Crawfish is the freshwater crustacean named as a staple meat in Cajun cuisine. In Louisiana, crawfish are abundant in freshwater wetlands, waterways, ponds, and rice-growing areas, making them an especially important regional food.
Cajun cooks use crawfish in dishes such as étouffée, gumbo, boudin, bisques, and rice-based preparations. They are also the centerpiece of the famous crawfish boil, a communal meal in which crawfish are boiled with potatoes, onions, corn, lemons, and a mixture of spices.
A crawfish boil is as much a social event as a recipe. The cooked food is commonly spread across newspaper-covered tables and eaten by hand. Participants may dip the tails in sauce, and some also consume the seasoned fat and juices from the head.
Crawfish are not freshwater lobsters, although they are sometimes casually called “mudbugs” or “crayfish.” Oysters and blue crabs are saltwater shellfish, while lobster is a different crustacean altogether. Shrimp can appear in similar Cajun dishes, but crawfish is the freshwater staple identified by this question.