How to cook live crayfish? It's simple, but there are secrets... Boiled crayfish

Tender, tasty and healthy crustacean meat is enriched with vitamins and minerals. Crayfish are the best snack for beer, original decoration for fish dishes and just delicious delicacy. This dish will please any gourmet. In addition, crayfish meat is considered low-calorie, only 97 kcal per 100 g of product.

How to choose the right crayfish to eat

The taste of meat depends on the fishing season. It is believed that it is most delicious in September and October. This is explained by the fact that the animals got stronger and gained weight for the winter. In summer, catching crayfish is prohibited as they reproduce.

You can buy chilled and frozen crayfish in stores. When purchasing, you should pay attention to the tail between its legs - the main indicator that a living specimen was boiled and frozen. The shell and claws must not be damaged.

Already cooked crayfish are sold frozen. They can be identified by their scarlet color; you need to know that they are stored for no more than 4 days. If the crayfish are frozen alive, storage is allowed for up to 4 months.

Features of choosing live crayfish

In a large fish store you can find an aquarium with live arthropods. In order not to make a mistake with your choice, you need to know the features appearance healthy crayfish.

The color of living individuals is green with a blue tint or brown, always even throughout the entire carapace.
The tail of a healthy and viable crayfish is pressed tightly against the abdomen. Not pressed cancerous cervix- a sign of a sick animal.
There should be no damage or foreign growths on the shell and claws.
Cancers should actively move, move their whiskers and limbs.

Some sellers convince that the arthropod simply fell asleep and the “sleep” will not affect the quality. This is wrong. Inactivity indicates imminent death, and poison accumulates in the meat of a dead creature, which causes severe poisoning. Therefore, crayfish are considered a perishable product.

Storing crayfish before cooking

After purchasing the crayfish, you need to deliver them home alive. To do this, use plastic bags with water or a wet bag for transportation.

Important! Crayfish should only be boiled alive. If only one dead animal gets into the cooking container, you will have to throw them all out to avoid poisoning.

in a vessel with a large volume of clean water
in a cold room with increased level moisture (basement, cellar)
in the refrigerator.

Shelf life

You can store crayfish in a room without access to water for up to 2 days. To do this, use a large box, the bottom of which needs to be lined wet rag or moss. Place the crayfish on the mat and cover the top with a damp cloth. Just remember to spray it with water periodically.

To store in the refrigerator, arthropods are washed in running water, then placed in a spacious box or container and placed on the bottom shelf or vegetable section of the refrigerator. This method will extend the viability up to 4 days.

Can be stored for the longest time in clean water. By placing the crayfish in big basin or bath and bay clean water they can be stored for up to 5 days. The main thing is not to forget to change the water and feed every day. Peas, potatoes, carrots, nettles or lettuce are usually used as food. Fertilizing does not require cooking.

Important! Dead individuals must be immediately removed from living relatives. They can be recognized by their straight tail, which is not pressed against the abdomen.

How to properly cook live crayfish

Before cooking, you need to clean the crayfish from dirt and rinse them several times with a brush in running water. Rinse the belly and paws thoroughly. When working with arthropods, gloves should be used to protect your hands from damage from mites.

Then place in a container with cold water for no less than 30 minutes.

Don't be afraid to oversalt. The shell of animals is very dense and does not allow salt to pass through. You need to place the crayfish in boiling salted water, holding them by the back.

Don't fill the pan full. For 1 liter of water, take 10-15 individuals, depending on the size.

Cook over medium heat. Cooking time depends on the size of the animals. Small individuals take 12-15 minutes to cook, medium ones – 18-20 minutes, and large ones will have to be cooked for about 25 minutes.

However, you can’t overcook crayfish either; the meat will become tough. When the crustaceans turn scarlet, they are ready to eat.

Cooking frozen raw and frozen boiled crayfish

Before you start cooking boiled frozen or raw frozen crayfish, you need to defrost them. Defrosting in air takes from 2 to 5 hours. More quick way– defrost in cold water.

Cannot be defrosted in microwave oven and other household appliances - the meat will lose its taste.

Frozen crayfish are cooked using the same technology as live ones. The defrosted product is placed in salted boiling water. Cooking time – 11-15 minutes. If the animals are frozen boiled, then it is enough to boil them for only 2-4 minutes.

