Crispy Crawfish Beignets Recipe with spicy Remoulade Sauce - this New Orleans inspired small batch recipe yields 5-6 savory, fried crawfish-filled beignets and a side of easy to make Remoulade sauce. A Louisiana tradition, ready in minutes!
Enjoying a plate full of beignets is a must-do for anyone traveling to New Orleans. These square pillows of sweetness are not to be missed. But did you know that you can also find savory beignets on streets of the Crescent City? You certainly can and I'm so excited to share with you one of my favorite New Orleans foods, Crawfish Beignets.
Beignets are fluffy pastries similar to a "fritter". They're fried and often coated with powdered sugar. They are popular in New Orleans and a "must order" item at the famous Café du Monde in the French Quarter.
The crawfish beignets in this recipe aren't dusted with powdered sugar, they're not even a dessert. These beignets are more of an appetizer or a snack. They're filled with crawfish tails, chopped green onions, parsley, Creole seasoning - and they're amazing!
Traditional New Orleans Recipes
As you may know, I grew up in New Orleans and that's why you'll find so many Louisiana inspired recipes on One Dish Kitchen.
If you haven't tried our Cajun Shrimp Tacos, our Jambalaya, Bananas Foster or our New Orleans Style Bread Pudding, you simply must!
These are recipes that I grew up with that have been modified to serve one or two people.
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Why This Recipe Works
This crawfish beignets recipe is truly authentic!
I've been making crawfish beignets for years and I've brought them to more potlucks and dinner parties than I can count. One thing is for sure, these beignets are loved by everyone and I always go home with an empty plate.
Taking my standard sized beignet recipe, I scaled down the ingredients so that this crawfish version will yield 5-6 beignets.
These fried delights are great for snacking on while watching a movie or would even make a delicious light meal.
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How To Make This Recipe
See recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.
- Step 1: Start by mixing together flour, baking powder, Creole seasoning, ground ginger, and salt in a medium-sized bowl.
- Step 2: Add in finely chopped garlic, green onions, parsley, and crawfish tail meat and mix well.
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- Step 3: Stir in about ¼ cup of water and a hot sauce.
- Step 4: Next, set the dough aside and heat canola oil in a small, deep saucepan. Drop in teaspoons of dough and fry until golden brown.
- Step 5: Remove with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain and serve with Remoulade Sauce.
Expert Tips
- Don't overmix the batter. Overmixing will make the beignets tough.
- Use a pan that is larger than you think you will need. I find a 2-quart saucepan to be the perfect size for this small batch crawfish beignets recipe.
- Don't overcrowd the saucepan when frying the beignets. Fry 2-3 at a time. Adding the batter to the pan will cause the temperature of the oil to drop which will cause the beignets to take longer to cook, resulting in them being undercooked on the insides.
- Try to maintain a constant temperature of 350 degrees. You will need a thermometer to make sure the oil is always at the correct temperature. Make sure that the tip of the thermometer is not touching the bottom of the pan.
- Allow the fried beignets to drain on a paper towel before eating.
Frequently Asked Questions
Remoulade sauce may have its roots in French cuisine but it's perhaps more well recognized in Louisiana cooking.
This spicy dipping sauce starts with a mayonnaise base and closely resembles a tartar sauce. It's creamy, tart, slightly spicy, and perfect to use as a creole dipping sauce for crawfish beignets.
This simple Remoulade sauce recipe combines mayonnaise, Creole or stone ground mustard, a touch of horseradish, lemon juice, olive oil, smoked paprika, and an optional dash of hot sauce.
Packages of crawfish meat can be found in the freezer section of most grocery stores. Be sure to look for packages labeled Louisiana crawfish. Alternatively, you can pick the crawfish meat out of fresh boiled crawfish.
You can also substitute cooked shrimp cut into ½-inch pieces for the crawfish.
I use a 2-quart saucepan to fry this small batch of Crawfish Beignets.
For more information on the cooking and baking dishes I use in our “recipes for one”, please visit our FAQ page.
For examples of the dishes used at One Dish Kitchen, please visit our Store page.
