Catching Your Own Crawfish

We've been catching crawfish all our lives, starting with fishing those roadside ditches along LA Highway 1 around Marksville, Louisiana.

Types of crawfish nets and traps ... simple, easy to use and inexpensive

Many of us that live in Louisiana and the South have the opportunity to catch our own crawfish ... we own the nets and traps, and we have that special local bayou or swamp where we catch crawfish.

Crawfish nets are simple and easy to use. They are inexpensive, and easy to store. Bait is cheap, and plentiful.

Local Seafood Markets

And when we don't have access to a swamp, or the time to go out this weekend, we often visit local fish and seafood markets and other sources to buy fresh, live crawfish.

Dozens of Louisiana outlets like Tony's Seafood in Baton Rouge, Chez Francois in Lafayette, The Seafood Pot in Destrehan, Hebert's Seafood in Boutte, Bayou Cane Seafood in Houma, Guidry's Seafood in Larose, and D&T Crawfish in Abbeville have live crawfish in season.

In addition, many suppliers have other types of seafood such as fresh Gulf of Mexico shrimp, oysters, crabs and catfish. Seafood markets in Texas, Mississippi and other Gulf Coast states also sell live crawfish.

Some grocery stores offer limited numbers of live, or boiled, crawfish in season.

GUIDELINE WHEN PLANNING YOUR BOIL

An average person typically consumes about 3 pounds of boiled crawfish, served with corn and potatoes. Some long-time crawfish eaters might consume as much as 5 pounds.

 

Buying Crawfish at the Dock

Some of us that live in the southern parishes of Louisiana or near the Atchafalaya Basin Spillway can buy crawfish directly from crawfishermen at the dock. Often times crawfish are also available at roadside stands or trucks.

Buying crawfish at the dock fresh out of the swamp!

 

 

Buying Live Crawfish Online

Today, buying crawfish online for delivery to your home is commonplace!

And today you can order live crawfish online on the Web from a number of crawfish farmers and retailers in Louisiana, Texas and elsewhere, and have them shipped nationwide overnight.

With the advent of the Internet, and shippers such as FedEx, crawfish lovers outside of Louisiana and Texas can enjoy fresh, Louisiana crawfish delivered to their door at home, or their nearest airport!

Listed below are several leading Louisiana and Texas crawfish farms and live crawfish distributors. We have no connection or affiliation with them, we just know of their existence. We recommend you speak with them regarding availability, pricing, delivery times and freshness before placing your order.

Once caught, a crawfish can live for up to seven days if their metabolism is slowed down by cooling them and keeping them moist. Although they can live longer, there should ideally be two to three days from farm/swamp to the customer's table.

 

Ordering Live Louisiana Crawfish ... Some Leading Crawfish Suppliers & Distributors

A large number of crawfish outlets, farms and suppliers are located in Louisiana, both for local pickup and online ordering.

Listed below is a sample of long-standing Louisiana dealers offering online crawfish ordering:

• Louisiana Crawfish Company - Family owned and operated since 1985

• CajunCrawfish.com - run by Mike and Mark Fruge in Branch, Louisiana, near Lafayette

• Acadia Crawfish Co. LLC - Owned and operated by Scott Broussard and his family. In business since 1991, in Crowley, Louisiana

• Kyle LeBlanc Crawfish Farms - since 1990, in Raceland, Louisiana

• CajunGrocery.com - Lafayette, Louisiana - live crawfish, turducken, King Cakes, kitchen ware, Cajun books,  and more

• LouisianasBestSeafood.com
  

BUYING TIP

We have no relationship with these suppliers, and do not specifically recommend any one. Their names are provided only as a reference point to begin your crawfish shopping. We recommend you speak with any crawfish supplier or distributor regarding availability, pricing, shipping options, guarantees, and freshness before placing your order.

Crawfish Dealers in Texas

There are a number of crawfish outlets, seafood markets, crawfish farms and caterers selling live and boiled crawfish in Texas, from Beaumont to Houston to Dallas, and in between. Some offer local delivery, while others provide delivery only in designated metropolitan areas. And some offer pickup only.

There are too many vendors to list, but here are a few to start your crawfish search.