How to deliciously cook crayfish with dill - a classic recipe

The classic recipe will allow you to cook crayfish tasty, quickly and with a minimum set of ingredients.

To prepare you will need:

crayfish;
dill;
salt (3 tablespoons for every 3 liters of water).

What to do:

Bring water to a boil, add salt.
Lower the crayfish (washed, peeled, defrosted).
Add dill.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until they turn bright red.
Turn off the heat and leave in the pan for 20 minutes.
Serve in shell or peeled.

The prepared delicacy can be stored for no more than a day and must be stored in broth.

Dish cooked in beer

Crayfish boiled in beer are considered a special delicacy. The following recipe will help you do it right. All ingredients are given based on 500 g of the original product.

dill;
salt 100 g;
water 500 ml;
beer 250 ml;
black peppercorns;
half a lemon.

How to cook:

Boil water and add salt, pepper, dill.
Place the crayfish and cover until boiling.
After the water has boiled, pour in the beer.
Next add half a lemon, cut into slices.
Cook until reddened (about 15 minutes).
Turn off the stove and leave in the broth for 15 minutes, covered.

To serve, place on a plate and garnish with dill sprigs and lemon slices, you can sprinkle with lemon juice.

Women's version with added wine

Women can pamper themselves too delicious dish. But they have their own original recipe in store.

Ingredients for 1 liter of water:

20 crayfish;
500 ml wine;
90 g salt;
1 bunch of dill;
allspice to taste.

Process:

Add dill, pepper and wine to boiling water and boil for 10 minutes.
Add crayfish and cook for 15 minutes.

Recipe for cooking crayfish in milk

Cooking crayfish in milk is different from classic recipe and takes longer. But it's compensated the most tender meat, bright taste and aroma.

How to cook:

First, boil the milk, remove from heat and let it cool.
Then place thoroughly washed arthropods in the liquid and leave for 2-3 hours.
Separately, boil water with spices. Place the crayfish marinated in milk there and cook until done.
When the crustaceans are hot, return the milk in which they were soaked. Bring to a boil and remove from heat.
Serve ready dish Can be served with a sauce based on dairy products.

Method of cooking in brine

Cucumber brine is often used to prepare seafood, including crustaceans. We offer two at once interesting ways. The ingredients in both cases are given for 500 g of crayfish:

Recipe 1

onions – 2-4 pcs. depending on size;
sour cream – 120 g;
brine – 1500 ml;
dill and bay leaves.

What to do:

Place crayfish along with spices into boiling brine.
Cook for 20-25 minutes over medium heat.
5 minutes before readiness add sour cream.
Serve with milk or sour cream sauce.

Recipe 2

water – 1 l;
brine – 300 ml;
salt and spices to taste;
vegetable oil – 40 ml.

Algorithm of actions:

Place crayfish in boiling water and cook for 5-7 minutes.
Then add brine and vegetable oil.
Cook until done.
Remove from heat and leave for 20 minutes.

Spicy variation with spices

Do you want to surprise your friends or experiment at your leisure? Prepare the dish according to the following recipe.

Boiled crayfish (photo).

How to cook crayfish step by step recipe with photo.

How to cook crayfish, how much salt? Brine for boiled crayfish.

How to properly cook live crayfish. How long does it take to cook crayfish?? Is it possible to boil dead crayfish? How to store boiled crayfish?

I'll tell you in the recipe for boiled crayfish. The recipe was brought from the banks of the Volga. This is how they cook crayfish in Volgograd.

What is needed.

Live crayfish 3 kg..
Salt to taste.
Bay leaf 4 pcs.
Black peppercorns 20 pcs.
Lemon 1 pc.
Dill seeds (can be replaced with stems from a bunch of dill)

How to choose crayfish. Crayfish can be any size - small, medium or large. The time it takes to cook the crayfish depends on the size of the crayfish. How long to cook crayfish? Small cooking crayfish 25 minutes, average cooking crayfish 35 minutes, large cooking crayfish 45 minutes. During this time, the cancer will nourish the broth and will be tasty. It is believed that the crayfish should be thrown into the water, if it turns red, it’s done. This is not correct.

