Crayfish Recipes.

[Pike]

I have three lakes jammed full of Crayfish which need to disappear ASAP.

 

Any good recipes?

[stupidsalmon]

Ever seen the River Cottage episode.

 

Just cook 'em like lobsters and hook out all the meat, not that thers gonna be much on 'em anyway. Then use them instead of a lobster in a lobster recipe, like a thermador or pasta sauce etc.

 

Barney

[Axe]

Gumbo

 

Ingredients

oil for frying

275g/10oz onions, chopped

225g/8oz green peppers, chopped

2 sticks celery, chopped

25g/1oz andouille or other spicy sausage, sliced

25g/1oz smoked pork or bacon, cubed

1 tsp crushed garlic

½ tsp dried oregano

½ tsp dried thyme

1 bay leaf, crumbled

1 tsp salt

1½ tsp cayenne pepper

1½ tsp paprika

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

½ tsp freshly ground white pepper

3 tbsp filé powder (optional)

1 tbsp Tabasco sauce

300ml/10fl oz puréed fresh tomatoes, strained

crab shells to flavour (optional)

450g/1lb large prawns (reserve the shells and heads for the stock)

1 dozen oysters

225g/8oz crab meat

6 freshwater crayfish

2 boudins (fish sausage) (optional)

200g/8oz cooked rice to serve

For the fish stock:

fish heads, tails and trimmings

1 onion

2 carrots

1 stick celery

1 leek

1 bay leaf

2 sprigs parsley

black peppercorns

prawn shells and heads

 

 

 

Method

1. Place all the ingredients for the stock in a large saucepan and cover with about 1.7 litres/3 pints cold water. Simmer for as long as possible - 4 hours if you can manage it - and strain. Set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onions, green peppers and celery and let them sweat for a few minutes. Add the spicy sausage and smoked pork.

3. Stir in the garlic, herbs, salt, spices and finally the filé powder, if using.

4. Add the Tabasco sauce, puréed tomatoes and 1.1 litres/2 pints of the fish stock. Simmer for at least 45 minutes.

5. Add crab shells, if you have them, to give a little extra flavour and colour, the prawns, oysters, crab meat, crayfish and finally the boudins. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

6. To serve as a main course, place a quarter of the rice in each bowl and top up with Gumbo.

[Axe]

Crayfish and Mushrooms

 

Ingredients

500g/18oz white button mushrooms, sliced finely

1 small onion, peeled and sliced finely

1 white of leek, sliced finely

50g/2oz unsalted butter

1 litre/1¾ pint chicken stock

500ml/17fl oz double cream

100g/4oz potatoes, peeled and sliced finely

salt and white pepper, freshly ground

To serve:

12 crayfish tails

a few sprigs of chervil

 

 

 

Method

1. Sweat the onion and leek in the butter over a low heat, without colouring them, and then add the mushrooms. Continue cooking until all the moisture has evaporated, still without colouring.

2. Put the chicken stock, cream and raw potato slices into a pan and bring to the boil. Pour this over the vegetables and cook on a medium heat for 10 minutes.

3. Liquidise the soup, and strain it through a sieve. If it is slightly too thick, add a little more chicken stock. Then season it with salt and pepper.

4. Steam the crayfish tails for 1 minute, and remove their shells. If not serving straight away, set them aside in a warm place.

5. To serve, heat the soup until it is just short of boiling, then froth it with a hand blender for 2 minutes. Pour into bowls over the crayfish tails, and sprinkle a little chervil over each.

Edited June 23, 2005 by Axe

[Axe]

Crayfish Curry

 

Ingredients

2 tbsp Olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 garlic clove, crushed

1/2 Scotch Bonnet chilli, eseeded and finely chopped

1 tsp Thyme

1 tbsp curry powder

1 green pepper, deseeded and sliced

1 bunch spring onions, trimmed and chopped

2 Tomatoes, chopped

400ml canned coconut milk

400g fresh crayfish meat

salt and fresh ground black pepper

Steamed basmati rice, to serve

 

 

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, chilli and thyme, and cook for about 5 minutes until the onion is soft.

2. Stir in the curry powder and cook for 1 minute.

3. Add the green pepper, spring onions and tomatoes. Cook for a further minute.

4. Pour in the coconut milk, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes.

5. Add the crayfish, cook for 4-5 minutes until heated through and the flesh is opaque. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

6. Serve with steamed Basmati rice

[Axe]

Crayfish and Ginger

 

Ingredients

2-3 tbsp Olive oil

8-10 crayfish tails

1cm fresh ginger root, finely chopped

juice of 1 lemon

 

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a high heat and add the crayfish tails. Fry for 3-4 minutes, until cooked though.

2. Stir in the ginger and lemon juice and serve.

[Axe]

Crayfish & Scallops in Chilli & Lime Butter

 

Ingredients

6 large crayfish

100g Butter

8 plump scallops with coral, shells reserved

1 red chilli, finely chopped

1 green chilli, chopped

zest and juice of 2 limes

200g watercress

2 garlic clove, finely chopped

a small bunch of flat-leafed parsley

50ml Olive oil

salt and fresh ground black pepper

zest and juice of 1 lemon

 

 

Method

1. Cook the crayfish in boiling salted water for 4 minutes.

2. Melt the butter in a frying pan and sear the scallops for 1 minute on each side. Remove from the pan and leave to rest.

3. Add the chilli, lime zest and juice to the butter and cook for a few seconds. Meanwhile, mix the garlic, parsley, olive oil and seasoning together, and stir in the lemon zest and juice.

