Seafood Boil Calculator
Enter the guest count and the star of the boil - crawfish at three pounds a head, blue crab at two, shrimp at half - plus the price per pound. The calculator totals the seafood and adds the classic sides list per guest.
The boil is a shopping list with a party attached: cook outdoors on a propane burner because the smell lives in the house for days, dump the finished boil down butcher paper across the table - serving platter and cleanup plan in one - and buy only crawfish and crab that are alive and kicking at purchase.
How to use
- Count guests and pick the star; crawfish eat the most pounds per head.
- Price per pound at the market that morning - it moves weekly.
- Add corn, potatoes and sausage at one, two and a third-pound per guest.
Frequently asked questions
How many pounds of crawfish per person?
Three pounds live per person for a crawfish boil - they lose weight in purging and the shells are most of it. Big eaters run four; add corn and potatoes so nobody leaves hungry on shell math alone.
What sides go in a seafood boil?
Corn on the cob, small red potatoes and smoked sausage per guest, plus onions, garlic and the spice bag. The boil absorbs everything into one flavor, which is why the sides matter as much as the star.
How do I know the seafood is fresh?
Crawfish and crab should be alive and moving at purchase; dead ones in the cooler do not go in the pot. Shrimp should smell like the sea, never like anything else - the nose is the freshest test.
Can I cook a seafood boil indoors?
Technically, but the smell lives in the house for days and the pot is enormous. The propane burner outdoors is the traditional rig - and dumping the boil down butcher paper on the table is both the platter and the cleanup.