Crayfish must only be alive. You can't cook dead crayfish Crayfish spoil very quickly in water after they die. If you are not sure that the cancer died a few hours before cooking, mercilessly throw it away. dead crayfish, otherwise you will ruin the whole dish. If you know for sure that the cancer was alive a few hours ago, then tear off its head and weld its neck. For cancer, the first thing that gets worse is the head. Do not store live crayfish in water, they will die quickly, store in a cool place, the crayfish will live for several hours.

This time I had small crayfish. They are good in their own way, small crayfish are easy to clean, and the palate and tongue don’t hurt afterwards.

Moment. Before boil crayfish, it’s a good idea for them to brush the place where the legs are attached to the body. We carry out this operation under running water. In this place, the crayfish accumulate silt and dirt as they crawl along the bottom.

The main thing in boiling crayfish this is correct bouillon. The final taste of the crayfish depends on the broth. Take the largest pan. For three kg of crayfish I took a 12 liter pan.

Fill two-thirds with water. Throw in dill bay leaf, peppercorns, squeeze lemon.

Very important for boiling crayfish how much salt we will add to the broth. The broth should be heavily salted. I put one heaped tablespoon of salt per two liters. I put 5 tablespoons of salt on such a pan.

Brine for boiling crayfish bring to a boil. Turn it off. Let it brew for 10-15 minutes. Bring to a boil. Dip the crayfish into the broth.

How crayfish boil, reduce the heat, cover with a lid and simmer over low heat.

So we cook crayfish correctly. After 25/35/45 minutes we take out the crayfish.

Place the crayfish in a deep dish.

You don't have to say that crayfish- gorgeous beer snack. Right boiled crayfish Children eat with pleasure. Crayfish are a decoration for any table. Besides all this - crayfish are useful. If you haven’t eaten the crayfish, put them in the refrigerator; they will last for several days.

Eat crayfish to your health.

What else would I like to add? I read all the readers' comments. I agree with some things and disagree with others. My opinion - boil crayfish you need to wait at least 15 minutes, then keep it in the brine for another 3-5 minutes. One more trick - lately, I salt the brine for boiling crayfish sea salt. The taste of crayfish is more refined.

Boiled crayfish- This is a favorite delicacy not only in our country, but throughout the world. There are many recipes for their preparation and you can cook crayfish at home in different ways, besides, they are all simple and can be done by anyone, even someone far from cooking.

Before cooking, of course, you must first choose the product itself; if anyone has not figured it out yet and does not know which crayfish is better, we will inform you.

The larger the crayfish, the tastier and softer its meat.

But their cooking time also directly depends on their size; in a word, when asked how long to cook crayfish, we recommend sticking to the following scheme:

You need to boil very small crayfish for about 20 minutes;
medium-sized crayfish - about half an hour;
but if you are lucky enough to acquire large individuals, then at least 45 minutes.

This is very important! As we have already written, crayfish meat is healthy and dietary, but crayfish is a scavenger and often its body may contain microorganisms that can harm human health. For example, worms. Therefore, in order for you to have only pleasant sensations after eating the crayfish, remember that it is better to cook crayfish at home or outdoors a little longer than to rush and remove from the stove before the time indicated by us.

After we answered the question of how many minutes to cook crayfish, let’s move on to the best recipes for preparing them and look at several general topics.

Very often, crayfish are boiled in beer, doing it simply, even primitively, namely, placing it in some kind of container with boiling beer. Cooking lasts about twenty to thirty minutes, and then in the same container they are allowed to brew for about the same time. It's simple, but a bit rustic for such a sophisticated product, there are also best recipes, which are not much more complicated, but the crayfish turn out tastier.

Although, for the sake of fairness, it is worth noting that no matter what recipe is chosen, crayfish with beer and sincere conversation is one of the best pastimes.

Preparing the crayfish

As we said, regardless of the crayfish recipe, you need to prepare it before you cook it.

You need to start with sorting. Usually the catch contains individuals different sizes and therefore, before cooking, divide them into three piles, since this determines how much crayfish needs to be cooked. Those. small, medium and large. To cook them, also prepare dishes of appropriate sizes. Of course, it will simplify the task if they are all the same size, but this rarely happens, but if you do not catch, but buy crayfish, take the same size. Yes, bigger!

