Kitchen Recipe Collection
Mala Spicy Crayfish (Xiao Long Xia)
The ultimate late-night street food. Massive piles of bright red crayfish boiled and wok-tossed in an aggressively spicy, numbing, oily broth. Eating them requires getting your hands very messy.
- Prep
- 40 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 60 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- medium
- Cuisine
- Chinese
Ingredients
Scaled for 4 servings
- 2 kg live crayfish
- 1/2 cup cooking oil
- 3 tbsp Doubanjiang (Sichuan chili bean paste)
- 1/4 cup dried Sichuan red chilies
- 2 tbsp Sichuan peppercorns
- 1 whole head of garlic, peeled
- 1 large knob of ginger, sliced
- 1 bottle (12oz) light beer
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick, 2 star anise, 2 bay leaves
Equipment
- Large wok
- Toothbrush (for cleaning)
- Plastic gloves (for eating)
Instructions
- 1
Clean Crayfish
Scrub the live crayfish vigorously with a toothbrush under running water, especially their bellies.
- 2
Remove Intestine
Twist and pull the middle flap of the tail to easily pull out the intestinal tract. (You can also snip off the tip of the head). Rinse thoroughly.
- 3
Heat Oil
Heat the oil in a large wok over medium heat.
- 4
Fry Spices
Add the Doubanjiang, dried chilies, peppercorns, cinnamon, star anise, and bay leaves. Fry until the oil is deeply red and fragrant.
- 5
Add Aromatics
Add the whole garlic cloves and ginger slices. Fry for 1 minute.
- 6
Add Crayfish
Turn heat to maximum. Dump all the cleaned crayfish into the wok.
- 7
Toss
Stir-fry vigorously until the shells begin to turn bright red (about 3 minutes).
- 8
Pour Beer
Pour the entire bottle of beer into the wok. The beer tenderizes the meat and adds a rich, malty flavor.
- 9
Season
Add the soy sauce and sugar.
- 10
Braise
Cover the wok and boil over medium-high heat for 10-15 minutes until the liquid reduces to a thick, oily, spicy gravy.
- 11
Serve
Pile the bright red crayfish into a massive bowl, pouring all the spicy garlic gravy over the top.
- 12
How to Eat
Put on plastic gloves. Twist off the head, suck the spicy juices from the head, peel the tail shell, dip the tail meat in the broth, and eat.
Cooking Tips
- Crayfish must be alive before cooking. Dead crayfish spoil rapidly.
- Do not skip the beer. Boiling them in water results in a much flatter flavor.
Variations
- Garlic Crayfish (Suan Rong Xiao Long Xia): A non-spicy version cooked in massive amounts of minced garlic and butter.
Nutrition Estimate
350 calories · 45g protein · 10g carbs · 15g fat · 2g fiber per serving
