The Very Best Ways to Cook King Crab Legs

Preparing king crab legs doesn’t really require that much prep time, or hassle in the kitchen. Read the Tastessence article to find easy-to-follow recipes, and you can master it in no time.

Grilled Crab

Ingredients

• Alaska king crab legs, 2 lb.
• Butter, room temperature, ½ cup
• Olive oil, ¼ cup
• Rosemary, ½ teaspoon
• Thyme, ½ teaspoon
• Garlic cloves, chopped, 2
• Zucchini, red or green bell peppers, and eggplant, thick slices

Directions
In a small pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and thyme. Once it’s all mixed properly, remove it from the heat. Oil the grill and keep it on a medium hot fire. Place the crab legs with the shell side facing down and grill them for about 5 minutes, while applying the garlic butter mix. Take the pieces of zucchini, bell peppers, and eggplant and brush them with garlic butter as well. Place them over the grill to cook thoroughly, turning on occasion. You can use the leftover garlic butter as a dipping sauce.

Boiled Crab

Ingredients

• King crab meat, picked over for shells and cartilage, 1 lb.
• Heavy cream, 1½ cups
• Onion, chopped, 1 cup
• Carrot, chopped, ½ cup
• All-purpose flour, ½ cup
• Olive oil, ½ cup
• Celery, green onions, parsley and leeks, chopped, ¼ cup
• Thyme, 1 tablespoon
• Garlic cloves, chopped, 4 teaspoons
• Cayenne pepper, ½ teaspoon
• Cayenne pepper, ½ teaspoon
• King crab legs, steamed, 6
• Bay leaves, 2
• King crab stock, reduced, 1 quart
• Salt, for taste

Directions
Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat, add chopped vegetables and cook till it gets soft. Add thyme, bay leaves, and garlic to it and cook for 1 minute. Add the flour and coat the vegetables evenly. Cook the mixture till you get a thick roux. Pour in the crab stock, blend everything properly, and bring it to a boil. Once it boils, reduce the heat to let it simmer for about half an hour. Now add salt, cayenne pepper, heavy cream, and crab meat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Place crab legs into the pot, and let it cook for a few minutes. Adjust the seasoning after you add the crab legs. Remove from heat once the soup is ready and garnish with 1 king crab leg, chopped parsley, and green onions.

Steamed Crab

Ingredients

• King crab legs, cooked, 4 lb.
• Seaweed, dried, 2″ pieces
• Dashi (Japanese soup stock), ½ cup
• Rice vinegar, ½ cup
• Soy sauce, 3 tablespoons
• Lemon juice, 1 tablespoon
• Japanese sweet wine, 1½ teaspoons

Directions
To make the dressing, pour ½ cup of dashi into a cup with vinegar, lemon juice, soy sauce, and sweet wine. Blend everything together and set it aside. As for the salad, take a large pot, put a steamer on, pour water in the bottom of the steamer, and place the king crab legs over it. Make sure the crabs aren’t touching the water. Steam the legs on high heat for 5―6 minutes. Once the crab is heated thoroughly, mix it with the dressing, and serve immediately.

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