Regardless of whether the crayfish were purchased or caught, they need to be washed thoroughly. It's better to do it under stream cold water. If they are heavily soiled, then lower part It is advisable to even clean it with a brush. Special attention Pay attention to the spaces between the paws, dirt usually accumulates there.

Proceed carefully, or better yet, wear gloves; do not forget that crayfish have quite powerful claws with which they will try to bite you. You need to hold the crayfish by the shell from above, then it probably won’t reach your hand. You need to wash it well, since not only the hygienic aspect of preparation, but also the taste of the dish as a whole will largely depend.

At the same time, when answering the question of how to properly cook crayfish, be sure to examine all the individuals you have, namely in what condition they are. Are there any sick or even dead among them? If the cancer does not move and does not tuck its tail, do not take risks, it is better to throw it away. Also, there should be no ulcers or damage on its shell and other parts of the body. These may be traces of diseases that occur among crayfish, as well as among other animals.

When the crayfish are washed, they need to be placed in a container with cold water for about an hour and a half. This is necessary for them to brew before cooking.

The simplest recipe

Let's start from the very beginning simple recipe preparation of these crustaceans. Oddly enough, many people don’t even know him. We will tell you how to cook crayfish with dill and salt. This is probably the most common preparation not only at home, but also in nature.

Cooking crayfish according to this recipe does not require any special skills, but we can advise you to take larger dishes. Despite the simplicity, it will turn out delicious, don’t worry! You need to add enough water so that there is about 15 cm from the edges of the water to the edges of the pan. Otherwise, instead of cooking crayfish, you will end up chasing fleeing animals.

To prepare crayfish according to this recipe, you need to take them individually and put them in already boiling water, but before that, first add dill, salt or other spices. If you are afraid that cancer may grab you with its claw, then we can offer you one original way. Namely, act as follows. Take, for example, a very ordinary towel and place it in a container containing already prepared crayfish. Surely one of them, and maybe even several, will grab onto it. All you have to do is transfer them to boiling water. However, it is better to take them by the shell and place them one by one in water brought to a boil upside down. With this method, the cancer dies immediately without suffering. This is a very humane way.

After placing live crayfish in the water, they need to be boiled, depending on the size, from 20 to 40 minutes. Overcooking is just as undesirable as undercooking.

Cooking crayfish doesn't end there. Now they need to be removed and left to steep for another ten minutes.

Crayfish are a delicacy and should not be served in the same container in which they were cooked. Therefore, take a large, beautiful dish and place them one by one, for example, in a mound. The bottom layer contains the largest individuals, and then the smaller ones. Sprinkle fresh herbs on top.

Video “Cooking with dill”

Simple recipe with apples

Cooking crayfish according to this recipe is no more difficult than the usual one, which we described above, and apples will add aroma and piquancy.

Ingredients:

crayfish (about three kilograms);
salt is taken at the rate of three tablespoons per 1 kilogram of crayfish;
dill, can be in seeds or dried;
two dozen black peppercorns;
a pair of bay leaves;
lemon;
a couple of apples.

Required utensils

a large twelve-liter saucepan (if you don’t have one, any size will do, but the number of crayfish should be proportionally reduced);
skimmer;
large dish (for laying out crayfish).

Preparation

The first step is to fill half a pan with water.
Add salt, pepper and dill.
Now we need to cut the apples and lemon into two parts.
We put it on the fire and wait for it to boil.
We prepare the crayfish, namely clean and wash them as described above.
Place crayfish in boiling water
After the water boils again, cook for about ten minutes.
Turn off the fire.
Infuse the crayfish in the same broth for about another half hour.
That's practically all. Next, we take them out and put them on a dish.

Cooked according to this recipe, the crayfish turns out to be very tasty, and also very aromatic!

Cancer infusions

Spicy

To prepare this decoction you will need the simplest ingredients: salt (1 tbsp), 5 black peppercorns, dill seeds, a couple of bay leaves, juice of one lemon.

Wine

For 1 l. Take 0.5 liters of clean water. wine (dry white), rosemary and dill. Upon completion of cooking, we insist, after adding lemon juice based on (half a lemon per 1 liter of decoction).

