Baked Crab Legs

Name: Baked Crab Legs
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 pounds snow crab legs; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 6 tablespoons unsalted butter; 6 cloves minced garlic; 2 teaspoons fresh parsley, minced; 2 teaspoons cajun seasoning; 2 teaspoons kosher salt; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper; 1 medium lemon, zest and juice

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These Baked Crab Legs are one of the best ways to fulfill your seafood cravings! With a delicious garlic butter sauce, this one-pan recipe is an easy dinner ready in 30 minutes, with minimal cleanup and maximum flavor! Even for those new to seafood, this is a great intro to preparing crab legs.

Baked crab legs with garlic butter and lemon sauce in a casserole dish.

This simple recipe is an easy way to enjoy amazing snow crab legs right at home. Don't be intimidated by cooking crab yourself! We have all the tips and tricks you need to enjoy succulent crab that will turn out perfect every time.

You may also enjoy this seafood boil recipe, this butter poached lobster, or this chicken and shrimp carbonara.

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❤️Why we love this recipe
🦀Ingredients
✨Substitutions & variations
🔪Prep work
📋Instructions
✨Top tip
💭Frequently Asked Questions
More Recipes To Consider
📖 Recipe
💬 Community

❤️Why we love this recipe

Minimal cleanup - Seafood can be messy, but it doesn't have to be! You can make and serve the crab in the same dish and use a small bowl to discard the shells.
Delicious flavor - Snow crab legs and garlic lemon butter sauce are a match made in heaven! You can dip the crab meat and sides in the butter mixture for a great bite.
Cheaper than ordering out - You can get everything at your local grocery store, which is a great way to get more bang for your buck.
Quick and easy - With a cook time of 30 minutes, you'll be eating in no time. Even if it's your first time making it, it'll come out perfect.
A great dinner option - Pair with white wine and a side of fingerling potatoes and corn ribs for a hearty and filling meal!

🦀Ingredients

Here are the ingredients we used for this recipe. You can find more information for substitutions below.

Snow crab legs - Thawed or frozen. We recommended thawing the crab legs for 1-2 days in the refrigerator for softer shells. However, it is not 100% necessary and you can cook them while they are still frozen. If cooking from frozen, just allow a little extra cooking time for the crab to warm through.
Olive oil
Unsalted butter
Minced garlic
Fresh parsley
Kosher salt
Cajun seasoning
Black pepper
Lemon juice and zest
Lemon wedges for serving

Visit the recipe card for the full quantities and nutritional information.

✨Substitutions & variations

Here are a few suggestions on additional flavors to try, or simple variations to this recipe.

Old Bay - Try adding old bay seasoning in addition to the other seasonings.
Lemon - Add more lemon zest and juice for more lemon flavor.
Spicy - Love spice? Try adding cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, or extra cajun seasoning.
Herbed - Try adding more herbs, like basil, thyme, and rosemary.
Extra garlicky - Love garlic? Add more!

🔪Prep work

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Mince garlic and parsley.
Measure out all remaining ingredients.

📋Instructions

In a small saucepan, melt butter with olive oil. Add garlic and cook til fragrant, about 30 seconds, then add parsley, salt, pepper, and cajun seasoning. (Image 1)

Making lemon butter garlic sauce in a small saucepan.

Add lemon zest to your sauce. (Image 2)

Next, add your lemon juice. (Image 3)

Hand squeezing lemon juice in a sauce pan of garlic butter.

Place crab legs in a casserole dish, cover with butter sauce, then with aluminum foil. (Image 4)

Bake for 15-20 minutes, baste again with the sauce before serving. (Image 5)

staub casserole dish with baked crab legs smothered in garlic herb dipping sauce, with lemon wedges.

Now, to get to the crab meat, you could use a crab cracker or kitchen shears if you have some on hand. If not, the first step is to break the crab shell at the joint. (Image 6)

Next, insert a fork point into the crab. (Image 7)

Inserting a fork inside a crab leg to remove the meat.

Now, simply pull the fork out and the crab meat should come out effortlessly! (Image 8)

If not, just wiggle it a little bit. Dip in your remaining butter and enjoy! (Image 9)

hand holding a snow crab leg pulled from the shell.

Dipping crab meat into a spicy butter sauce.

✨Top tip

If you have time, thaw frozen crab legs. While you can cook them from frozen (they are already pre-cooked!) you will need to heat them for longer, which can make the crab meat rubbery. Thaw the crab legs also makes the shells softer, making them easier to handle.

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💭Frequently Asked Questions

How to store the leftovers?

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat gently in the oven, or on the stovetop until warm enough to enjoy.

How to know when crab legs are done?

Most crab legs actually come pre-cooked before they are frozen, so your main objective is to ensure they are heated through. To be sure, the internal temperature should read 140°F.

What's the difference between king crab legs and snow crab legs?

Snow crab has longer and thinner legs that have thinner shells. King crab legs are much larger, with a much thicker shell.

Snow crab is generally much easier to find, and more affordable, plus you don't need any special tools to eat it. That's why we opted for crab legs in this recipe.

More Recipes To Consider

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