Crawfish Boil Calculator
Crawfish pounds, water, and salt per party.
What it does
Crawfish boils feed crowds by the sack: three and a half pounds live per guest with gallons of seasoned water behind. Timing splits between boiling heat and soaking spice.
The tool above takes the guest count. It returns live pounds with sacks, water gallons, and salt pounds.
The default 10 guests needs 35 lb, one sack, in 17.5 gallons with 3.5 lb salt. The 4 guest case needs 14 lb, and 20 guests need 70 lb across 2 sacks.
University extension guidance plans 3 to 4 lb per person with sack sized pots and boil plus soak clocks. Crawfish board boiling guides repeat 5 lb per adult with gallon and salt ratios matching.
Rinse and purge briefly, boil hard, soak for spice, then spread on newspaper tables. Sides ride the same pot on separate clocks while ice chests hold the next sack.
How to use
- Type the guest count.
- Read live pounds first.
- Read water beside it.
- Read salt last.
- Boil 10, soak 12.
- Purge and rinse ahead.
Formula
- guests
- Eaters at the boil.
- live
- Live crawfish pounds.
- sacks
- 35 lb units.
LSU AgCenter crawfish guidance plans 3 to 4 lb live per person with 10 gallon water per 35 to 45 lb sack and boil plus soak timing. Crawfish board boiling guides repeat 5 lb per adult with 1 gallon per 2 lb and a pound of salt per 5 gallons. Sacks count at 35 lb each.
Worked example
Example: boil for 10
Default: 10 guests.
- Party: 10 guests eating.
- Live: 10 x 3.5 = 35 lb, one sack.
- Water: 35 / 2 = 17.5 gal rolling.
- Salt: 17.5 / 5 = 3.5 lb.
- Cook: boil 10 min, soak 12 min.
- Tool shows 35 lb (1 sack), 17.5 gal water, 3.5 lb salt.
Reference table
| Guests | Live | Water |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 14 lb | 7 gal |
| 10 | 35 lb | 17.5 gal |
| 20 | 70 lb | 35 gal |
| 30 | 105 lb | 52.5 gal |
Limits
- Planning ratios; appetites vary.
- Sack weights vary by shed.
- Spice heat apart.
- Sides need own clocks.
Common mistakes
- Underbuying per person.
- Skimping pot headroom.
- Skipping the soak.
- Overcooking past peelable.
- Salting without tasting.
Try it yourself
Quick checks. Answers sit tucked under each question.
4 guests?
14 lb with 7 gal water and 1.4 lb salt.
20 guests?
70 lb in 2 sacks with 35 gal and 7 lb salt.
0 guests?
Zero guests boil nothing: enter 1 to 500.
Questions
Per person math?
3.5 lb live per guest with water at half the pounds in gallons and salt at a fifth.
Boil and soak?
Boil 10 minutes, kill heat, soak 10 to 15 for spice. LSU boils 5 to 10 after reboil.
Water volume?
1 gallon per 2 lb with headroom. Crowded pots stall reboils.
Salt ratio?
1 lb per 5 gallons with onions, lemons, and crab boil alongside.
Purge how?
Rinse, purge briefly, discard dead. Salt baths do not truly purge.
Sides same time?
No, corn, potatoes, and sausage ride separate clocks in the same pot.