Cucumber

This is very interesting recipe, which is very common in our country. The crayfish are pre-cooked for about ten minutes. Cucumber pickle is poured in. The proportions are as follows: 0.5 cups of brine per liter of water. Next, wait until the water boils and cook for the same amount.

Cook in wine

In our country, many people don’t know whether it’s possible to cook crayfish in wine; in our country, if they do add it, it’s beer. And in vain, crayfish boiled in wine turns out exceptionally tasty and aromatic. This recipe Crawfish boiling is a little tricky and try it on a small number of crayfish first.

Ingredients

twenty crayfish;
200 grams of wine (dry white is best);
200 grams of clean water;
a bunch of dill;
rosemary;
one carrot;
one onion.

To prepare the sauce, you need the following ingredients:

fifty grams of butter;
a tablespoon of lemon juice;
black pepper;
salt.

Preparation

First of all, mix water and wine.
Put it on the fire and wait until it boils.
Add dill and rosemary.
Cut carrots and onions into smaller pieces. Add to our mixture.
We send prepared (well washed) crayfish to our broth.
Cook over low heat for about twenty minutes.
After this time, the crayfish should be removed and placed on a heated dish.
After cooking, there will be a sauce left that should not be thrown away. It needs to be strained.
Add butter and lemon juice.
Next, add black pepper and salt.
Warm the sauce for a couple of minutes over low heat.
We pour it on our crayfish.

That's all, now you know how to cook crayfish at home in wine. This recipe is more complicated than the previous ones, but nevertheless, if you do everything consistently you will get an amazing dish.

Serve sprinkled with chopped dill and lemon slices.

In beer

Pour beer into a saucepan (preferably a light variety) and put it on the fire.
While the beer is boiling, wash the crayfish thoroughly.
Place them in a saucepan (the beer should already be boiling by this time).
It’s up to you to decide how much salt and pepper you add, everything is done to taste.
Cook for twenty minutes.
Next comes the most interesting thing, namely in this broth the crayfish should stand for at least another twenty minutes, and preferably a couple of hours.

Serve on a platter, garnished with dill and lemon slices.

In tomato juice

If you don’t know how to cook crayfish quickly, but at the same time make the dish unusual, then this recipe will suit you better than others!

Ingredients

a dozen crayfish;
salt to taste;
wine;
tomato juice (the best is homemade thick consistency),
dill

Preparation

Prepare the crayfish as we have already described above.
Next you need to boil the water.
Add salt.
We add live crayfish.
According to this recipe, the crayfish are boiled for ten minutes (but if they are very large, it will take longer).
Cook until the crayfish turn red-orange.
There is no need to take them out of the broth; let them sit, then their taste will become more intense.
The water should still be hot and you need to put dill in it; you can also add other spices to your taste.
When the crayfish are cooked, you need to separate their necks and clean them.
The meat is placed in a heap in a small salad bowl.
The large claw parts of the crayfish are separated from the shell and laid out along the edges of the dish, near the necks.
Next, the almost finished dish needs to be poured with wine and tomato juice.

The recipe for boiling crayfish in milk is a little more complicated than in water. But we highly recommend trying it. Even though the crayfish meat is very tender, after cooking according to the method we recommend, it turns out even softer and tastier.

Ingredients

crayfish;
milk;
dill;
salt;
sour cream.

Preparation

The first step is to boil the milk and let it cool.
Next, immerse the crayfish in it and soak for three hours.
Let's get it. We don’t pour out the milk, leave it in the same container or pour it into another.
Mine.
Cook in clean water, adding salt and dill.
We drain the water and fill it with milk in which our arthropods were soaked.
We wait for the water to boil and remove from the heat.

The whole dish is ready!

Serve with sour cream or milk sauce

In cucumber brine

A very interesting recipe and at the same time made from the most ordinary ingredients. If we talk about brine, it is usually poured down the drain, but here it will play the role of a key ingredient.

Ingredients

crayfish;
cucumber pickle;
sour cream.

Preparation

The first part of the recipe is similar to the main one, traditional recipe cooking crayfish. Those. just boil it in water.
Cook until the crayfish turns red.
Next, drain the water and add the same amount of cucumber brine instead.
Bring the resulting mixture to a boil and add five tablespoons of sour cream (sour cream should be fatty and thick).
Cook for another eight minutes.

