How to Bake Crab Legs

Crab legs are an amazing delicacy, especially if they are cooked correctly. While most people boil them, that isn't necessarily the best way to prepare them. Boiling actually softens the crab shell, making it more difficult to crack and break apart to get to the delicious crab meat. I have found that the best way to prepare crab legs is to bake them. The baking process makes the shells easy to break open. It also forces the crab meat away from the walls of the shell so that it is easier to remove. Follow the steps below for the best crab legs you will ever put in your mouth.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Crab legs
• Large open grill plate
• Large rectangular casserole dish or aluminum cake pan (same size or larger than the grill plate)
• Crab- or nut-cracking implements (one per person)
• Cocktail or fondue forks
• 1 cup butter
• 1/4 tsp. Season-All and/or Bay Seasoning
• 1/4 tsp. garlic salt
• 1 to 2 tbs. lemon juice
• Parsley for garnish

1. Purchase the crab legs you wish to bake at your grocery mart or fish market. While the baking process will work with any size crab legs, it is most ideal for the snow crab variety. Allow about six legs per individual, although this will vary depending upon the size of the legs.

2. Defrost frozen crab legs at least partially to ensure that they cook throughout. This can be done quickly by placing frozen legs in hot water for about 15 minutes.

3. Thoroughly wash the crab legs before preparing to bake them.

4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. While it is possible to use a convection oven, this process works much better with a standard oven.

5. Place the clean crab legs on a grill plate with holes or open ridges. The plate must fit into the oven and be approximately the same size as the rectangular casserole or baking pan that will also be used. It can be slightly smaller, but should not be larger.

6. Place the grill plate on the top shelf of the oven.

7. Fill the rectangular-shaped casserole dish or baking pan half-way with hot water.

8. Place the rectangular-shaped casserole dish or baking plan of water on the second shelf of the oven, directly underneath the grill plate of crab legs.

9. Bake the crab legs for 30 minutes.

10. Make a butter sauce while the legs are baking by melting 1 cup butter (for every four people). Season the butter with about 1/4 tsp. Season-All or Bay Seasoning, 1/4 tsp. garlic salt and 1 to 2 tbs. lemon juice.

11. After the legs have cooked 30 minutes, take one of them out of the oven. Using a crab- or nut-cracking implement, crack the leg and remove some of the crab meat. If it is cooked through and hot, the crab legs are ready. If it is still slightly cool or cold, then continue baking the crabs for up to 10 more minutes.

12. Serve the crab legs as they are, along with a bit of seasoned butter and some parsley garnish.

Tips & Warnings

• If you don't want to put the legs into hot water to defrost them, then let them sit in the refrigerator for about 4 to 6 hours to achieve partial defrosting.
• It is important to thoroughly clean the crab legs before baking them to remove any bacteria that might otherwise be cooked into the meat during the baking process.
• Consider providing individual bowls of seasoned butter for each person eating crab.
• It isn't advised to defrost frozen crab legs by leaving them out overnight or in a hot kitchen.
• Do not overbake the crab, or the meat will be tough. Do not underbake the crab.

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