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients left over from this crawfish beignets recipe, you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
- Crawfish: Crawfish Pasta, Crawfish Etouffee
- Creole seasoning: Shrimp Creole, Red Beans and Rice, Gumbo
- Hot sauce: Buffalo Chicken, Baked Chicken Wings
- Ground ginger: Soft Ginger Cookies, Pork Stir Fry, Healing Turmeric Tea
- Smoked paprika: Sweet Potato Fries, Baba Ganoush, Pork Chop
- Canola oil: Irish Stew, Flourless Chocolate Cake, Apple Fritters
- Creole mustard: Steak Salad
- Horseradish: Ham and Cheese Scones
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If you’ve tried these crawfish beignets or any recipe on One Dish Kitchen please let me know how you liked it by rating the recipe and telling me about it in the comment section below.
If you take a picture please tag us on Instagram (@onedishkitchen) we’d love to see!
Small Batch Crawfish Beignets
Equipment
- 2 quart saucepan
- Mixing bowl
Ingredients
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon Creole seasoning (Recommended: Tony Chacherie's or your favorite brand)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 clove garlic , minced
- 1 green onion , finely chopped (about 2 tablespoons)
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
- ¼ cup (a little over an ounce) crawfish tail meat
- ¼ teaspoon hot sauce (Recommended: Tabasco, Louisiana, or your favorite brand)
- ¼ cup water
- Canola or peanut oil
FOR THE REMOULADE SAUCE
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon Creole mustard (or stone-ground mustard)
- ½ teaspoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon horseradish
- ¼ teaspoon lemon juice
- ⅛ teaspoon smoked paprika
- dash hot sauce, optional (Recommended: Tabasco, Louisiana, or your favorite)
Instructions
- Combine the flour, baking powder, Creole seasoning, salt, and ginger in a medium-sized bowl.
- Stir in the chopped garlic, green onions, parsley, and crawfish tail meat.
- Stir in the hot sauce and the water.
- Set the bowl aside.
- Heat enough canola or peanut oil to come halfway up the sides of a deep 2-quart saucepan, to 350 degrees F.
- Using a large metal spoon, carefully drop the beignet mixture into the hot oil and fry 3-4 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the beignets from the pot and drain on a paper towel lined plate.
TO MAKE THE REMOULADE SAUCE
- In a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, Creole mustard, horseradish, lemon juice, olive oil, smoked paprika, and hot sauce.
Notes
- Don't overmix the batter. Overmixing will make the beignets tough.
- Use a pan that is larger than you think you will need. I find a 2-quart saucepan to be the perfect size for this small batch crawfish beignets recipe.
- Don't overcrowd the saucepan when frying the beignets. Fry 2-3 at a time. Adding the batter to the pan will cause the temperature of the oil to drop which will cause the beignets to take longer to cook, resulting in them being undercooked on the insides.
- Try to maintain a constant temperature of 350 degrees. You will need a thermometer to make sure the oil is always at the correct temperature. Make sure that the tip of the thermometer is not touching the bottom of the pan.
- Allow the fried beignets to drain on a paper towel before eating.
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
JIL2 says
IF CRAWFISH IS UNAVAILABLE, SUBSTITUTE WITH SHRIMP...COULD LOBSTER ALSO BE USED AS A SUBSTITUTE??? THANK YOU
Joanie Zisk says
Yes.
Erica Jordan says
Has anyone tried to do these in an air fryer? If so, what was your process?
Thanks!!!
J.M. says
This looks delicious. I grew up in New Orleans but moved to Boston 30 years ago, and I finally found a source for Louisiana-style crawdads recently. I've been on the hunt for a savory crawfish muffin recipe and someone pointed me to you. Do you have any idea how this could be translated into a recipe to be baked?
Joanie Zisk says
I've actually never baked these beignets but the batter has a biscuit-like consistency so I think baking them should work out just fine. I would bake the beignets in a 400 F oven for 10-12 minutes or keep an eye on them, they may need to bake a bit longer. If you bake these, please let me know how they turn out.
David Baker says
Would these Crawfish Beignets freeze well.............to be reheated in an Air Fryer?????
Joanie Zisk says
Hi David, I have never frozen crawfish beignets but I'm pretty sure they'd do well. I also don't use an air fryer so I can't tell you how they will reheat in one. If you try it, please let me know how they turn out.
Dini says
I love savory beignets and these look and sound incredible, and so does that remoulade sauce! I'm going to try these with shrimp as well!
Jenn says
I want to put this remoulade on everything! Fantastic + fun recipe for sure! Thank you!
Del L. Bailey says
Could I substitute shrimp for the crawfish? Don't remember seeing crawfish in the Atlanta area.
Joanie Zisk says
Yes, you can definitely substitute shrimp. Cook the shrimp and cut it into 1/2-inch pieces and add it to the batter in place of the crawfish - it'll be delicious!