Drain the brine, place the crayfish on a dish and serve.

On coals

This recipe is not only very good topic, that crayfish can be cooked immediately after being caught in nature, but the process itself is also interesting and entertaining. In any case, any fisherman, hunter, and simply those who prefer picnics in nature to ordinary home gatherings in the kitchen should know it.

Ingredients

Directly the crayfish themselves and the foil. Preferably one size.

Preparation

Before serving, the crayfish are unwrapped, decorated with herbs and placed on the table.

Crayfish soup

It’s not difficult to simply boil crayfish in water, but it’s much more interesting to make them from the same ordinary crayfish soup.

Ingredients

approximately 200-300 gr. boiled crayfish;
chicken broth 0.5 l;
1/2 tbsp. l. cream;
oil;
1/2 onion;
1/2 carrot;
1/2 stalk of celery;
flour 1 tbsp;
spices to your taste, but we recommend thyme, coriander, bay leaves, cream (thicker), dill, lime juice, pepper.

Preparation

Cut onions and carrots into cubes.
Next, we separate the necks, clean them, and chop the meat.
We remove the insides from the shell and throw them away.
We put the claws and legs in a bag and beat them off.
Melt 0.5 tbsp in a saucepan. l. butter, add chopped onion.
Add celery and carrots.
Pour in the broth, if there is not enough, add water. A total of three liters of liquid should come out.
Put on fire and boil.
Add chopped shells, spices and salt.
Cook for about thirty minutes.
Next, pour all this into a blender and grind.
We filter. Only the slurry should remain, pour it into a saucepan over a heated butter, mixed with flour.
Place on the fire and cook for about thirty minutes.
Add the necks, cream and dill.
Salt, pepper, add lime juice and boil.

The whole dish is ready! Bon appetit!

What is useful in crayfish and how to avoid poisoning

Probably everyone knows about the benefits of crayfish, the fact that it also has healing properties Few know. Primarily because it contains a lot of iodine and other unique elements and rare vitamins. Crayfish meat contains easily digestible protein.
Those who adhere to any diets can eat crayfish without fear; one hundred grams of the product contains only 75 calories.
Many people believe that the most delicious crayfish are those caught in the first months of spring. But you should know that catching them at this time is inhumane because... at this time they wear caviar. Therefore, it is better to catch them in late summer and early autumn. In summer, crayfish have an active feeding period when they gain weight.
Large crayfish have softer and tastier meat than small ones. Catching individuals smaller than 10 centimeters is prohibited.
In order to avoid poisoning, you need to cook only those crayfish that are not only alive, but also mobile. It's easy to check, just put them in water and see how they behave.
Live crayfish, even if there are a lot of them, can be stored for no more than three days. vegetable department refrigerator. Boiled crayfish should be stored in the same broth in which they were boiled for no more than three days. You can freeze boiled and raw crayfish. The maximum storage period is no more than a month. It is worth knowing that after defrosting, crayfish lose their flavor, and the meat becomes tougher
When you are served boiled crayfish at a bar or restaurant, check its freshness in a simple way. Just make sure their tails are pressed against their bellies. If you find at least one crayfish with a straight tail, this means that the crayfish were already boiled dead, and such crayfish cannot be eaten. The risk of poisoning is very high.

What can cancer eat?

Many parts of crayfish are edible, not just the neck, although it is the most tasty morsel. Crab is eaten slowly, you still need to understand that this is a delicacy from which you need to get maximum pleasure. From the dish on which these arthropods will be presented to you, take one crayfish and place it on the plate. Next, the claws are pinched off and the tail is separated from the body. Then you need to suck out the juice from the body. Next comes the turn of the claws. First of all, the juice is sucked out of them, and after opening the meat is eaten. Next, the crayfish neck is cleaned and eaten.

Which ones can you eat?

Any cooked crayfish can be eaten, but only on the condition that it was not cooked already dead.

Benefit

Crayfish are not only tasty, but also very healthy, and they are also included in the diet for many diseases.
high content of easily digestible protein and such important elements like calcium and phosphorus;
if cracks appear on the legs due to hypothermia;
in the treatment of the spleen;
for gallstone and urolithiasis.

