Have you tried these “gifts” from the Gulf?

Local seafood restaurants don’t “crawfish” around when it comes to their menu selection around the holidays. 

You may have noticed in recent weeks an increase in roadside marquees announcing boiled crawfish in limited supplies or available only after 5 p.m. Restaurants have them – as early as November – but supply and demand means what you shell out for a 5-pound platter could net you a tomahawk ribeye dinner at a chain steakhouse. At that price, I’ll take the steak.

Luckily, for those craving seafood, local restaurants like Boudreau & Thibodeau’s Cajun Cookin’ offers alternative menu options that aren’t quite as pricey. Boudreau & Thibodeau’s, 5602 W. Main St. in Houma, keeps its boiling room busy with royal red shrimp, a beautiful Gulf shrimp harvested in deep water. What separates royal reds from traditional Gulf shrimp is their naturally red tinted shell when raw, their sweeter taste and their texture similar to a lobster.

On a recent visit to Boudreau and Thibodeau’s, I ordered a pound of boiled royal reds with the restaurant’s melted garlic butter sauce for dipping. As soon as the platter arrived at my table, I took note of the generous quantity of shrimp in front of me. I learned that royal reds are weighed de-headed, meaning you get more meat for the money. These shrimp are beautiful, taking on a deep pink hue when boiled. Most importantly, my serving peeled easily and yielded full chunks of meat without breaking apart.

As for taste, the slight sweetness of the royal reds arrives before any spice from the boil has a chance to kick in. When the seasoning does catch up, it blends beautifully with the meat’s natural sweetness, allowing the bold spices to complement, not overpower, the shrimp’s natural flavor. Some may find Boudreau and Thibodeau’s recipe to be spicy, but I would describe it as well seasoned – my lips were never “on fire,” as some say.

The royal reds do have a texture similar to a lobster, so you can expect the meat to have a slight rubbery quality. I don’t mind it, as the shrimp were never chewy. Dipping them in the melted garlic butter sauce helps to soften them a bit. 

Speaking of the garlic butter sauce, I enjoyed the option of having the dip, especially since it was on the thicker side and clung to the shrimp well without dripping on the table – or my shirt; however, I did not find the garlic-heavy sauce to be essential. The royal reds have a sweet and seasoned flavor that can easily stand on its own.

If you work up an appetite for boiled seafood while out in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, consider saving crawfish for Mardi Gras time and opting for a platter of royal red shrimp instead. Consider them a gift from the Gulf.