Derby Ducks Unlimited Crawfish Boil
Hello my name is Olivia and I am addicted to seafood. If you’ve been a (3YUM6) fan at all then you probably already know that, but for anyone new, let me just disclose that right now.
Today I am writing about a very specific kind of seafood with lots of fun names including crayfish, crawdads, and mudbugs to name a few. The name most likely used around these parts though is crawfish! Crawfish are basically a smaller freshwater lobster that are fairly popular in the South. Crawfish season runs from late spring to early summer and it’s something I look forward to every year! Back in Texas, they sell crawfish right from tanks in the grocery store. I’ve yet to see that in Kansas but I am sure somewhere there is a seafood shop that offers it seasonally.
When it comes to cooking crawfish, the whole process can take all day, but they really only boil for 15 mins or so. Since these crustaceans are so small, you typically need to boil several pounds at a time for it to be worth it. This is why a crawfish boil is so fun! Do the work one time, on a large scale, and then get to cracking with your awesome people!
As some of you know, I owned a marketing firm back in Texas. One of my very favorite clients was a huge 3 day Crawfish Festival. It was a cajun food festival that had things like a 5k, zydeco music all day, and then a main headliner in the evenings. We drew names like Little Texas, Pat Green, and Kevin Fowler. It was a favorite project of mine because we got to be part of the process from its inception and it was seriously painful to walk away from it when we moved here. The whole entire reason I love crawfish and even know how to eat it is because of this beloved client!
Last year a friend of mine invited me to a fundraiser for Derby Ducks Unlimited that was a crawfish boil. Part of me wasn’t ready to attend another crawfish event, but the bigger part of me wanted those delicious mudbugs! We went for the second year in a row just last weekend (June 4, 2022) and it did not disappoint.
Wade and Lydia Skeen of Skeen Outfitters put on this event every year to raise money for Ducks Unlimited, which is a non-profit dedicated to conservation. They have been doing it since 2017, with the exception of 2020 because of Covid. Wade happens to have a brother down in Louisiana and they coordinate between 700-1000 pounds of crawfish to be brought up on a Friday for us all to enjoy the next day! The crawfish are kept alive until they get here which is key to getting a good result. Crawfish are typically served with shrimp, sausage and potatoes - all boiled together in a large pot. They are typically well seasoned with things like salt, garlic, onion, and paprika. I tend to like crawfish seasoned really spicy, but that’s hard to get right on a large scale. They dump them out right on the table and you better not be in my way when this happens. This year’s boil was absolutely delicious!
MUDBUGS!
This year’s boil was held at Road’s End Ranch (which is also Mr. Gourdman’s Pumpkin Patch in the Fall). The event included live and silent auctions, 3 live bands, yard games, and even catch and release fishing at the little pond on site!
The whole event was a great way to spend an afternoon with friends. If you like crawfish or even just want to try some, I highly suggest attending this event next year! Follow Derby Ducks Unlimited on Facebook and keep an eye out for the next crawfish boil. It’s all for a good cause too, so what do you have to lose?
If you are reading this and you just HAVE to have some crawdads before this year’s season is up, here are a few places to try here in Wichita:
Until next time, laissez les bon temps rouler!
XO - Olivia