Crayfish are eaten all over the world. Like other edible crustaceans, only a small portion of the body of a crayfish is edible.
全球很多地方都食用小龙虾，和大多数可食用虾类一样，小龙虾的身体部分只有一小段适合食用。
The culinary popularity of crayfish swept across mainland China in the late 1990s. Crayfish is generally served with Mala flavour or otherwise plainly steamed whole, to be eaten with a preferred sauce. In Beijing, the ma la flavoured crayfish is shortened to "ma xiao" and is often enjoyed with beer in a hot mid-summer evening.
上世纪末，小龙虾的饮食热潮席卷了中国。国人最爱的小龙虾烹饪方式是“麻辣小龙虾”和直接蒸煮，然后配以酱汁食用。在北京，麻辣小龙虾常常被简称为“麻小”，在夏天的夜晚，就着啤酒，可谓是别有一番风味。
The Mexican crayfish locally named acocil was a very important nutrition source of the ancient Mexican Aztec culture. Today, crayfish is consumed mainly boiled, similarly to crayfish dishes in other parts of the world, or prepared with typically Mexican sauces and condiments, particularly in central and southern Mexico. Traditional preparations include soups, tacos and "cocktails" shrimp dishes.
在墨西哥，小龙虾被称作“acocil”，是古代阿兹特克文明的重要营养来源。今天小龙虾在墨西哥的烹饪方式和世界其他地方基本一样，直接水煮后食用，在墨西哥中部和南部地区还会配以特制的酱汁和调料。其他传统的烹饪方式还包括龙虾汤、配玉米卷饼和拼盘等。
In Spain, crayfish used to be widely consumed, but over-fishing and the introduction of non-native crayfish species led to a dramatic decline in crayfish population. Nowadays they remain as a seasonal delicacy, usually stewed in tomato sauce, although fishing the native crayfish is strictly forbidden since the species is nearly extinct.
在西班牙，小龙虾曾经被广泛食用，但是过度的捕捞和外来小龙虾品种的入侵导致本土品种的大量减少。尽管当地政府禁止捕捞濒临灭绝的本土品种，但仍有人把它们当做“时鲜货”，在浓郁的番茄酱中炖煮食用。
In the United States, crayfish are often referred to as crawfish or crawdads. In Louisiana, South Mississippi, and Southeast Texas, crayfish are generally served at a gathering known as a crawfish boil. The crayfish are usually boiled live in a large pot with heavy seasoning. There are many differing methods used to season a crawfish boil, and an equal number of opinions on which one is correct.
在美国，小龙虾常被称为“crawfish”或“crawdad”。在路易斯安纳州、密西西比州南部和德州东南部，小龙虾最有名的菜式叫做“水煮龙虾”——将小龙虾放入一个大锅，配上大量的调味料水煮后食用。水煮龙虾的方法其实有很多，没有严格的标准，很多人声称他们的方法是最“正宗”的。