Justin Bonello’s strandloper crayfish

Posted by Justin Bonello on 17 September 2010

I filmed the last episode of our second season on Robben Island. Beyond it being the prison where Nelson Mandela was incarcerated by the apartheid government for 18 years, it has a rich cultural and culinary history that extends through the millennia.

This two ingredient recipe is as old as the hills and tastes just brilliant.

For two people you’ll need

2 fresh crayfish
A drizzle of sea water

Cooking instructions

Make a fire with hardwood. Clean the crayfish by placing them belly-side down and cutting from the tails to the heads. Remove the dark, thin entrails and rinse out in fresh sea water.
Place the crayfish shell-side down directly on coals. Cook for about five minutes until the flesh goes from translucent to white and the shells turn red.
Turn them over and cook for a further three or four minutes.
To serve, pull the flesh out of the shell, drizzle with sea water and eat immediately with your bare hands.

For more recipes and outdoor cooking ideas, read Justin Bonello’s Cooked in Africa: A cooking journey through Southern Africa.