Soft-shell Crawfish with Creole Mustard Sauce ▶
Soft-shell crawfish are now available in specialty fish markets. Like soft-shell crabs, they are a seasonal delicacy. In order to grow, the crustacean must shed its hard outer shell. The crustaceans are caught before the soft new shell underneath has a chance to harden. The whole point of this dish is the paper-thin edible shells that, when battered and deep-fried, produce double crispness surrounding the sweet, succulent crawfish meat inside. The spicy batter and Creole mustard sauce, however, aren’t half bad, so if you can’t find soft-shell crawfish, try this dish with shelled crawfish tails — or even shrimp.
Ingredients
- Live Soft-Shell Crawfish - 16
- Batter
- Eggs - 6, beaten
- All-Purpose Flour - 3/4 cup
- Milk - 1/2 cup
- Louisiana Hot Sauce - 1/2 cup
- Salt - 1 teaspoon
- Freshly ground pepper - 1 teaspoon
- Corn Flour (meal) - 2 cups, with 1 tablespoon dry Creole seasoning
- Peanut Oil - 1 quart, for frying
- Vegetable Oil - 1 quart, for frying
- Creole Mustard Sauce
- Mayonnaise - 1/2 cup
- Creole Mustard - 1/2 cup (alt. other hot, spicy mustard)
- Horseradish - 1/2 teaspoon, prepared
- Worcestershire sauce - 1 teaspoon
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Lemons - 2, quartered
Instructions
To clean the crawfish: Quickly cut off the tip of the head behind the eyes. Remove the two rock-like calcium deposits behind the tip of the head. Rinse the crawfish carefully so you don’t wash out the fat in the head. Pat dry with paper towels.
To make the batter: Whisk all of the ingredients together until smooth.
Dip the crawfish in the batter, then into the corn flour. Heat the oils in a large deep pan and cook the crawfish until golden brown on both sides, about 3 to 4 minutes.
To make the sauce: Whisk all of the ingredients together until thoroughly blended. Put 1/4 cup of the sauce on each serving plate. Place 4 fried crawfish in each pool of sauce. Garnish with lemon quarters.
