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5 from 2 votes

Seafood Boil Recipe

Seafood, spice, and everything nice—this easy seafood boil is messy, fun, and made to share. Just boil, drizzle, and dig in.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time50 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: American, Cajun, Southern
Keyword: cajun seafood boil, crab and shrimp boil, one pot meal, one pot seafood, seafood boi, Shrimp Boil
Servings: 4 servings
Author: Karina Carrel

Ingredients

For the Boil

  • 2–3 ears of corn halved
  • 1 ½ cups purple potatoes chopped
  • 1 ½ cups smoked sausage sliced
  • 1 red onion quartered
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 head garlic halved
  • ½ cup celery chopped
  • 1 orange juiced (include peel)
  • 1–2 lemons juiced (include peel)
  • 2 ½ tbsp salt or to taste
  • 2 tsp lemon pepper
  • 1 tbsp paprika
  • ½ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 2 cups raw shrimp
  • 1 cub crab legs
  • 1 cup crawfish
  • 17 cups water

For the Sauce

  • ¼ cup butter
  • 2 tbsp cornstarch
  • splash of cold water (for slurry)
US - Metric

Instructions

For the Boil

  • In a large pot, bring 4 litres (17 cups) of water to a boil.
  • Add onion, garlic, celery, bay leaves, orange and lemon juice (with peels), salt, paprika, lemon pepper, and cayenne.
  • Simmer for 30 minutes to infuse flavour.

Cook the Ingredients

  • Add chopped potatoes and corn. Boil for 10 minutes.
  • Add sliced sausage. Cook for 7 minutes.
  • Add shrimp, crab legs, and crawfish. Boil for 6 minutes or until seafood is just cooked through.

Make The Sauce

  • Ladle out 1 ½ cups (≈400 ml) of the hot broth into a bowl.
  • Stir in butter until melted.
  • Mix cornstarch with a splash of cold water. Stir slurry into the hot broth to thicken.

Assemble and Serve

  • Drain seafood and vegetables. Arrange on a platter or tray.
  • Drizzle sauce on top or serve on the side. Serve hot.

Notes

Tips for the Best Seafood Boil:
  • Balance Your Flavours: Taste your broth before adding anything — it should be salty, citrusy, and full of spice.  
  • Don’t Overcook the Seafood: Add it last so it stays tender and juicy.  
  • Customize It: Add mussels, clams, or snow crab legs if you’d like to bulk it up.  
  • Cornstarch Slurry Pro Tip: Mix it into warm liquid—not boiling—so it doesn’t clump.

Nutrition

Calories: 680kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 39g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 17g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 307mg | Sodium: 7644mg | Potassium: 1127mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2298IU | Vitamin C: 52mg | Calcium: 199mg | Iron: 4mg