You won’t survive crawfish season without a winning cajun butter sauce recipe for all your cajun seafood boil parties. And this one will knock your seafood-loving socks right off your feet.
It’s fun to look back on how your cooking and overall food philosophy has evolved over time.
After making seafood boils for years, I heard a Louisiana chef say that seasoning the crawfish boil water doesn’t do very much to season the crawfish. That was the job of the cajun butter sauce. Seasoning the water just makes it smell delicious as your guests arrive It’s not a bad gift for your guests, but not usually the goal.
Ever since, I’ve cut way back on the crawfish boil seasoning I add to the boiling water. I focus much more time and attention on adding flavor and spice to my cajun butter sauce. As soon as the crawfish, potatoes and corn are finished cooking, they all take a dip in this spicy, savory, orange-scented sauce and their lives (and mine) are changed forever.
It’s been a winning philosophy for me!
Adding the orange juice and peel to steep in the cajun butter sauce before blending it into a creamy, dreamy flavor bomb, came from an article in Southern Living about the Dao family – Vietnamese immigrants who have been making a family crawfish boil for decades. The orange juice and peel add a sweet, balancing citrus note to the deeply savory traditional cajun butter sauce that lemon juice just can’t match.
What you’ll need to make this easy cajun butter sauce:
- 2 sticks butter
- 1/2 cup onion, minced
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon lemon pepper seasoning
- 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning or Old Bay Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne
- 1 cup seafood stock
- 1/2 orange, juiced and peel
Step by step instructions for making delicious cajun butter sauce:
First, melt 2 sticks of butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Then add minced onion and garlic cloves and saute the vegetables for 5-6 minutes until they are tender and fragrant.
Next, add the Old Bay Seasoning, lemon pepper and ground cayenne to the butter and let the spices bloom for about a minute.
Then add 1 cup of seafood stock, the juice of 1/2 an orange and the peel of half an orange to the pan and bring it to a simmer. Let the sauce cook for 4-5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Remove the orange peel.
I like to use an immersion blender to emulsify the butter sauce at this point – I think it creates a far better dipping sauce and soaking product for the seafood. So I use the immersion blender right in the saucepan and mix for about 10-15 seconds. Blend until the sauce turns a creamy orange color and is fully emulsified.
Pour cajun butter sauce over your hot boiled crawfish, potatoes and corn. Cover and let stand 5-10 minutes.
Finally garnish the crawfish boil with chives and fresh orange wedges. Serve with extra dishes of cajun butter sauce for seafood, spicy aioli sauce and a jar of your favorite hot sauce.
FAQ’s and Serving Suggestions for Homemade Cajun Butter Recipe:
Um…all of it? All of the fresh seafood? Obviously crawfish is delicious in this creamy cajun sauce, as is a shrimp boil or just a big plate of shrimp. Same for a crab boil or a pot of snow crab legs or even a tray of broiled lobster tails. Any seafood boil recipe that calls for a dish of melted butter for dipping will be improved by making this easy sauce.
Yes – it will not bring the same freshness or texture, but it will work in a pinch. Start with 1 tablespoon, and taste and adjust from there. If using onion powder in place of fresh onions, start with 2 teaspoons, then taste and adjust.
Add more cayenne to the flavorful sauce, or even a diced jalapeno or serrano pepper. A half teaspoon of red pepper flakes will also dial up the spicy flavors. As always, serving the crawfish boil with a bottle of hot sauce allows everyone at the table to customize their level of spice and is usually your best bet.
If you don’t have Old Bay or another cajun seasoning mix, you can make your own version with a few simple ingredients. Here’s a good place to start.
Well in addition to the seafood, the rich flavor of the butter sauce will be delicious over the red potatoes and sweet corn in your seafood boil. If you have leftover sauce when the boil is over, use it over steamed veggies or toss fresh pasta in it for a quick lunch or dinner.
To store, transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
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Check out these pescatarian recipes next:
Take a look at the Cajun Butter Sauce web story!
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How to: Make Cajun Butter Sauce for Seafood
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 1x
Ingredients
2 sticks butter
1/2 cup onion, minced
8 cloves garlic, minced
1 cups seafood stock
2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning or Old Bay
1 tablespoon lemon pepper seasoning
1/2 orange, juiced and peel
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
Instructions
To begin, melt 2 sticks of butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add minced onion and garlic cloves and saute the vegetables for 5-6 minutes until they are tender and fragrant. Add the Old Bay Seasoning, lemon pepper and ground cayenne to the butter and let the spices bloom for about a minute.
Add 1 cup of seafood stock, the juice of 1/2 an orange and the peel of half an orange to the pan and bring it to a simmer. Let the sauce cook for 4-5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Remove the orange peel. I like to use an immersion blender to emulsify the butter sauce at this point – I think it creates a far better dipping sauce and soaking product for the seafood. So I use the immersion blender right in the saucepan and mix for about 10-15 seconds, until the sauce turns a creamy orange color and is fully emulsified.
Pour cajun butter sauce over hot boiled crawfish, potatoes and corn. Cover and let stand 5-10 minutes. Garnish with chives and orange wedges. Serve with extra dishes of cajun butter sauce for seafood, spicy aioli sauce and a jar of your favorite hot sauce.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 15
- Category: Easy Recipes
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American, Cajun
Keywords: How to make cajun butter sauce, crawfish sauce, butter sauce for seafood, cajun butter sauce
[…] The crown jewel of Louisiana’s complex and multi-cultural cuisine can feel daunting to make at home. But it’s easier than you think and tastier than you can imagine. Let’s learn how to boil crawfish at home, including making the very best cajun butter sauce for seafood! […]