How to Prepare Crab

Preparing Alaska Golden King crab with Captain Anna

You Got This! Preparing And Serving Alaska Crab At Home Is Easy

Our King, Snow, and Dungeness crab is pre-cooked and flash frozen to preserve the wild-caught taste of Alaska. To prepare at home, simply thaw, rinse, and serve chilled or warmed. Our boat captains tell us their favorite way to eat Alaska crab is cold with melted butter on the side. Incredibly delicious and no reheating necessary! If you prefer to serve your crab warm, remember to be gentle when heating to avoid overcooking. Grilling, steaming, and roasting are all good options. Since Alaska crab is typically pre-cooked, it only requires a few minutes of heat to warm.

Step 1: THAW

If frozen, we recommend thawing all types of Alaska crab in the refrigerator. Place the crab on a rimmed tray, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to thaw 12–24 hours in the refrigerator. We suggest using the crab as soon as it has been defrosted but it can keep for a day or two in the refrigerator.

Step 2: Rinse

Once thawed, rinse the crab under cold water. Alaska crab is wrapped in a protective layer of ice to preserve its flavor and quality. Rinsing thoroughly removes this any last traces of this glaze.

Step 3: Heat

Warm

Bring a large pot of water to boil, turn off heat and place the crab (in its shell) into the hot water. Let the crab sit in the hot water for 4–8 minutes until fragrant and warmed through. Remove the crab from the water with tongs and set aside to drain. Dungeness, King, and Snow crab can also be warmed by simply adding the cold, shelled meat to a warm entrée a few minutes before serving. This works particularly well with pasta and soups!

Steam

Fill a large pot with a few inches of water and bring to a boil. Place the crab legs, whole Dungeness crab, or crab sections in a steamer basket over the boiling water, making sure the crab sits above the water. Reduce the heat to medium, cover with a lid and heat gently for 4–8 minutes. The crab will omit a crab aroma once it is warmed. Remove with tongs.

Grill

Heat grill to medium-high heat. Brush legs or crab sections with olive oil and place on grill. Cook for 2–5 minutes, flip, and heat for an additional 2–5 minutes until the crab meat is warm.

Roast

Preheat oven to 350°F. Add crab legs and 1/8 inch of water to shallow baking pan. Cover with foil and bake for 3–8 minutes until just heated.

Step 4: Serve

King Crab

Begin by bending the legs back and forth at the middle of the joint, gently separating the leg sections (see our video demonstration). Use kitchen shears to cut open the underside of the crab legs (the white smooth part), cracking open the shell with your fingers. Pull out the crab meat, dip into melted butter and enjoy!

Snow Crab

Separate each leg from the cluster with a gentle twist. Bend the leg back and forth at the middle of the joint to loosen the meat. Using your hands, crack one section of the leg in half, gently pulling the shell off and sliding out the meat. For the claw, use a crab cracker or crab shears to crack the shell.

Dungeness Crab

To clean a whole Dungeness crab, start by removing the triangular flap from the underside of the crab. Next, place the crab belly side down and lift off the back shell. Rinse well with cool water, removing and discarding the membrane. Twist the legs and claws to remove from the body. A nutcracker, heavy knife or mallet can be used to crack the shell of each leg. Pull out the crab meat and enjoy!