✔ Updated · flaky buttermilk crust, step photos and make-ahead tips
Crawfish pie is my kind of comfort food: a flaky double crust packed with a creamy, well-seasoned crawfish and vegetable filling. I make the filling while the dough chills, so it all comes together without any stress.
At a glance
The one tip that matters: Keep the juices from the crawfish bag. That orange liquid is mostly crawfish fat, and it carries more flavor than anything else in the filling.
Why You'll Love This Crawfish Pie
- A proper flaky crust, made with buttermilk and cold butter, and no soggy bottom thanks to a quick blind bake.
- A creamy Cajun filling, with the holy trinity, garlic and plenty of sweet crawfish tails.
- Make-ahead friendly, since the dough and filling both keep in the fridge for a day.
What Is Crawfish Pie?
Crawfish pie is a Louisiana classic: crawfish tails in a creamy, Cajun-seasoned sauce baked in pastry. It's close in spirit to crawfish etouffee, just with a crust instead of rice. You'll see it as a whole pie or as little hand pies at festivals.
What You Need
- Crawfish tails: cooked and peeled, fresh or frozen, with their juices.
- The holy trinity: onion, green bell pepper and celery, the base of Cajun cooking.
- A quick roux: butter, flour and milk make the filling creamy and sliceable.
- Cajun seasoning: or Old Bay if that's what you have.
- Breadcrumbs: they soak up extra liquid so the slices hold together.
- Buttermilk crust: tender and flaky, with a slight tang.
Step-by-Step Photos
Here's how it comes together. Exact amounts, times and temperatures are in the recipe card below.
Tips for Success
- Blind bake the bottom. Fifteen minutes with pie weights gives the base a head start, so the creamy filling doesn't turn it soggy. My first crawfish pie skipped this step and the bottom was pale and gummy.
- Keep everything cold. Cold butter and cold buttermilk make the flaky layers. If the dough gets soft while you roll it, chill it for 10 minutes.
- Cool the filling first. Hot filling melts the butter in a raw top crust. Fifteen minutes on the counter is enough.
- Season with care. Cajun blends vary a lot in salt. I add it, taste, then decide on extra salt.
- No crawfish? Peeled, deveined shrimp cut into bite-size pieces works well. Cook raw shrimp in the filling until opaque and 145°F.
- Shortcut: two store-bought refrigerated pie crusts work fine on a busy night.
Cajun Crawfish Pie
8
slices30
minutes1
hour510
kcal2
hours30
minutesLouisiana-style crawfish pie: a creamy, well-seasoned filling of crawfish tails, onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic thickened with a quick roux, baked in a flaky buttermilk double crust until golden.
Ingredients
- For the crust
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon cold buttermilk
- For the filling
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1/2 cup green bell pepper, diced
2 celery ribs, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk or half-and-half
1 lb cooked, peeled crawfish tails, thawed, with their juices
1 1/2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning (or Old Bay)
1/3 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 green onions, sliced
salt, black pepper and hot sauce, to taste
- For the egg wash
1 large egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Directions
- Make the crust
- Whisk the flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. Rub in the cold butter with your fingertips until most of it is pea-size.
- Pour in the cold buttermilk and stir with a fork until a shaggy dough forms, adding a teaspoon of cold water only if dry bits remain. Divide in half, press into 2 disks, wrap and chill for at least 1 hour.
- Make the filling
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion, bell pepper and celery for 6 to 8 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic for 1 minute.
- Sprinkle in the flour and stir for 1 minute. Slowly stir in the milk and simmer until thickened, about 2 minutes.
- Fold in the crawfish tails and their juices, the Cajun seasoning, breadcrumbs, parsley and green onions. Simmer gently for 3 to 4 minutes, until steaming hot (165°F). Season with salt, pepper and hot sauce, then let it cool while you roll the crust.
- Assemble and bake
- Heat the oven to 375°F. Roll one disk to a 12-inch round about 1/8 inch thick and fit it into a 9-inch pie pan. Line with foil, fill with pie weights or dried beans and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the weights.
- Lower the oven to 350°F. Spoon the filling into the crust. Roll out the second disk, lay it over the top, trim and crimp the edges, and cut 3 or 4 steam vents.
- Brush with egg wash and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until deep golden and bubbling at the vents. Cover the edges with foil if they brown too fast. Rest for 15 minutes before slicing.
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More Seafood to Try
If you love Cajun flavors, my chipotle shrimp tacos and the big list of shrimp recipes are next on the list. For a buttery classic, try my copycat Red Lobster shrimp scampi.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use frozen crawfish tails?
Yes, that's what I use most of the time. Frozen Louisiana crawfish tails are sold cooked and peeled. Thaw them overnight in the fridge and keep the juices from the bag, because that fat is full of flavor.
What does crawfish pie taste like?
It tastes rich, creamy and gently spicy, a bit like crawfish etouffee wrapped in a flaky crust. The crawfish is sweet, like a cross between shrimp and lobster, and the trinity and Cajun seasoning give it that Louisiana flavor.
Can I make crawfish pie ahead of time?
Yes. Make the dough and filling up to a day ahead and keep them separately in the fridge. Assemble and bake when you're ready, adding 5 minutes to the bake if the filling is cold.
How do you store and reheat crawfish pie?
Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours and eat within 3 days. Reheat slices in a 350°F oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until the center reaches 165°F. You can freeze the baked pie, well wrapped, for up to 2 months; thaw it overnight in the fridge first.
What should I serve with crawfish pie?
Something fresh and light: a green salad, coleslaw, steamed green beans or corn on the cob. In Louisiana it's also served as a hand-pie snack at festivals.