4. Cut all but one of the hot crayfish in half and crack the claws. Place the scallops in their shells, and pour the lime butter over them. Arrange the scallops around the edge of the plate, and then pile the watercress in the middle.

5. Arrange the crayfish around the watercress, and pour over the lemon and garlic dressing. Place the whole crayfish on top and serve immediately.

[Axe]

Crayfish in Pasta

 

Ingredients

4 tbsp Olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

2 Chillies, finely chopped

2 garlic clove, chopped

500g raw crayfish tails

1 bunch of wild rocket

1 bunch of flat-leafed parsley, finely chopped

500g fresh tagliolini

100ml dry white wine

juice of 1 lemon

salt and fresh ground black pepper

55g unsalted butter, softened

25g dry breadcrumbs

50ml vegetable stock

 

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan. Add in the chopped chilli, garlic and crayfish tails. Fry for 30 seconds.

2. Add the rocket and the parsley.

3. Meanwhile, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add in the tagliolini and blanch for 1 minute.

4. Strain, shake well to dry and add to the sauce in the pan.

5. Pour the wine into the sauce, add the lemon juice, season with salt and freshly ground pepper and bring the mixture to the boil.

6. Add the vegetable stock and butter, and toss the mixture vigorously to combine the sauce with the pasta.

7. Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs, drizzle with olive oil and serve.

[Axe]

Hope that keeps ya going for a while Pike.

 

Regards,

 

Axe.

[Wookie]

Where abouts are all these crayfish? I've just read Axe's recipies and have this sudden urge for them!

 

If you have lots spare and are near Huntingdon, drop me a line and I'll help you out with getting rid of some!

 

Wookie

[lurcherboy]

1 live crayfish (spiny lobster), weighing about 1.5-1.75kg/3-4lb

 

 

If they are that bloody big Pike, I will drive up and collect some!!!!

 

And give you beer tokens!

 

 

 

 

LB

[henry d]

Crayfish/spiny lobster is the one that doesn`t live in LAKES!....Pike just treat `em like langostines(dublin bay prawns) and you can`t go wrong,alternatively just send them on their holidays.....to me and Mr.Panofboilingwater and watch them disappear.Linguine with crayfish,tomatoe and cream sauce will send recipe soonest unless you`ve got access to Rick Stein`s "Food heroes.....another helping"

[Tam]

Bring them to the boil, then minute or so, cold water to stop them overcooking & add some sweet chili sauce

 

Tam.

 

If you need traps, Ebay £9.95

Edited June 23, 2005 by Tam

[Pike]

Never knew you were all such culinary genius!

 

The offending crustacea are currently lurking in Dagenham. If anyone wants to come over and have a go at them please just drop me a note.

 

Pike

[Highlander]

Pike

 

Enough of the salivatin' tell us how you're gonna catch 'em.

[stupidsalmon]

Use a simple trap like THIS with a bit of meat inside.

[Highlander]

Yeh thats simple I just wanted to know if Pike had any earth shattering methods we'd not thought of.

[JONO]

"Crayfish a l'aoili"

 

 

Ahem - better known as "Posh Prawn Cocktail"

 

You'll want about 500grams of crayfish (signal crayfish) tails per two people for a starter...

 

Cook (boil in salted water until red/white) and peel the meat off.

 

Next either make your own aoili ( tonnes of mashed garlic mixed gradually with EV olive oil)

 

...Or take a couple of large dollops of Helmans

 

Add two dashes of lemon juice, fresh ground black pepper and a teaspoon of paprika (preferably the smoked paprika you can get in Sainsbury's or a deli - La Chimnata is best)

 

Then add 5 or 6 chopped and crushed garlic cloves and mix thoroughly into the aoili

 

A few chilli flakes on top wouldn't go amiss either

 

Fold through the crayfish tails and serve (in a posh glass if you want) with little gem leaves, cherry tomatoes and fresh cucumber and fresh basil

 

...oh and a glass of crisp muscadet, sauvignon blanc or an unoaked Chardonnay

 

Luvvly.

[Hammergun]

Just a note to members. Native crayfish are a protected species, so make sure you know the difference between them and the introduced species of crayfish.

[maggot]

Hi, how did you get on with the crayfish?

I caught some (Signal) the other week in Cambridgeshire. To cook I just boiled 'em in water with dill a pich of sugar and salt. The critters were small but it was worthwhile .

[Chezney]

Essex eh? Crayfish are 1 of the nicest shell fish and if i can get my mits on them ill come up there, The river i used to go to around me is dried up and 1 near me is so hard to find with the directions that ive been given by a bloke that probs cant tie his shoelaces

 

And the person 2 posts are above is right but its easy to tell just lift their claws up and it'll be red as a cherry pie, thats the yankie 1's u wanna munch on

Edited January 30, 2006 by Chezney

[young airgunner]

if i catch them when fishing, i just kill them and bin them, there not good for the fish

[Chezney]

Hmmmn, this is a crayfish RECIPE post... don't think binning them is a recipe...

[Lord Geordie]

1 live crayfish (spiny lobster), weighing about 1.5-1.75kg/3-4lb

 

 

If they are that bloody big Pike, I will drive up and collect some!!!!

 

And give you beer tokens!

 

 

 

 

LB

 

:(

 

I noticed that too but thought i would leave the funnies to someone else

 

I wish they WERE that big i would have a few of my own.

 

LG

[Maori Haz]

does anyone know a list of lakes or rivers etc. infected with the signals.. because i would quite like to have a go at catching/cooking and sampling this little beasts..

 

or even better anyone know any rivers/lakes in Surrey

 

thanks for any info