Iโve learned something very important about New Orleansโฆ Iโve learned that thereโs A LOT I donโt know about New Orleans.
This beautiful, majestic, haunted, steamy city Iโve called home for over a year has secrets. Big secrets about past lives and lost loves. Small secrets about where to get the best Sazerac (still tbd) and how to make a stellar seafood boil.
Actuallyโฆ the seafood boil isnโt a small secret. Itโs important.
The secret is heart and soul, guts, care, attention, salt, big olโ shrimp, and boil seasoning. Mostly heart and soul. Thatโs the main ingredient. Alsoโฆ if you have a few salacious secrets, throw those in the boil too. I think thatโs why some of these New Orleans boils are so dang spicy.
Itโs Summer and whether weโre down in the swamp or notโฆ I think we should boil ourselves some seafood, wave our neighbors over, drink cold beers and spill all of our tea.
Hereโs what youโd need for an easy at-home, in the house, where youโve opened the windows and turned on the fan, Shrimp Boil.
โข A huge pot. A big olโ pot. Dig in those cupboards and wrestle out the big boy.
โข Louisiana or Zatarainโs Crawfish Shrimp and Crab Boil Seasoning. Weโre going to need about 1/2 cup of boiling seasoning for this recipe. Throw in a little more if youโd like. Wrap it in cheesecloth or throw it in the boil. Just do you. You can also make your own seasoning using a recipe like this: Shrimp Boil Spice Bundle.
โข Shrimps and corns and baby red potatoes.
โข Salt and pepper. Thyme and lemons. Onions and Garlic. Parsley. Paprika, only the smoky kind will do.
โข Some people add mushrooms. Not my deal.
โข Andouille Sausage makes a nice addition along with the corn. Super flavorful.
โข Water to make a boil a boil.
โข Butter to make a boil better.
โข Friends. One or two will do. If they bring cold beer, all the better.
โข An open window. A warm Summer breeze. A self-congratulatory second helping of shrimp and potatoes on your plate.
โข Confidence, because you really are great.
Check the comment section below for other boil ingredient suggestions!
Hereโs what I know about a good shrimp boil: itโs takes practice, heart and soul (as mentioned before), and some guts. Just go for it!
Chances are a born and bred Southerner will tell you youโre doing it wrong because theeeeeyyyyy do it a particular way. Fantastic! Invite yourself over to their home for a seafood boil, bring wine, eat too much, and take notes. I think these recipes are best learned through watching, learning, and the osmosis of living.
Itโs about building flavors. Adding onions and garlic to water, salt and pepper, seasoning and lemon. Thatโs a layer. Urging potatoes and corn to soak up all the goodness. Thatโs another layer. The shrimp will give and take as it absorbs the salty seasoned liquid and releases its ocean-y seafood flavor into the boil. Herbs and lemon for brightness. Butter and paprika to make us feel expensive.
Build flavors in layers. Cook ingredients in layers. Call a friend. Get your hands dirty. Just get in there
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Easy Summer Shrimp Boil
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients
- about 4 quarts water
- 2 lemons cut into large wedges (1 for boiling, 1 for serving)
- 1 head of garlic, skin left on, head sliced off to reveal garlic cloves
- 1/2 bag (about 1/2 cup) shrimp, crawfish and crab boil wrapped in cheesecloth and tied
- 1 large red onion, peeled and quartered
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- sea salt
- 1 lb baby red potatoes
- 4 ears corn, husked and broken in half
- 1.25 lbs raw shrimp, unpeeled with legs but no heads
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
- sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper for topping
- smoky paprika for topping
Instructions
- In a large stock pot, combine water, 1 lemon in wedges squeezed into the water, head of garlic, shrimp boil seasoning, onion, thyme, and sea salt (I added about 2 tablespoons to the boil water). Taste the boil liquid as it warms to see that itโs salty enough.
- Once boiling, add the potatoes. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until potatoes are cooked through, about 15 to 20 minutes.
- Add the corn pieces and simmer for 5 minutes more.
