Crayfish…or crayfish? This is a side-note, but I want to clear something up. Aside from food, I also love languages, and try to merge the two as much as possible. “Crayfish” means different things depending on what type of food I’m making. For Nigerian foods, crayfish (or “ede” in Yorùbá) usually refers to tiny dried shrimp (the darker pieces). Even though it’s actually shrimp, it usually gets translated as “crayfish” as opposed to “prawns” for fresh shrimp. *Exhale*

In this case, I’m talking about crayfish/crawfish– but just the tail meat. They look similar, but have totally different applications. Anyway…back to the food.

There isn’t anything that special about the prep this time around– just stir fry garlic, spices, peppers, herbs, and corn (why not), and stir in the crayfish at the last minute. It’s usually cooked before it’s frozen, so once it’s warmed up, it’s safe to eat. This looked a lot like street corn, so I added some cheese (I had parmesan, but wanted cotija).

The salsa is easy as well; combine minced pineapple, garlic, habanero pepper (carefully), cilantro, and spices. You won’t need any lime– in fact you may want to add a little olive oil to tone down the acidity, and heat.

Finally, bake (or fry) your tostadas, and eat.

Let’s cook.

You’ll need:

2 lb Crayfish Tail Meat

2 Cups Corn, cooked

2 Cups Pineapple, minced

1 Cup Cilantro

1 Bell Pepper, minced

4 Cloves of Garlic, minced

2 Green Onions, minced

1/2 Cup Cotija Cheese

1 Habanero Pepper, minced

1 Guajillo Chili, sliced thinly

2-3 Tbs Olive Oil

1 Tbs Paprika

1 Tbs Cumin

1/2 Tbs Onion/Garlic Powder

Salt & Pepper to taste

1. Stir-fry crayfish, peppers, half of the garlic, green onion, and corn on med-high heat. Once fully cooked, add half of the cilantro, and season with cumin, paprika, and garlic powder. Taste for salt, then add lime juice. Set aside.
2. Combine minced pineapple, habanero, cilantro, garlic, and olive oil. Season with remaining spices, and taste for salt. If too acidic, add more oil.
3. Serve with fried, or baked tostadas.

Done.