. It is harmless, but rather sensitive. My crayfish are thorough, as they can be very dirty, especially those that lived in burrows or on an oozy bottom.
- We wash the claws and the spaces between the shell and the pads well: this is where most of the dirt accumulates. The process of washing crayfish is painstaking, but the result is worth it. Agree, it will be a shame if the great taste of meat will spoil the sand that is crisp between your teeth.
- Sometimes, in order to make the crayfish especially tender and soft, they are soaked in milk for 30-40 minutes before cooking.
- Choose a large container: the edges must be high, otherwise the crayfish will simply crawl out of the pan. Water should cover crayfish about 20 centimeters.
- We boil water, salt, add bay leaf and several peas of black allspice. Now the most unpleasant moment: we take a live cancer by the middle of the shell and lay it in boiling water. Cook crayfish on high heat for about 15-20 minutes - depending on the size and quantity.
- If you suddenly come across a spoiled cancer, then you will immediately notice it: the animal will float to the surface, its body will be greatly inflated, and a characteristic unpleasant smell will appear. He is quickly caught and thrown away.
- The readiness of the crayfish is determined by the shell: it should become saturated red. It is very important not to digest the crayfish - then their meat will become tough and tasteless.
- After the crayfish blush, remove the pan from the stove and leave the crayfish to “reach” in the hot broth for another 10 minutes. Boil and get the crayfish should be immediately before a meal - at this time they are the most delicious.
How to eat crayfish
Cancers all eat differently. Some prefer only the tail, and the rest is thrown away - this is just incredible waste! True lovers of crayfish do not throw out almost nothing, and rightly so! The crayfish meat is too tasty and healthy to translate the product so ineptly. In fairness it must be admitted that the tail is the most appetizing and meaty part. The meat on the tail is always pleasant and even slightly sweet. After the tail has been eaten, you can proceed to the claws - there the meat is slightly darker, but also very tender and tasty. True lovers relish and suck every leg, it's incredibly tasty.
There is some meat on the back. But not everyone has it to taste, as a little bitter. Under the shell you can eat everything except the intestines.
Eating crayfish is a fascinating activity that you get into and can’t stop until nothing is left on the plate. Fortunately, crayfish are not only tasty, but also low-calorie, so you can eat without looking back as much as you like.
The best recipes for cooking crayfish
There are a lot of ways to cook crayfish, we will tell only about the most delicious and at the same time simple methods.
Crayfish in sour cream
Ingredients:
- live crayfish - 10-15 pieces;
- umbrella of fresh or dry dill - 3 pieces;
- peppercorns;
- salt - to taste;
- bay leaf;
- garlic - 2 cloves;
- sour cream - 3 tbsp. spoons;
- vegetable oil or olive oil - 2 tbsp. spoons.
Cooking:
- Boil water, put salt, pepper, dill, garlic and bay leaf, add the crayfish last and boil for 15 minutes.
- Turn off the stove and put sour cream in a pan, mix it.
- Then add vegetable oil and leave the pan with crayfish on the cooling plate for another 20 minutes.
- Crayfish prepared in this way will be especially tender and shiny. It remains only to lay out the crayfish on a wide dish and serve.
Crawfish in beer
Ingredients:
- light beer - 2 liters;
- water - 1 cup;
- salt and peppercorns to taste;
- bay leaf - 2-3 pieces;
- dill umbrella - 2-3 pieces;
- live crayfish - 15 pieces.
Cooking:
- In the boiling water, add all the ingredients except beer and crayfish.
- Boil water for 5 minutes, then pour in the beer, bring it to the boil again and throw crayfish into the beer.
- Cook for 10-15 minutes - until the crayfish blush.
- Serve in a wide dish, boiled beer over crawfish.
Crayfish with lemon
Ingredients:
- large lemon - 1 piece;
- salt, pepper and peas - to taste;
- dill umbrella - 2-3 pieces;
- crayfish - 10-15 pieces.
Cooking:
- Boil water, throw all the spices there.
- We cut the lemon in half, squeeze all the juice out of it into boiling broth, put the crusts in the same place and boil for 10-15 minutes.
- Then add live crayfish to the broth and boil until cooked. Crayfish prepared in this way will have a spicy taste that you and your friends will surely like.