- Add the unpeeled shrimp and cook until pink throughout and curled, about 3 minutes. Remove pot from heat and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
- Ladle the garlic, potatoes, corn, and shrimp onto a large rimmed platter. Drizzle with about 1 cup of the boiling liquid and the melted butter. Sprinkle with parsley, paprika, sea salt and black pepper. Serve with lemon wedges. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.
- The shrimp boil can be strained and saved for seafood stock! Freeze it up!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
54 Responses
When you store the fish in the fridge after drying it, do you cover it?
Wow! Best fish Iโve ever had. Smoked about 5 pounds and the family put the hurt on it! Maybe a pound leftover after dinner.
Joy the baker- you are a poet! Yes to heart n soul and care n salt! The layersโฆ.oooo i love that. I decided i stir my boils too much after reading your poetry, oops i mean recipe! And the end garnish? Oohlala how my family of 25 will love my new additions this saturday at my annual shrimp boil! XXX
Made this tonight. It was wonderful. Thanks for this great recipe.
Hi againโฆWould Old Bay work with this boil or do you think the Zatarains has better, more authentic flavor? I donโt want to change a thing about this recipe as it looks and sounds like heaven! :)
Hi Joy, I only have Old Bay in the cupboard but will run out and get the Zatarains if you think there is a great taste difference. I want to be as JTB authentic as I can! :)
This looks delicious and easy to make. Thanks for sharing i cant wait to try it!
Made this yesterday for a summer time dinner with friends. It was delicious. Thanks for the recipe!!
Iโm a New Orleans girl and I canโt wait to try this! I love that you have embraced this city and itโs cultural offerings!
It looks delicious!!
https://justsem.wordpress.com/
This looks absolutely divine!
https://somebodyfromsomewhere.blogspot.com/
oh man, its looks amazing!
This sounds so good but having to devein the shrimp when eating is so unappealing to me. Are there any other options? Thanks!
We always take boil leftovers (crab, shrimp, and/or crawfish with the potatoes, stock, and corn) and make a killer bisque the next day. Itโs the diet cheatiest two days in a row, but 1000% worth it. There is a pint in my freezer that I am crossing my fingers will defrost well!
Much love,
A NOLA Neighbor and Longtime Fan :)
Looks delicious! Like a few other commenters, I love adding artichokes to mine โ and I know that this is about a shrimp boil, but when itโs in season, crab or lobster is amazing as well.
Hi Joy โ This looks amazing & exactly what Iโm craving for dinner tonight. Quick question โ I want to make it for just me and my guy, do you think this recipe could be halved? Like half the water, corn, potatoes and spice? (I would probably still do the 1.25 lbs of shrimp) Also I think the biggest pot I own wouldnโt house everything this recipe calls for, which is another reason Iโm asking. Thoughts?
Yes, it can be halved.
Last time I was at a crawfish boil they put pineapple rings in there. Seemed weird at the time, but oh mighty was it good! The pineapple added sweetness to everything, but it soaked up a lot of the spice. Delicious spicy-sweetness!
I grew up in Louisiana and this makes me so homesick! In our family we added garlic, lemon, and butter to the boil but not mushrooms or artichokes, although I am convinced that cotton socks could cook in the boil liquid and come out delicious. I vote for head-on shrimp, but canโt remember the last time I saw any in the shops here. I miss New Orleansโฆ
Man, I donโt eat boiled shrimp NEARLY often enough. Iโve stockpiled boxes of Zatarainโs bags and frozen shrimp from my visits home to Louisiana, so I think this is going to happen real soon. Thanks for the great idea of adding butter โ thereโs no way that can be a bad thing!
ยกFantรกstica receta! Se ve deliciosa y fรกcil de elaborar con un resultado final excelente.La probaremos enseguida. Gracias por compartirla con todos/as.
https://www.mascasaonline.com
Looks very Yummy!! I will try this in this weekend!!
Love,
Kisses and hugs from http://www.trangscorner.com {a lifestyle, fashion, beauty, and food blog}
My husband was born in Louisiana, and it took him three years to make this for me! I cannot tell you how much I want this right now, because it looks absolutely amazing.
i want to cook this and eat it, and then i want to cook it again and serve it to my father in law. heโs the only person in my family who appreciates seafood the way seafood should be appreciated, and he deserves this.
