Luquette’s Cajun Specialties Seafood Boil
One 4 lb bag seasons a full 30–40 lb sack of crawfish. The butter, lemon, hot sauce, mustard and liquid-boil flavor are already in the bag, so there’s nothing else to add. Fresh lemon halves are optional.
| Seafood | Amount | Seasoning | Water / pot | Boil | Soak | Tip |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Veggies first | Potatoes, mushrooms, onions, garlic, carrots, Brussels sprouts, sausage, corn | 1 bag if seafood follows in the same water; else ½ bag (2 lb, ~6½ cups) | Same pot as the seafood | Potatoes & mushrooms 10 min; add the rest 15 min; fire off | Corn last, a few min | Dump into a vegetable ice chest. |
| Crawfish (live) | 1 sack, 30–40 lb | 1 bag (4 lb, ~13 cups) | 80–100 qt pot, about half full | 5 min once rolling; never more than 8 | ~20 min, until they all sink | Ice speeds up sinking. Stir often. |
| Shrimp, head-on | 10 lb | ¼ bag (1 lb, ~3¼ cups) | 40 qt, ~5 gal | Back to a boil, cut off: 2–3 min | 5–10 min with ice | Pull as soon as pink and curled. |
| Shrimp, peeled-ready | 5 lb | ⅛ bag (½ lb, ~1⅔ cups) | 20 qt, ~3 gal | 1–2 min | 3–5 min with ice | Smaller shrimp cook fast; watch closely. |
| Blue crabs (live) | 10 lb (~2 dozen) | ¼ bag (1 lb, ~3¼ cups) | 40 qt, ~5 gal | ~10 min | 20–30 min | Live crabs only; shells turn bright orange. |
| Snow crab clusters | 10 lb (precooked) | ⅛ bag (½ lb, ~1⅔ cups) | 40 qt, ~4 gal | Heat 4–5 min | 5 min | Already cooked; just heat. Thaw first. |
| King crab legs | 10 lb (precooked) | ⅛ bag (½ lb, ~1⅔ cups) | 40 qt, ~4 gal; cut to fit | Heat 5–6 min | 5 min | Already cooked; just heat. Don’t overboil. |
| Dungeness crab (live) | 4 crabs (8–10 lb) | ¼ bag (1 lb, ~3¼ cups) | 40 qt, ~5 gal | 15–18 min (precooked: heat 5–6) | 10–15 min | Cook live crab to bright orange. |
| Lobster tails | 10 tails (~5 lb) | ⅛ bag (½ lb, ~1⅔ cups) | 20 qt, ~3 gal | ~1 min per oz (6 oz tail: 6 min) | 5 min | Done when meat is opaque, 140°F+. |
| Crawfish tails, frozen/precooked | 2 lb | ~¼ cup | 8 qt, ~1 gal | Just heat 2–3 min; don’t boil hard | None | Thaw first; use in étouffée or pasta. |
| Mixed seafood boil | 30–40 lb total | 1 bag (4 lb, ~13 cups) | 80–100 qt pot | Stagger: crabs 10 min, crawfish 5, shrimp 2–3 | 15–20 min with ice | Longest-cooking first; fire off before shrimp soak. |
Luquette Kitchen Notes
- Nothing else needed. The bag already has the butter, lemon, hot sauce, mustard and liquid boil flavor.
- Taste before adding salt. The bag is well salted. Taste the water before adding any more.
- General guidance. Crawfish times are Blake’s own method. All other timings follow standard Louisiana and USDA practice; precooked crab is just heated.