Fall 1997 Northwest Zydeco Newsletter Article:

Seattle’s Zydeco & Cajun Hotline Gets Hotter! (206) 382-5586

Enthusiasm for zydeco and Cajun dancing is higher than ever in Seattle. Calls to Northwest Zydeco’s Dance Hotline have soared to over a thousand a month as of August 1997. Want to be a part of our success? We need your help behind the scenes and up front, such as at our class registration table. Just sign a volunteer interest list at any of Northwest Zydeco’s classes or events, or leave a message on our Hotline, (206) 382-5586.

Giant Crawfish Invade Washington

Some Louisiana folks call it a crawdad, or “mudbug,” but most people know it as a crawfish or crayfish. People can’t seem to agree on just one name for this freshwater crustacean. The Louisiana crawfish began humbly in the mud, then was thrust into the limelight by the Cajun and Creole cultural revivals of the late 1950’s. Crawfish popularity easily exceeds Louisiana’s supply; last year’s New Orleans Jazz Festival imported much of its crawfish from China!
          Although crawfish may be big in the South, they are even bigger in Washington state, reaching up to 8 or 10 inches long! Pinch me, am I still in Seattle? Yes, lay down your baited pot in a local stream or lake, and you may catch a big daddy. But if it’s a momma with eggs or young attached, be sure to return her unharmed. For recreational crawfishing, you don’t need a license and you can catch up to 10 pounds per day, as long as each crawfish exceeds three and one fourth inches long. Washington allows you to catch them from the first Monday in May through October 31st. For more details, see the “Fishing in Washington” booklet from Washington State Department of Fish & Wildlife (WSDFW), (360) 902-2200.
          Many of the crawfish sold in local grocery stores come from Lake Washington or the lower Columbia River. According to WSDFW, crawfish caught from Lake Washington have been safe from pollution.
          If you are squeamish, you may not like cooking crawfish, because they taste best when boiled alive, like shrimp, crab, and lobster. Wear rubber gloves to protect your hands since even the little snappers defend themselves! Crawfish meat tastes rather mild, which is why Cajuns and Creoles boil the critters in spicy water and dip the meat into hot sauces.
          Ballard Swedes can tell you that eating local “crayfish” in late summer is an old tradition back in the home country. Due to disease and decline in local Swedish crayfish populations in the past decade, Sweden switched to imports from Turkey, then from Louisiana, for their annual crayfish celebrations. In Seattle, annual crayfish festivals were celebrated by the Swedish Club on August 22nd and by the Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce on September 19th this year. Swedes like to boil crayfish with lots of salt and fresh dill, cool it in the broth, then serve cold with mayonnaise and French bread.
          Ya Ya betcha!

Steve Riley played his rocking Cajun music at Seattle Bumbershoot Festival. Monday, September 1, 1997. (Photo by Tom Dempsey.)

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