This just screams summer! So Good!
When would you put in the sausage?
Put the cooked sausage in with the shrimp.
I am in love! Makes me wanna go to New Orleans!
This looks amazing! Iโm with you on the mushrooms, never included in a Texas Gulf Coast shrimp boil. Canโt wait to try your recipe.
Here in AZ weโve adapted our own seafood boil โ we do crab legs, shirmp, clams, mussells, andouille, corn, potatoes & little boiling onions. And a whole heap of Old Bay and beer. In fact, I had just been to the grocer for some seafood to do this tomorrow night when I saw your post!
Beautiful photographs. I really have shrimp cravings now. Yum!
We did a shrimp boil for a birthday party a while back and it was so incredibly fun and delicious. I think itโs time to do it again! Thanks for the inspiration!
Iโm pretty sure that the boils Iโve been to only use the boil seasoning in the bag for flavor. I love your lemon, thyme, garlic, butter and parsley idea! And, why have I never thought to save that goodness as seafood stock? What a clever post!
DELICIOUS! What a pretty presentation too! How can you not LOVE all of these flavors together!
Yummy!
Looks good, Joy! But where are the heads on your shrimp? You can also add green beans or asparagus to your boilโyou just want to add them towards the end so they donโt get overcooked. The earlier commenter is right about the garlicโbutter and boiled garlic on a cracker is the way to go. Many new boilers (crab, shrimp, or crawfish) over look how much salt is neededโ you need more than you think! So, thanks for adding the tip about tasting.
Are the shrimp deveined?
no. you devein them as you peel and eat them.
Thatโs disgusting, buy them deveined!
Thank you so much for the wonderful recipe. The corns and lemons must have added a lot of flavours to the shrimp.
โseafood stalkโ??? Iโm assuming you meant โstockโ ? LOL Iโm not much into seafood, but I do like shrimp, potatoes and corn. I bet my family would love this
my brain sometimesโฆ i swear.
yeah, we all have our own way of doing it down here ; ) love that you included whole foodsโ Goldmine Beer! I can only find it at the Arabella Station location and not in Metairie though :/ I think iโll do a shrimp boil friday nightโitโs been way too long.
do it up! (and youโre right about Goldmine. only Arabella for some reason.)
This looks fantastic! I love a good shrimp boil but itโs been ages since I did it! Thanks for sharing!
We just left Louisiana and youโre making me feel homesick for it! Even though we were only there for a little while, it does tend to get in your soul. Shrimp boil is amazing, and Iโm so glad we brought some boil seasoning home! This looks spectacular.
Joy, in order to be a true New Orleanian you have to do a few things differently. First, you got to leave the heads on the shrimp! Next, throw in some raw mushrooms. Use the mesh bag that the potatoes or lemons come in so that they donโt disintegrate. Then throw in a few cans of artichokes. Just peel the label and pierce a few holes (6-8) in both ends with a screw driver and drain out the juice then just throw in the cans to soak up the goodness. You also have to double the amount of garlic you use. Nothing better then squishy garlic slathered on some saltine crackers. Lastly, throw in some good sausage that has been cut into 2-3โณ pieces. YUMMY! That is how you do a shrimp boil.
Iโm down to add some sausage.
Having lived in South Louisiana for 40 years, Iโve been to a LOT of boils.
Favorite adds are andouille, whole button mushrooms. Some add artichokes but canโt vouch for taste. Get domesomewfish in season. Youโll think you died and gone to heaven.
Looks amazing, Joy! Thanks for bringing New Orleans to us all.
It been just a year now that my husband and I realized that shrimp should be cooked before eating. We honestly thought you could just bring it home and defrost and eat. Good thing you posted this. We would LOVE to visit New Orleans, sounds like a hoot. We like Zatainans too though =)
Wait, what? Please tell me you havenโt been eating thawed out raw shrimp all your life?
Iโm also a bit concerned about thisโฆ
This dish looks incredibly delish, Joy! I love all of the colors and flavors, YUM! I wish I was eating this right now!