There are three easy ways to cook crab legs: boiling, steaming, and baking. In less than 10 minutes, each method will give you perfectly warmed crab meat. There are also lots of tips in this post on how to choose and cook the most common types of crab legs.
Fresh crab is every seafood lover’s dream. And the good news is that crab is super easy to cook at home. Why? Because the crab you purchase from your local fishmonger is already pre-cooked and frozen. Many people don’t realize this. But crab is immediately cooked and flash-frozen to preserve its freshness when it’s caught. That means all you have to do to cook crab is warm up the legs, which only takes a few minutes!
You can dip crab in a tasty sauce (I’ll talk more about that below), or you can use fresh crab as a protein in crab salad, bowls, and other things. It’s easy to make a crab boil dinner that looks fancy but is actually very simple because the crab is already cooked.
Boiling crab is a fun and delicious way to prepare fresh seafood at home. When done properly, boiling crab results in tender, juicy meat that is full of sweet, briny flavor. While the process may seem intimidating, especially if you’ve never cooked live crab before, it’s actually quite simple once you know the steps. With a large pot, a little seasoning, and some basic prep, you can have a boiled crab feast ready in no time.
Ingredients
- Live crabs or fresh crab (about 1-1.5 lbs per person)
- Water
- Salt (approximately 2 tablespoons per pot)
- Sugar (approximately 1 tablespoon per pot)
- Crab boiling spices (optional) – common options are Old Bay, crab boil packets, or a blend of seasonings like celery salt, bay leaves, garlic, lemon, mustard seed, coriander, etc.
Equipment
- Large stock pot or crab pot
- Tongs
- Gloves
- Scrub brush
- Cooler or ice bath
- Mallet or nutcracker
- Seafood crackers (optional)
Step 1: Prepare the Crabs
Before cooking, live crabs need to be scrubbed clean. Use gloves and hold the crabs firmly when rinsing to avoid getting pinched. Clean the top shell, underside, legs, and mouth area with a scrub brush. This removes any debris and helps purify the crabs.
Step 2: Bring the Water to a Boil
Fill a large stock pot about two-thirds full with water and add 2 tablespoons of salt and 1 tablespoon of sugar. The salt helps season the meat while cooking, and the sugar helps with caramelization. Bring the pot to a rolling boil over high heat.
Step 3: Boil the Crabs
Once the water is rapidly boiling, use tongs to slowly lower the crabs in upside down. This helps keep the crabs submerged. Cook 5-8 minutes until the shells turn bright orange and the crabs float to the top.
Step 4: Cool the Crabs
Remove boiled crabs with tongs and transfer immediately to an ice bath to stop the cooking process Let cool 1-2 minutes until crabs are cool enough to handle
Step 5: Clean the Crabs
To eat the crab twist off the legs and claws. Use a mallet or nutcracker to crack the shells. Remove the top shell apron, mouthparts, gills, and innards. Rinse out the body cavity well. Crack the body open by splitting it in half. Rinse again before serving.
Step 6: Enjoy!
Serve the crab while still warm along with melted butter, aioli, or your favorite dipping sauce. Provide nutcrackers, picks, and seafood crackers to help extract the sweet meat.
With minimal time and effort, you can have tender, juicy boiled crab ready for a seaside feast. Just remember to start with live or the freshest crab possible, quickly cook in seasoned boiling water, cool, clean, and crack before indulging. Adjust cooking times based on the crab size. Serve boiled crab on its own or incorporate it into pasta, rice bowls, tacos, sandwiches, salads, and more. The briny chunks of meat also store well refrigerated for 3-5 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
How Many Crab Legs Per Person?
You need to know how many crab legs each person will need for your seafood or crab boil. A simple way to figure this out is to remember that two to three clusters of crab legs weigh one pound. Each cluster includes crab legs, a claw, and a part of the shoulder.
Then, guess that each person will need about one pound, plus two pounds for someone who is really hungry or for seafood lovers at the table. If you’re making a “surf and turf” meal with filet mignon, 5 pounds is plenty.
Helpful tip: There’s a bit more meat in king crab legs compared to other varieties. So if you’ve got big seafood eaters, this could be a great option to buy with fewer legs.
Different Types of Crab Legs
There are over a dozen types of crabs you can eat across the world. But your local market will most likely have the options below. Let’s talk through these.
- This is the most common type of crab used in home cooking, and you’ve probably seen them before. Good news: Dungeness crab legs are usually sold in groups of three to five, and they don’t cost too much. Also, their meat is soft, slightly sweet, and slightly nutty, which makes it great for making crab salad or crab dip.
- King crabs: These are a bit more expensive and are sold by the piece, but the crab legs are worth it for a seafood boil when served on their own with butter. Their meat is sweet and tender, like lobster tails. They have twice as much meat as Dungeness crabs because their legs are so much bigger.
- If you don’t want to use king crab, snow crab is the next best thing for big legs. Their meat is sweet, savory, and a bit briny. Even better, the meat on snow crab legs is a beautiful white color, while king crab meat is bright red. Only bad thing is that they’re getting more expensive because of climate change and fewer people living in the area.
Louisiana Style Boiled Blue Crabs | Chef Alden B
FAQ
How long do you boil a crab for?
Do you rinse crab before boiling?
How do you boil already cooked crab?
What do you need to make a crab boil?
Homemade crab boil recipes call for abundant amounts of hot sauce, cayenne pepper, salt, bay leaf, lemon, and garlic. Mustard seeds, coriander seeds, and allspice are popular extra options. Many people will start with a commercial crab boil product and then supplement it with extra pepper.
What is the difference between a crab boil and a seafood boil?
Crab boil is a spice mixture that is used to flavor the water in which crabs or other shellfish are boiled. A crab boil is also a social event where boiled crabs are eaten, a kind of seafood boil.
What is the best way to cook crab?
Boil in batches if necessary. The water will drop below a boil when you put in the crabs, so cover the pot and let the water come back to a full boil. Once it does, cook for 10 to 15 minutes. When you see crabs floating on the surface, cook for another 2 to 3 minutes before turning off the heat.
How long do you boil crabs for?
Boil in batches if necessary. The water will drop below a boil when you put in the crabs, so cover the pot and let the water come back to a full boil. Once it does, cook for 10 to 15 minutes. When you see crabs floating on the surface, cook for another 2 to 3 minutes before turning off the heat.