Crayfish Pappardelle Pasta with Garlic and Burnt Butter Cream Sauce

On Saturday, during our weekly market ritual, we happened to get crayfish at a slash price. It was late in the day so the fish mongers were trying to get rid of as much stuff as they could. We managed to pick up a live crayfish for $20!! When I got home I weighed it, I was suspicious and wanted to make sure that I actually got a bargain.....there's the tightarse in me again. The little beast weighed in at just over 800grams, awesome score!

So what to do with crayfish? I didn't want to fancy it up too much, I really couldn't be bothered looking up any recipes, and simple is always best. I had some thick pasta in my pantry, cream in the fridge, what better way to have it than with some pasta with a cream sauce. And the beauty of this recipe, it only has 5 ingredients! Crayfish can be substituted for prawns, Moreton bay bugs, mussels, anything really.

Crayfish Pappardelle Pasta with Garlic and Burnt Butter Sauce

This will make enough to feed 2 people

1 crayfish, of whatever size, the bigger the better I say!

Half a packet (375gram) of Pappardelle pasta

300ml cream

80 grams butter plus 2 tablespoons

3 -4 cloves of garlic sliced very thinly

1. Cook crayfish in boiling water under it turns bright red.

Before

After

Off with his head!

2. Remove meat from tail and cut into thick slices. The crayfish should still be fully raw in the middle with a slightly cooked edge.

"Oh that shell was so tight on me!..."

Why do they call it a vein when no blood goes through it?

Masterchef here I come with my awesome slicing abilities!

3. While pasta is cooking in lots of salted water, melt butter in a large frying pan. Continue to cook over medium heat until butter begins to turn brown and starts to smell like nuts roasting. Remove from heat and add garlic.

4. Let the garlic soften while the butter is off the heat, this will take 1 minute or so. Add cream and return to the heat. Reduce the cream by half until it is thick and yellow/brown in colour, season with salt and pepper to taste

Garlic cooking in the butter

Cream added to garlic/butter mixture

Hmmmm, thick creamy garlic butter goodness

5. Once the pasta has cooked coat in the sauce and arrange on a plate.

6. Melt the remaining butter in a frying pan on high heat and quickly sear crayfish pieces, paying particular attention not to overcook it. Arrange crayfish pieces onto pasta. Eat quickly before your partner notices you put more crayfish on your plate than his.

My pasta turned out pretty creamy, I think I was a little heavy handed with the cream, so I would suggest keeping it to the bare minimum. After dinner was done I was left with the crayfish head. Now what do I do with the head? I thought about digging out what little meat was left and then licking my fingers, but then I looked to my side and noticed Romeo staring at me with his lustful eyes. Oh everyone deserves a treat from time to time, and its not fair that Daz and I were the only ones to get a crayfish dinner.......what to do?

"Mister crayfish head, its kitty time for you...."