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Crawfish Bisque

It is “those” times again.  I don’t even know if that’s grammatically correct, but it’s Mardi Gras time AND the start of crawfish season.  We purchased our first sack and Termite boiled them up for us with lots of extras, like onion, garlic pods, mushrooms, smoked sausage, and potatoes.

While we were eating crawfish, and it was evident we would have plenty of leftovers, Termite informed me that it was high time I came up with a crawfish bisque recipe using the leftovers.  (We’ve already covered crawfish stew and etouffeé.)  Well, if he would peel and de-vein the leftovers, I’d sure enough cook him up a nice bisque!

So, I did a little internet research, meaning not much, and the first two recipes I found both used canned soups. Well, I know the basics of a bisque, and while using canned soup might be easy and reliable, I’d rather wing it and make it by “taste”, and just see what turns out.

Once it was finished, Termite took a bite, rolled his eyes and pushed his bowl over to Mrs. Termite, who asked, “What’s wrong with it?” before taking a taste.  I looked back and forth between the two of them worried that I might not have a recipe worth sharing, when he broke into a big smile: “This is the best bisque I’ve ever eaten, Mom.  It’s got just the right spice, and it’s not bland or sweet like the kind in restaurants.”  SUCCESS!!!  And it was so easy, y’all! 

I served myself a little bowl, and I have to agree, that for my first try, it’s pretty dog-gone tasty!  At this point, please note that the main ingredients in this recipe are leftover from the crawfish boil and are already cooked and spicy.  So, if your boil is very spicy, your bisque will be too.  The only seasoning I added was a little salt and black pepper, but you might not even need to do that, but we like a lot of seasoning in our food.

Next time you have boiled crawfish, crab, or shrimp with leftovers, keep this little recipe in mind. It’s so easy, you’ll wonder why you’ve never made it before!

Mardi Gras, boiled crawfish, and bisque from the leftovers!  Doesn’t get much better than that!

BW

Crawfish Bisque

Easy recipe using ingredients leftover from a crawfish boil, south La. style

  • 1/2 stick Butter
  • 4 oz. Cream Cheese
  • 2 pints Half and Half
  • 1 Onion (from the boil)
  • 2-3 Potatoes (from the boil)
  • 4 Mini Ears of Corn (from the boil)
  • 2 cups De-veined crawfish tails (from the boil)
  1. In large pot or Dutch oven melt butter on low heat

  2. Chop the boiled onion and add to butter, continue to simmer

  3. Cut cream cheese in chunks, add to pot and melt

  4. After butter and cheese melt, add half and half, stir and heat through

  5. Cube potatoes and add to pot

  6. Slice corn from the cobs, scraping the cob as you go and add to pot

  7. Add de-veined crawfish, stir and cook on low for about 20 minutes. Do not overcook since potatoes are already cooked

  8. Salt and pepper to taste

  9. Serve with warm baguette or pistollettes and fresh green salad

Please note that this recipe uses main ingredients leftover from your crawfish boil:

Crawfish tails, onion, corn, and potatoes.  

Since the items are already “cooked”, once you make the bisque sauce, only a thorough heating is required.

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22 Comments

  1. OMG! Yes! It is crawfish boil time!! I am going to grab this recipe to try since my family (parts of them) like bisque.
    What seasoning do you use to season your boils? We have tried about 3 different ones and so far, the Slap Ya Mama is the favorite.
    I went to Sams Friday and they had the boil in bag potatoes in 10 or 15 lb bags at a great price so, I grabbed a bag. We love the small reds even without crawfish. I boil them with crab boil to serve as a side with almost any meat. And the bag is made of heavy string netting. The granddaughter has been wanting a snood for her hair and it is going to make a perfect one since I won’t be boiling that big thing. 🙂

    1. I love your ingenuity!! We use Louisiana Fish Fry products, including their seafood boil seasonings. We also use the leftover potatoes for breakfast hashbrowns, which are delicious with scrambled eggs! I chose not to cut up the smoked sausage and include in the bisque–felt like it would take away from the bisque flavor. We also make a leftover crawfish “hash” with the potatoes, onions, sausage and corn scraped from the cob. It’s also very, very good! Maybe I’ll do that recipe next!!! We just don’t like to waste anything around here! Enjoy your first boil of the season, Cammy! (and the bisque)!

      1. Used this recipe, but I added minced garlic with the onion and a generous helping of Old Bay and Cayenne pepper after adding the half and half. It came out sooooooo good. Will definitely be doing this from now on with all of my leftover crawfish tails!

        1. Hi Caleigh! Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing your additions to the recipe. Sounds delicious! I’m so glad you and your family enjoy this dish. BW

    1. I have to say, it was really very good, although the spice from the boil made it a little different from a regular bisque, but everyone loved it! Hope your sale went well for you!

  2. This sounds good and I might give it a try. I will have to change the name though. Crawfish Bisque needs to have stuffed heads. AND of course you have to hook the empty shells on the rim of the bowl.?

    1. Well YES of course it does if you make it the very day of the boil! I’m not willing to use crawfish heads that are a few days old! Can you imagine?

      1. You’re supposed to get the kids to clean the heads then stick them in the freezer for future use.
        Growing up we always had heads in the freezer.

        1. Would you like to share some more about why you kept the heads and what they were used for, as I’m not familiar with this practice! Please, educate us!

          1. They make fantastic stock! Just rinse some of the seasoning off, toss in a pot with the shells, carrots, onions, celery, bay leaves, lemon, etc. Cover with water and simmer. Strain thru several layers of cheese cloth and freeze for your fantastic dishes.

          2. We cleaned the heads out to be stuffed. The stuffing is much like a stuffed crab or a stuffed shrimp. Substitute ground crawfish tails for the shrimp or crab. Stuff heads then dredge in egg, coat with flour and then fry them. The flour keeps the stuffing in. It is then put into the bisque.
            If my mom ran out of heads, she’d make small balls and fry them before adding them to the bisque.

            1. I remember reading something in a book about stuffed heads but, since it was a book of fiction, I figured they were too. I might be able to handle the stuffing balls. I don’t think I want the heads in my bisque. 🙂

  3. I saw the banner over the meat counter at the grocery store yesterday announcing “crawfish now available”. I checked on the price per pound and minimum lbs I can order. They are $2.99 lb, minimum 30 lbs.

    I told my son tonight that we are having our boil asap. I have to figure out when everyone will be off and not running on a Saturday. 30 lbs should be just about right for all of us and a few neighbors. We will add potatoes and sausage to it and grill burgers and hotdogs for those who don’t eat the good stuff.

    1. Wow! That’s high, Cammy. Is it because it’s early in the season or are they always that high in TX?

    1. Wonderful, Tina! Thanks for letting us know this worked well in the crockpot!!! Glad y’all liked it! BW

  4. Terrible recipe as written. Measurements must be terribly off. 2 pints of h&h?? That’s two or three times what you need with the measurements of 2-3 potatoes, corn, etc. I made this following measurements to a T…ruined. taste is fine but you are eating h&h soup

    1. Sheelah, thank you for this feedback and I’m sorry you had a bad experience. I’ll go back over the recipe and see if there are typos that no one else caught. Again, thank you very much for letting me know! BW (I’ve just gone over it again, and this is how I make it. I’m sure you can use more potatoes if you desire! Or onions and crawfish. But we eat this regularly and don’t consider it ruined. But, like many things, we all have different tastes and I apologize again that you had a bad experience. BW)