How to Cook King Crab Legs The Right Way

There are 4 basic ways of cooking king crab legs Baking, Boiling, Steaming and Grilling. Today we will cover my favorite 3 ways

If your crab legs have been frozen then you do not need to “cook” them you only need to reheat them thoroughly. 99% of the crab you buy will have been precooked and frozen.

Grilling King Crab Legs 

Baste the crab legs in your choice of oil or even spray them with a little pam. This will keep the crab from sticking to the grill. Place the crab legs on your grill and cook for 5 or 6 minutes. If you are using a charcoal grill you can close the lid to add smoky flavor to the meat. Flip the legs over and grill for another 4 or 5 minutes. Wait for them to cool on a plate and you can serve with dawn butter with garlic or even a 50% cocktail sauce 50% barbeque sauce mixture. Tip Lemon Juice is also your friend.

Steaming King Crab

Fill a good size pot with about 2 to 3 cups of water with a little salt added and bring the water to a boil. Place the king crab legs on a rack above the water and cover the lid of the pot and keep it closed until you begin to smell the aroma of cooked crab meat. I like to open one leg and eat it to test how warm the center is. If the inside of the meat is to cold simply place the rest of the legs into the pot to cook a little longer. Be careful not to go to long though as you can dry them out and they won’t taste as good

Boiled King Crab Legs

Bring a half filled pot of salted water to a boil. Add any seasoning you like or none at all. Put the crab into the salted water and then turn the temperature to medium and allow them to cook for about 7 minutes. Pull them out with some tongues and rinse and serve them.

You can also take these cooked crabs and put them into pasta, salad, pizza, dips, really anywhere you might use any other meat.

Ideas for dipping and spices cooking king crab legs

Salt, Garlic, Butter, Lemon, Old Bay, Red Pepper Flake, Black Pepper, Cocktail sauce, BBQ sauce

What Does Alaskan King Crab Taste Like?

The taste is often compared to a piece of fresh fruit because it has sweet and juicy flavor. The texture has been even said to be like coconut.

I find the taste to be a cross between lobster and a giant prawn.  Like most seafood king crab can take of the taste of whatever it is cooked in. 

If it is steamed the natural sweetness comes out however If it is boiled in a seasoning like old bay or crab seasoning it will have a nice heat to it. If you dunk it in drawn butter then it tastes very much like lobster tail but much tenderer and less chewy.

Alaskan King Crab Legs

Alaskan King Crab is one of the “kings” of seafood and is a great tasting treat for any seafood lover. While this food has always been popular is has grown even more so in popularity because of the hit show Deadliest Catch that came on Discovery Channel.

It is important to only buy Official Alaskan king crab because regular king crab could have been harvested illegally in Countries like Russia and the quality is not the same and it is bad for the fishery and does not support American commerce. You want USDA Inspected great quality crab meat that you can feel safe to serve.

Cooked Alaskan King Crab Whole