Catching and Eating Crayfish at Deer Lake on Whidbey
Crayfish are easy to catch. You will need a Crayfish pot (available at Jim's hardware for about $10 where 525 meets Deer Lake Road) or a shrimp pot, if you happen to own one. Bait it with some chicken and liver flavored cat food (available at the Food Mart next to Jim's). You can catch them adjacent to the dock, but you will do better in slightly deeper water. Leave it for a few hours and you are likely to get somewhere between 0 and 20 good sized ones at a time.
Cook them by boiling in heavily salted water for about 15 minutes (get boiling first, then add crayfish). Some people add garlic and/or Cajun spices to the water. Eating methods depend upon the enthusiasm of the eater. The tail and claws are pretty obvious. For the more adventuresome, remove the carapace from the body, remove the dark ball of innards in the middle, and eat the rest, spitting out the crunchy parts. This is analogous to eating the body of the crab. Also like crab, the inside of the carapace may also have some orange colored eggs or yellowish gel like substance, both of which are tasty. Enjoy!
There is a season for crayfish and some other requirements. For details, click here for fishing license and rules
Call 206-353-4813 or e-mail us at DeerLake@whidbeybeach.com