Composition of crayfish that were boiled in ordinary salted water

elements containing nitrogen - 13.63 percent;
fat - 0.36 percent;
nitrogen-free elements - 0.21 percent;
water - 72.74 percent.

How to salt water

You need to add a small amount of salt to the water or already boiled broth (depending on the recipe). Because their shell will allow them to absorb only a certain part. The volume of salt is calculated per volume of water - approximately one tablespoon per liter of water with crayfish. In order for the crayfish meat to be better saturated with salt, they need to be infused a little in the broth in which they were cooked.

How to choose

The meat from early spring or early autumn is better.
In larger individuals, the meat is more tender and juicy.
Crayfish must be not only alive, but also mobile.

How long can you store boiled

Boiled crayfish are stored either frozen or in the broth in which they were cooked.

In the first case, no more than a month. In the second, no more than three days, but it is advisable to consume it earlier, preferably within 12 hours after cooking.

How long can you keep alive?

Crayfish can be stored without water for three days in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator.

In a bathtub or large container, if the temperature is not higher than 20 degrees, they can survive for a week.

If you froze the crayfish alive, then there is no need to defrost them, but immediately put them in hot water and cook.

Why should you only cook alive?

Dead individuals must be separated from living ones and discarded. Sick individuals die first, so you should never cook them with healthy ones. Don't risk your health and the health of those who will eat them.

This video explains in detail how and how much to cook crustaceans.

Many people love boiled crayfish, but few know how to cook them properly. Most people think that if the cancer turns red, it means it is ready. But this is far from true. Now we will tell you how to cook them correctly and which brine is considered the most delicious and correct.

It is known that crayfish are a kind of “orderlies” of a pond, so before cooking they need to be thoroughly rinsed under running water. On the abdomen they collect most of the silt and dirt from the bottom.

To clean the crayfish, take a small brush and thoroughly rub the shell. Also remember that you should not cook dead crayfish, as they become hazardous to health. Since they spoil very quickly, they need to be thoroughly sorted before cooking.

How to store crayfish

To keep crayfish alive before cooking, it is best to keep them in a cool place, but not in water. In the summer, you need to put frozen crayfish in a box plastic bottle with water, and cover the box itself with a damp cloth. You can be sure that the crayfish will live like this for another half a day.

How long does it take to cook crayfish?

As a rule, small crayfish take no more than 25 minutes to cook, medium ones take ten minutes longer, and large ones take 45 minutes. Although there is a lot of controversy on this topic, some people believe that 15 minutes is enough to cook them.

How to choose crayfish

It is important that in order to cook delicious crayfish you need to choose only fresh crayfish. And if you decide to purchase ready-made (boiled) crayfish, then it is important to pay attention to their tail; it is this that can tell what condition the crayfish were in before they were boiled. If you notice that the tail of the boiled crayfish is straightened, then refuse this purchase, most likely the crayfish was not very alive before cooking. But if the tail of the crayfish is tucked under the body, then you can be completely sure that the crayfish were alive and you can easily purchase this product.

Boiled crayfish recipe

To make the dish tasty, you should pay a lot of attention to preparing the broth. To do this, for 3 kg of delicacy you will need a large saucepan with a volume of at least five liters. It is much more convenient to cook them in a large container, since a lot of foam comes out when boiling.

Ingredients:

Fresh crayfish – 3 kg,
A bunch of dill with umbrellas,
Bunch of parsley
Carrots – 1 piece,
Whole onion
Salt,
Water.

Cooking process:

A five-liter container needs to be filled 2/3 with water and boiled. Add 5 tablespoons of salt. Immerse the washed crayfish in boiling water, add a bunch of dill with sprigs and umbrellas. Send whole carrots and onions there, right in their peels. Dill branches can be replaced with dill seeds. If this ingredient is mandatory, then parsley is at your discretion. If possible, be sure to cook the crayfish differently for comparison. Carrots will add sweetness and delicate taste to boiled crayfish. Bring to a boil, skim off the foam and reduce heat. Cook until done according to the recommendations above.

Another way to prepare boiled crayfish is worthy of attention.

