A couple of notes:
- I use my own cajun seasoning for this recipe as it allows me to control the salt and spiciness of the boil. If I'm cooking for my family I keep the spice level lower because of kids. Cooking for a group of hungry, beat down kayak anglers I'll kick the spiciness up a notch up with cayenne.
- One thing I do differently is I'll cook the sausage separate from the main boil; I'll either grill intact link or boil the cut pieces in a second, seasoned pot on the stove (seasoned with about 1/4 cup of the cajun seasoning). Cooking the sausage separately removes the fat from the boil which means the shrimp and vegetables are not coated with a thin layer of grease making them feel slimy.
- Prior to starting the boil I'll prep the table where I'll dump the boil after cooking. I start with a thin layer of plastic sheet or plastic picnic table cover. Then I add a couple layers of butcher paper or newspapers for absorbing juices. If you're not using a plastic base layer add a couple extra layers of the paper. Tape may be necessary if windy. The reason I use a plastic base layer is it makes clean up super easy because you can just roll up the remnants and go straight into a trash bag; no leaking, no mess, no additional cleanup.
- Fresh Shrimp: 12 oz per person
- Andouille Sausage: 3 oz per person
- Corn Pieces: 2 per person (I use the frozen mini corn cobs for boils)
- Small Red Potatoes: 2 per person
- 1.5 C of cajun seasoning (adjust as necessary)
- 0.25 C of Kosher Salt (adjust as necessary)
- 2 Bags of Zatarain's Crab Boil in a bag
- 0.125 C of Cayenne (more or less depending on who you're cooking for)
- 4 Lemons (halved)
- 4 Heads of Garlic (halved)
- 2 Onions (quartered)
- 2 Red Bell Pepper (quartered)
- 0.5 Head of Celery (Cut into 4" pieces)
- 0.5 Bottle of Bay Leaf
- Frozen jug of water
- Cut sausage into 1" pieces and boil in a separate pot with about 1/4 C of cajun seasoning (if grilling leave link whole)
- Place pot on burner and light the her up to start boiling
- Add Seasoning, Boil in a bag, Lemons, Garlic, Onions, Bell Pepper, Celery, and Bay Leaf
- Add salt to desired level; you'll want it to taste slightly salty at this stage. As you add ingredients they'll absorb the salt
- Add cayenne to desired spiciness level
- When water comes to a rolling boil add potatoes and cook for about 10 minutes
- Add the frozen corn, stir them in
- When it returns to a boil add the shrimp, stir them in, and kill the burner after a minute or two
- Add precooked sausage pieces, stir to incorporate
- Add the frozen water jug (Thanks SWfinatic)
- Let soak for about 10 minutes and taste shrimp for flavor
- Drain and dump on prepared table