Super Easy Seafood Boil - Mighty Mrs | Super Easy Recipes (2024)

This easy seafood boil recipe feeds a big family in just 30 minutes! Made with the classics — shrimp, Cajun sausage, corn on the cob, and potatoes with lemons and Zatarain's southern seasoning. Served hot with Old Bay and melted butter. YUM!

When you think of a seafood boil, you might think of the traditional low country boil that's cooked in a huge pot, maybe over an open fire and then spread out over a newspaper-covered tabled and served to a crowd.

It's such a fun dinner with a bunch of fun names. You may have heard it called Frogmore Stew, Low Country Boil or simply a seafood boil depending on where you grew up or what your family might call it.

The idea is the same though. Lots of yummy food boiled together in southern spices, served hot with a side of Old Bay and melted butter.

★ Why You’ll Love this Recipe ★

A Medley of Foods and Flavors

A seafood boil is truly a feast as everyone grabs their choice picks from a variety of yummy foods — shrimp, corn, Cajun sausage and potatoes are typical.

And maybe if you're lucky, some other specialty seafood like crawfish or even a lobster! If you're in the Maryland area, maybe you'd even sneak in some blue crabs.

We've hosted a couple seafood boils that look exactly like this. A traditional low country boil is no doubt, a great way to feed a group of people something really special. Without the hassle of making a bunch of individual dishes. Everything cooks together yet there's a variety of food and you don't even need a plate! Even the kids love it.

So it just makes sense to try this idea out during the week as a weeknight dinner.

The Weeknight Shrimp Boil

Serve it for Family Dinner

Because, why not? For all the same reasons why it's an excellent way to feed a group of people, it's also a great dinner option. You've got protein, veggies and a starch so it's a balanced meal. And it's easy to prep and cooks quickly.

Make it for a Crowd

A shrimp boil is also a great way to celebrate special occasions!

If you want to feed your family something special to celebrate a birthday, anniversary, or maybe a job well done this is a great dinner option! This recipe feeds 4-6 people but can easily be doubled or tripled depending on the size of your family or group.

You'll need to just increase the size of your pot the bigger you go but luckily they make some very big pots should you want to go big!

★ Ingredients You'll Need ★

What will you find in this easy shrimp boil?

• Corn on the Cob. Just toss half ears of corn, use frozen or fresh raw shrimp.
• Cajun sausage. In this case we love the Smith's mini bites since there's no cutting required, but you can also slice rope sausage into coins.
• Red potatoes. Small or cut-up potatoes of your choice. Red potatoes taste great and are small enough so they cook quickly. Since red potatoes have thin skin, you can leave the skin on which makes things even easier (and adds flavor!) However, any potato works, just cut large potatoes small enough that they can cook within 15 minutes. So no larger than 2" cubes.
• Red onion. Red onions have a nice flavor and a pretty color but you can use white or yellow onions too.
• Garlic. A whole cluster of garlic cloves. No need to peel the garlic, just slice it and plop it in the pot! Easy!
• Lemons. Fresh lemons added to the pot will enhance the shrimp flavor and give it a fresh and bright flavor.
• Zatarain's Seasoning. All the food cooks in one pot along with a package of Zatarain's Crawfish, Shrimp & Crab Boil seasoning.
• Old Bay seasoning. Sprinkle on after you've drained away the water and are ready to serve. This classic seafood seasoning finishes off this tasty meal and brings all the flavors together into one delicious dish. Offer melted butter and additional Old Bay seasoning for dipping as well.

Optional: Add additional varieties of seafood! Try crawfish, scallops, clams, oysters and/or muscles. Note: Oysters, clams and muscles are done cooking when they open. If they do not open when cooked, discard them.

★ How to Serve a Shrimp Boil ★

Go ahead and serve it dumped onto the table (just lay down some newspaper or a disposable table cloth for easy clean up). No plates needed!

Set out a small dish of melted butter and some extra Old Bay seasoning for anyone who wants to dip and you're good!

You may want to have paper towels or wet wipes available to clean off sticky hands when done.

★ How to Prepare a Seafood Boil ★

You'll need a large pot.

A 6 quart pot would be the minimum size I'd recommend. If you have a larger pot, use that so you can give things a good stir without making a mess.

Need a large stockpot? They actually make pots specifically for seafood boils that come with a strainer. So if you're into this idea you may want to invest in this handy tool. Browse seafood stock pots on Amazon.

If making a small batch, I use my 8-quart dutch oven.

Once you have a large enough pot, here's what to do:

• Boil water and add Zatarain's seasoning.
• Add potatoes, onions and garlic, cover and boil.
• Add sausage, lemons, corn and shrimp; boil longer.
• Strain and serve.
• Drizzle with melted butter and Old Bay seasoning.
• Serve with cups of melted butter and Old Bay seasoning for dipping.

Easy! For the full recipe and how-to video, see below.

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This easy Seafood Boil recipe was developed using Smith’s mini bite sausages and was featured on South Your Mouth!