Add a few bay leaves, 15-20 black peppercorns, a bunch of dill (can be replaced with dill seeds), salt to taste to the boiling water and squeeze the juice of one lemon into the pan. Remember that the brine must be well salted. According to our recipe, at least five tablespoons of salt are added to this amount of water. Next, bring the brine to a boil, turn it off for 10 minutes, then bring it to a boil again and throw in the already washed crayfish. After the crayfish boils, reduce the heat and cover the pan with a lid. Bring the crayfish to readiness.

The finished crayfish are placed on a wide plate in a heap or in a deep dish; if desired, they can be decorated with herbs and served as an independent dish (not only with beer).

Children love crayfish, but adults need to peel the meat from the shell themselves so that the child does not get hurt or choke.

If you don't eat the crayfish right away, they can be stored in the refrigerator for several days.

Thanks to balanced vitamin and mineral composition crayfish meat can improve metabolism in the human body, strengthen immune system and even raise vitality person. For heart diseases vascular system, liver and blood vessels, many nutritionists advise including boiled crayfish in your diet. But also healthy person shouldn't deprive yourself of this useful product, this product is able to cleanse the bile ducts and remove waste and toxins from the body. And the shell of crayfish is a natural antiseptic; our ancestors used it to make powder, which was used to disinfect and heal wounds, while the wounds healed and did not leave scars.

For those who are planning to lose weight, we can advise you to include crayfish in the menu, because... they are almost completely free of fat, which makes crayfish ideal for eating while losing weight. Crayfish meat will saturate your body due to easily digestible protein; for example, the menu of the Kremlin diet includes boiled crayfish, and they can be eaten in any quantity, of course, within reasonable limits.

But, despite all its usefulness, cancerous meat is strong allergen, which makes it unsuitable for consumption by people prone to allergies. You should also carefully monitor the consumption of this type of meat for children who have already been allergic to seafood.

Bon appetit and good recipes!

Boiled crayfish is one of the best snacks that is served with beer, and this product is affordable and will not be difficult to obtain. If you have the opportunity to purchase or, then all that remains is to prepare them correctly and your feast involving beer will be successful. In this material you will receive detailed information on how to cook and how much to cook crayfish to ensure they are fully cooked, and what to serve them with.

Don't think that cooking crayfish is very easy. There are some nuances that you need to know to make the dish tasty and beautiful. One of the main factors is, of course, the right choice.

What to look for when choosing a cancer

The most important thing to know when choosing crayfish for cooking is that they must be alive. The only way to be sure of the quality of crayfish is if they are alive. Only under this condition can you prepare a very tasty and healthy snack for beer.

Crayfish that do not show signs of life can not only be tasteless, but also a source of serious diseases associated with the gastrointestinal tract.

When buying these animals in a store or market, you need to pay attention to some points:

When choosing a crayfish, you need to look at its shell, which should shine, be clean and at the same time have a uniform color. The claws should be free of any foreign growths or damage.
Crayfish living have a greenish or brown color and a tail tightly pressed to the ventral part of the body.
A good cancer is sure to move, moving its mustache and claws; if it is inactive, then it is better to avoid such a product altogether.
Most suitable look crayfish are those that weigh up to one hundred grams, and are up to 20 centimeters long with claws.
The period of catching crayfish begins in the spring around mid-May, and hunting for them ends in the fall. It is autumn crayfish that is considered the most delicious to cook.
If you have the opportunity to choose, it is better to take females, as they are much juicier and have a richer taste. They can be distinguished by the width of the animal's tail.

When buying crayfish, it is better to buy fresh ones rather than already cooked ones. The thing is that you don’t know what kind of crayfish the seller is offering you, and it’s more expensive to trust his words. There is one myth that claims that only fresh crayfish have a tail that straightens out during cooking, but in fact, the tail of dead animals straightens out no worse.

Crayfish move very little in an aquarium with a water temperature not exceeding ten degrees Celsius. They will not live in this container for more than two days, as they will go into hibernation and then die. The first thing you need to do when you bought crayfish and brought them home is to fill them with water at room temperature to warm them up.

If you froze crayfish in order to cook later, you should know that they can be stored frozen for no more than three months.