• TexasCrawfish.com - Southeast Texas Crawfish Farm, located in Hamshire, TX, about 20 miles southwest of Beaumont. Call 409.794.1377 to place an order. Pickup only.
• CajunCrawfishCo.com - Cajun Crawfish Company, Lewisville-Dallas area. Catering and local sales in the DFW metro area. Been in business over 19 years, and sold over 146,000 pounds of crawfish in 2017.
• CajunGourmetCrawfish.com - Cajun Gourmet Crawfish Wholesaler. Selling live Louisiana crawfish to Houston and the surrounding areas since 1989.
• HEB.com - HEB sells millions of pounds of Louisiana crawfish each year.
• GoCrawfish.com - Houston and Austin areas. They bring the freshest crawfish and seafood in Louisiana and deliver it to their customers.
• CayenneKevin.com - Cajun catering and live crawfish sales in San Antonio for 15 years.
• TheCrawfishCo.com - Located in Cooper, Texas. The company sells live crawfish and boiled crawfish at various events as well as on the weekends. Cajun catering and crawfish boils to meet anyone’s needs. Also ask about their Cajun fish fries, boiled shrimp, fund raisers and private parties. Phone 903.217.4815 or visit TheCrawfishCo on Facebook

Crawfish in the News

Experts say crawfish prices will continue dropping throughout season (KPLC-TV - Lake Charles, LA - 03/04/2024) Louisiana AG Officials Confirm Good News for Crawfish Lovers (97.3 The Dawg - 02/19/2024) Famous Louisiana Crawfisherman Explains What May Save the Season (KPEL Breaux Bridge, LA - 01/25/2024) Crawfish season 2024: Expect high prices, if you can find any at all (Clarion-Ledger - Jackson, MS - 01/19/2024) Summer drought and cold conditions cause a struggle for crawfish farmers (WAFB Baton Rouge - 01/18/2024) Why crawfish prices are nearly double that of a year ago (Baton Rouge Business Report - 01/12/2024) 2024 expected to be one of the worst crawfish seasons on record according to LSU Ag Center (Louisiana Radio Network - 01/10/2024) Houston’s Crawfish Season Is Nearly Here (Maybe). Here’s What to Know (Houston Eater - 01/04/2024) Crawfish in short supply after drought, heat over summer (WWL New Orleans - 01/03/2024) Crawfish, Cajuns and Native Americans: The History of Crawfish Season in South Louisiana (KPEL Lafayette - 02/08/2023) So, what is that black vein in Louisiana crawfish? Do you eat it? (KEEL Shreveport - 02/07/2023) Where to get delicious crawfish in San Antonio during mudbug season (MySanAntonio - 01/21/2023) It’s huge here | Crawfish season officially underway in Houston (KHOU - Houston - 01/13/2023) Preparing for crawfish season in Hattiesburg (WDAM - Mississippi - 01/13/2023) Despite challenges, crawfish season expected to start soon across the area (FOX 10 - Mobile - 01/06/2023) Crawfish suppliers in Shreveport-Bossier say they’re seeing higher prices than last year (KSLA - Shreveport - 01/06/2023) Recent cold weather could hamper local crawfish harvest (KLFY - Lafayette - 01/05/2023) East Texas seafood restaurants gear up for crawfish season (KETK - Tyler, Texas - 01/04/2023) Arctic freeze expected to reduce crawfish numbers (WWL - New Orleans - 12/20/2022) Everything You Need to Know About Hosting a Crawfish Boil (Texas Monthly - 03/23/2022) What are crawfish prices in Shreveport-Bossier? (KEEL - Shreveport, LA - 01/14/2022) Crawfish Season Kicks Off at New Orleans Restaurants (Eater NOLA - New Orleans, LA - 01/07/2022) It’s Crawfish Season! Here’s the Scoop for Mudbugs in East Texas (KICKS105 - Lufkin, TX - 01/06/2022) Top 10 Spots in Lake Charles to Kick Off Crawfish Season (107 JAMZ - Lake Charles, LA - 01/06/2022) Seafood sales skyrocket during the holiday season (WXXV25 - Gulfport, MS - 12/23/2021) Growing appetite for crawfish has Texas rice farmers hooked (Houston Chronicle - 01/02/2020) Now it's the law: Here's how shrimp, crawfish will be labeled in Louisiana (The Advocate - Baton Rouge - 09/02/2019) How to Eat Crawfish - and What Drinks to Pair with Them (Food & Wine - 08/13/2019) Exactly how big is the crawfish industry in Louisiana? (KATC Lafayette - 04/19/2019) How Tony's Seafood in Baton Rouge gears up for crawfish season (225 Magazine - 03/12/2019) More than food, Crawfish is a staple of Cajun culture (The Vermilion - Lafayette - 10/09/2018) What to do, and not to do, at your first crawfish boil (Food and Wine - 12/04/2017) To Suck or Not Suck? The Controversial Crawfish Question (Eater Houston - 04/06/2017)

 

Big crawfish with huge claws!