1. Allow cooked crayfish to cool slightly. Hold body of crayfish firmly. Use opposite hand to twist off tail from body.
twist tail
2. Lightly squeeze tail until shell cracks.
3. Peel off first 2 or 3 segments of shell from tail along with legs if any are still attached.
peel segments
4. Squeeze end of tail while using other hand to carefully pull out tail meat. With practice, tail meat will come out without the need for further peeling.
squeeze end
5. Remove vein from meat if still attached. Tail is now ready to eat as is or can be used in a variety of crayfish dishes.
remove vein
6. The meat can also be retrieved from the claws. Twist off the claw where it attaches to the leg.
claw
7. Snap off movable pincher from claw.
snap pincer
8. Some break claws open with their back teeth, but it is much safer to insert a fork as shown. Twist fork to break open the claw, then retrieve meat.
insert fork