A crab boil is a social event where boiled crabs are eaten, a kind of

seafood boil Seafood boil is the generic term for any number of types of social events in which shellfish, whether saltwater or freshwater, is the central element. Regional variations dictate the kinds of seafood, the accompaniments and side dishes, and the ...

Louisiana and New Orleans

Boiled seafood in southern Louisiana tends to be spicier than that found in other parts of the country. Homemade crab boil recipes call for abundant amounts of

hot sauce Hot sauce is a type of condiment, seasoning, or salsa made from chili peppers and other ingredients. Many commercial varieties of mass-produced hot sauce exist. History Humans have used chili peppers and other hot spices for thousands of years ...

cayenne pepper The cayenne pepper is a type of ''Capsicum annuum''. It is usually a moderately hot chili pepper used to flavor dishes. Cayenne peppers are a group of tapering, 10 to 25 cm long, generally skinny, mostly red-colored peppers, often with ...

, salt,

bay leaf The bay leaf is an aromatic leaf commonly used in cooking. It can be used whole, either dried or fresh, in which case it is removed from the dish before consumption, or less commonly used in ground form. It may come from several species of tr ...

, lemon, and garlic.

Mustard seed Mustard seeds are the small round seeds of various mustard plants. The seeds are usually about in diameter and may be colored from yellowish white to black. They are an important spice in many regional foods and may come from one of three diff ...

coriander Coriander (;

seeds, and

allspice Allspice, also known as Jamaica pepper, myrtle pepper, pimenta, or pimento, is the dried unripe berry (botany), berry of ''Pimenta dioica'', a Canopy (forest), midcanopy tree native to the Greater Antilles, southern Mexico, and Central America, ...

are popular extra options. Many people will start with a commercial crab boil product and then supplement it with extra pepper. The leading commercial product is

Zatarain's Zatarain's is an American food and spice company based in New Orleans, Louisiana, in the United States that makes a large family of products with seasonings and spices that are part of the cultural cuisine and heritage of Louisiana and New Orleans ...

which comes in two forms. One is a mesh bag with seasonings inside that will steep into the water. The second is a liquid concentrate that can be added directly to the water. The concentrate form can also be used as a flavor enhancer for soups. Other regional crab boil companies are

Tony Chachere's Anthony Chachere ( ; June 14, 1905 – March 19, 1995) was an American businessman and chef best known as the founder of his eponymous Tony Chachere's Creole Foods seasonings and ingredients brand and its original product, Tony Chachere's Origin ...

, and Rex Crab Boil. Note that even when boiling shrimp or crawfish, most recipes call for adding ''crab boil'' packets as a seasoning.

Carolinas

The Lowcountry boil, Tidewater boil, and Frogmore Stew are variations on the same theme in North and South Carolina.

References

External links

SC Beaufort Stew

Zatarain's Crab boil

Rex's Home Page

Mild Carolina boil

{{Herbs and spices Seafood Spices Louisiana cuisine