This Texas Ice Cream Comes With a Crawfish on Top

Would you try crawfish ice cream? Because in Texas, apparently, a LOT of people are saying yes.

One Houston ice cream shop is going viral thanks to a flavor that sounds like it should be a crime, but is very real: crawfish ice cream!

And somehow, people can’t get enough of it because it keeps selling out!

Yes, This Texas Ice Cream Is Made With Real Crawfish

At Houston’s Red Circle Ice Cream, crawfish ice cream has become a seasonal staple every spring during crawfish season.

And this isn’t just crawfish inspired.

Owner Nickey Ngo actually boils the ice cream base with Cajun-style crawfish seasonings, butter, and even live crawfish to infuse the flavor. She says the secret sauce is butter- lots of butter!

If you thought that was the wildest part, nope!

Each serving can be topped with a whole crawfish, which customers are encouraged to use as a spoon.

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Yes. A spoon.

Ngo says the idea is to keep the texture right (because nobody wants frozen seafood chunks in their ice cream), while still delivering that full crawfish flavor experience.

And if you’re wondering how that works, apparently you eat the tail first, then scoop.

Inspired by Houston’s Viet-Cajun Crawfish Culture

The flavor isn’t random, it’s rooted in Houston’s food scene.

Ngo says her version is inspired by Viet-Cajun crawfish, which blends traditional Louisiana-style boils with bold Vietnamese flavors. The idea actually came to her back in 2019 during a family crawfish boil.

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Her sister joked about turning it into ice cream, and the very next day, Ngo made it happen.

Crawfish Ice Cream Keeps Selling Out Across Texas

As wild as it sounds, the demand is real.

Ngo says the shop has already sold out multiple times this season, with customers constantly calling and asking when the next batch will drop.

They typically start serving it around spring break, right when crawfish season heats up- but keeping up with demand has been the biggest challenge.
Although, Ngo admits that not everyone is on board; Ngo admits the flavor has gotten its fair share of side-eyes (and jokes about whether it should even exist).

But that’s kind of the point. She says the goal isn’t to be a gimmick, it’s to create something fun that brings people together.

From strangers bonding over a daring first bite to regulars coming back for more, this flavor has definitely sparked conversation.