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How Long Does It Take Crab Legs To Cook

Crab legs are simple to prepare at home, and they may be cooked in various ways. To cook frozen crab legs, you only have to warm them and add some flavors to improve the taste. You don’t have to do much because they are already cooked. Here’s how to make crab legs in a variety of ways.

Top view of cooked crab legs on wooden dish.
Source: Envato.

Crab Nutrition Facts

How Long Does It Take Crab Legs To Cook
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How Long Does It Take Crab Legs To Cook

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Ingredients

Scale

Method 1: Boiling

Step 1: The crab legs should be thawed in the refrigerator. The night before you want to cook, the crab legs should be refrigerated, which will let them thaw slowly. Crab legs can be thawed in the refrigerator and can also be defrosted for several minutes in cold, running water.

After your crab legs have thawed, make careful to fry them as soon as possible. They should be refrigerated for no more than two days and not frozen.

Step 2: In a large stockpot, mix together the water and ingredients. The water level in the stockpot should be half full. The water should be heated and boiled over medium or high heat, then add the salt, garlic powder, and dill.

You may choose to use a large stockpot or a Dutch oven. You can use any other seasoning you like with crab legs instead of garlic powder.

Step 3: Place the crab legs on top. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook the crab legs for another 3 to 6 minutes. As the crab legs cook, leave the stockpot uncovered.

The crab legs just need to be heated for a few minutes. Cooking them for too long will ruin their delicate flavor. As the crab legs cook, keep the water at a constant simmer.

Step 4: The best way to eat it is when it’s warm. To serve, use tongs to remove the crab legs and set them on a serving plate. Crab legs can be served with melted butter if preferred.

Method 2: Steaming

Step 1: Allow for the thawing of the crab legs. Refrigerate frozen, precooked crab legs overnight to allow them to slowly defrost. By submerging the crab legs in cold, running water for a few minutes, you can speed up the thawing process.

Step 2: Pour water and salt into the bottom of a steamer pot. Set a large steamer pot over medium-high to high heat with about 2 cups of water and salt in the bottom. There should be enough water to cover the bottom of the steamer rack, but not so much that it touches it. If you have a steaming basket or steamer rack that would fit over it, you might also use a big stockpot.

Step 3: The crabs should be placed on the steamer rack in an equal layer. A steamer rack or basket that can be lowered into the pot and closed is ideal.

Step 4: Cook on low heat with the lid on. Cook the crab legs for about six minutes in a pot of boiling water, covered with a lid. Before you cover the saucepan and set the timer, be sure that the water is boiling.

Step 5: Warm up the dish and serve them alongside warmed butter to your guests.

Method 3:Baking

Step1: Remove the crab legs from the freezer and set them aside to defrost. Refrigerate them overnight to thaw them out.

Step 2: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Boil water halfway to fill the bottom of a small baking pan. It is preferable to use hot water rather than cold or room temperature water because this pan will be used in the oven. The inside of the oven is already at a temperature comparable to boiling water.

Step 3: The crab should be added to the pan. In the water, arrange the crab legs in one layer. Cover the pan thoroughly with aluminum foil once the crab legs have been added. Water can be added to the pan before or after the crab legs have been arranged.

Step 4: Bake, rotating once until completely heated. It will only take about 7 to 10 minutes to bake the crab legs. Flipping the crab after 4minute ensures equal cooking. Before returning the pan to the oven, make sure the aluminum foil is replaced.

Step 5: Warm up the dish and serve it to your guests. Serve the warm crab legs with melted butter and salt to taste.

Method4:Microwaving

Step 1: The crab legs should be defrosted. Place the crab legs in cold, running water for a few minutes to defrost them quickly. It takes a lot longer to thaw with the recommended procedure. Refrigerate the crab legs for 8 hours or overnight to thaw.

While the crab legs can be cooked in the microwave, thawing the seafood is not suggested.

Step 2:Fill a microwave-safe container halfway with crab legs. Arrange the crabs in a single layer in a microwave-safe container. If you can’t fit all of the crab legs into one batch, cook them separately. You could stack them in numerous uniform layers, but you’ll have to stir them with a fork once or twice during the cooking cycle to ensure even cooking.

Step 3: A popular choice is a glass casserole dish with a lid, although any microwave-safe container will suffice. Fill the container halfway with water. For the crab legs, fill the container halfway with warm to hot water. It is preferable to use warm to hot water rather than cold water.

Step 4: Preheat the microwave to full power. To ensure consistent cooking, you may need to stir or move the crab legs around halfway through the cooking procedure.

Step 5: Warm the dish before serving.

  • Author: Bobby

Cooking Time for Crab Legs

The preparation and cooking don’t take much of your time. To have delicious crab legs, there are various cooking methods to achieve your desired taste. The different timing guidelines to followthrough the various method of cooking crab legs are as follow:

Cooking method for Crab Legs

 

 

Cooking time
Boiling

 

 

5 to 10 minutes
Steaming

 

 

5 to 6 minutes
Baking

 

 

35 to 40 minutes
Microwave

 

 

6 to 8 minutes

Cooking frozen crab legs is not difficult, and it doesn’t take much time. The steps and the different methods of cooking crab legs above show how easy it is to cook crab legs; all you have to do is use the seasoning of your choice and eat it warm. To see a video on how to cook crab legs, click here.