Favorite Crab Leg Dishes

by Joey Hall
(Alaska (King Crab Country))

Crab legs were a family staple growing up for me. We didn’t get to eat it very often due to how expensive it was, but when we were able to have it, it had to be perfect. That said, I have learned several ways to incorporate crab legs into a meal (really you can’t do much with crab legs besides eat them with other things on your plate, but the combination can be oh so delicious!), and I would like to share them with you readers!
First, it should be said that there are several ways to cook crab legs, which you can read more about here. I personally prefer to grill them, because I like to grill everything… but that doesn’t work best for everything. Below are four great Crab leg dishes all cooked with different methods for doing so.

Grilled Crab Legs, Sprinkled with Cayenne Pepper

What you’ll find is that people love to put butter on their crab legs.
When I think of grilling, I think of other barbequed food. I have to ask myself – what would add to the grilled aspect of the way I cooked this crab?
Adding some spice to it certainly helps with this. I personally prefer cooking it with Cayenne pepper. The cool thing about grilling crab legs specifically is that texturally it’s more reminiscent of cooking burgers or chicken or other BBQ foods. A bit crispier than most, however. Making it spicy adds to that effect and no matter what the occasion, this is something that will leave your guests with a familiar feeling but a new taste.

Steamed Crab Legs, Served with Lemon and Rice

Lemon goes well with any kind of crab. But rice adds a special effect. Similar to how sometimes there is rice with sushi, steamed crab goes great with boiled white rice. But since the crab leg is steamed and not just a raw seafood, it’s best to heat up the rice as well – yet, if you can make sure the rice isn’t too dry, it’ll go well
with the seafood taste of the crab leg. Butter or certain gravies can help with that.
Adding lemon not only goes good with the rice, but a little lemon juice adds to the exquisite taste of the crab, too. Good mix. Side note: I found this recipe while doing some research recently. For those who like to have a little late night fun, check out
this recipe for Drunken Alaskan King Crab Legs!

Baked and Served with Potato and Broccoli Casserole

Baked Crab Leg Recipes are similar to Steamed Crab leg recipes a lot of the time. This is a family specialty my mother used to make. You’re going to want to eat it with a vegetarian potato and broccoli casserole, topped with breadcrumbs. Add some spices inside or on top and you actually have yourself a pretty decent meal. A lot of these recipes have to do with cooking texture, so the baked casserole with the baked crab legs are a great choice for consistency, I’ve found.

Boiled and Served with Cream Corn

This may sound like a really strange recipe, I know people have told me that before.
It’s also incredibly simple, but makes a pretty solid meal. Boiling the crab leaves it so it’s not too dry feeling or crisp, though still thoroughly cooked. Creaming the corn makes it an excellent side to your main course of crab. Texturally and taste-wise, they go great together.

Joey Hall is a writer for Alaskan King Crab.com