Crawfish Broth

Crawfish, crayfish, crawdads, or mudbugs

It’s crawfish season! Spring may just be my favorite season. It’s when winter starts to fade and the garden starts to bloom. It’s also the start of crawfish season which I couldn’t be more excited about. Last night, we went to our favorite seafood restaurant for dinner and I was delighted to hear that they had fresh boiled crawfish on the menu as a special. We ordered 1 pound as a starter and I immediately regretted not ordering more as an entrée. . . which is why we’re going back tonight!

If you haven’t tasted crawfish I highly recommend it. The delicate spices and savoriness of this seafood boil will have you coming back for more. The only downside is that the tail is where you get the majority of the meat and there isn’t much tail to this little critter. Though crawfish do have claws, they’re so tiny it’s not really worth the effort to get the meat out. So what do you do with your partially satisfied desire? You can do what I do and bring home the leftover shells, remainder of claw meat, and heads. You’d be surprised to learn of the flavors you can pull from these leftovers. Think broth, butter, bisque, risotto, etouffée, jambalaya, and gumbo, just to name a few things that can be made.

Since I’m constantly spreading the world about broths and how they should be part of every diet, I’m sure you’re not surprised to learn that you can make broth from crawfish too.

Nutrition facts

Crawfish broth, like any other true broth, is high in micronutrients like vitamins and minerals. Vitamins include niacin, folate, vitamins E, B-6, & B-12, riboflavin, and thiamine. The nutrients within the shells, joints, and heads of the crawfish are underutilized until you bring them to a simmer and allow the water (and acid from lemon) to break down the shells and infuse the broth. This action also releases minerals such as zinc, iron, phosphorus, and calcium. One of the most noteworthy nutrients found in this small crustacean is selenium, known as a strong antioxidant that can help defend against oxidative stress and improve blood flow.

So next time you find yourself eating crawfish, crayfish, crawdads — whatever you want to call them — be sure to save the all too often thrown out portions and make yourself some broth!

Ingredients:
1 lb crawfish shells, tails removed
2 quarts filtered water
1/2 white onion
8 cloves garlic
2 stalks celery
1/2 lemon, rind removed
2 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
sea salt to taste
black pepper to taste

Instructions:
Place crawfish shells in either a large pot/pan or oven tray and brown to extract flavor. In a crockpot or pressure cooker, I use the Instant Pot, place all the ingredients. Cook low and slow for 1.5 hours if using a crockpot. In a pressure cooker, cook on high pressure for 30 minutes.

Allow the broth to cool and then strain with a strainer. I freeze my broth in 1 cup increments for easy use down the road. You can store it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.