Regal crab legs, with their rich, sweet meat, are ideal for entertaining and special occasions. Since they are almost always precooked, simply boil the legs to warm them through and serve with melted butter. Get our no-fail tips for how to cook crab legs.
Crab legs may be a cinch to prepare and delectable to eat, but the price will probably keep them from showing up on your weeknight dinner rotation. Because the crab season is short and quotas rigidly enforced, they are a bit of a splurge. Purchase top-quality legs from a trusted source and treat them with care for simple success.
Buying Crab Legs
Most crab legs are cooked and frozen on the fishing boat as soon as the crab is caught. This means they are usually sold frozen as well.
Thawing Crab Legs
Plan ahead when buying crab legs because the best way to thaw them is covered in the refrigerator overnight. If space or time is an issue, you can also put the frozen legs in a colander into a sink and run cool water over them to thaw quickly.
Boiling Crab Legs
Because most crab legs are precooked, you are only warming them through. While thawed crab legs can be steamed, grilled, and heated in the microwave, boiling is a simple and efficient method recommended by the Better Homes & Gardens Test Kitchen. The water gets into the shells, keeps the meat moist, and helps the meat heat through quickly.
Step 1: Fill a large pot half to two-thirds full of cold tap water. Add 1 tablespoon salt and bring the water to boiling.
Step 2: Add crab legs to the boiling water, bending and tucking the legs so as much of the legs are covered as possible in water. Return the water to boiling.
Step 3: Cook the legs, uncovered, for 4 to 5 minutes or until heated through, adjusting occasionally with long tongs to make sure they heat evenly.
Step 4: Using long tongs, remove the legs from the water. If desired, rinse legs; drain well.
Serving Crab Legs
When serving, keep things simple and let the crab legs star. If the crab legs are not presplit, have kitchen shears available for splitting, and give each person a small seafood fork for harvesting the meat from the shells. Favorite accompaniments to crab legs are lemon wedges and small bowls of melted butter for dipping. (Figure about 1 tablespoon butter per person.)
Tip: Clarifying the butter is a simple technique that removes the cloudy milk solids from the melted butter, resulting in a clear, amber-hue butter that is pretty and delicious for dipping bites of crabmeat.
Step 1: Twisting at the joint
Cool prepared legs until easy to handle. You may want to use a clean kitchen cloth when handling since the legs have nodules that can be sharp. Twist the legs at the joint. Often you can pull the meat from the shell as you twist.
Step 2: Splitting the legs
Another way to remove the meat from the legs is to use kitchen shears to cut through the shell. This is easier than using a knife.
Step 3: Harvesting the meat
For split legs, pull apart the shell with your fingers. Use a small seafood fork to remove the meat from the legs and claws.
Tip: To use crabmeat in recipes, remove the leg and claw meat from the shells as shown.
Our Favorite Crabmeat Recipes
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