Crab Boil

Want to feast? Don’t mind getting a bit messy? Then this Blue Crab Boil with potatoes, corn, smoked sausage and hard boiled eggs, all tossed in a garlicky butter sauce, is a must!

Down here in the South, boils are a big thing, especially for get togethers. A while back, we posted our recipe for Lowcountry Shrimp Boil. We pig out on that one every now and then.

But lately I’ve been getting into crabbing. Usually I boil them up and pick the meat for later use in crab cakes (crabby patties, in the parlance of our six year old Spongebob fan) or She Crab Soup, which will be coming your way soon.

For our first ever blue crab recipe post, though, we wanted to go big!

Ingredient Notes

For a complete list, along with amounts, see the recipe card at the end of the post. Here are the main things we are using today.

• Blue crabs – How many of these you’re going to want per person will depend on size and appetites. 3-6 per person is a good guideline here, as there are plenty of other good things to munch on in this boil. If you’re buying them from a market, ask the vendor how many you’ll need. If you’re catching them yourself, cook as many as you’ve got!
• Sausage – Andouille is most typical in Southern seafood boils, but other smoked sausage varieties will work too.
• Potatoes – I like either Yukon gold or red potatoes here. They hold up well and don’t fall apart like starchier varieties.
• Corn – Fresh is best, but frozen is fine too though. We’re more concerned with the crabs anyway.
• Hard boiled eggs – They’re not strictly necessary, but I got used to them at my favorite crab takeout place, Bo’s Crab Spot. If you’re ever in Ft. Pierce, Florida, you’ve gotta try them!
• Onion – Just to add flavor to the liquid, you don’t actually eat it.
• Garlic – Lots. Both in the boil and the butter sauce.
• Old Bay – A seafood boil staple for generations.
• Creole seasoning – I make my own. You can find the recipe here. Store bought is fine for the boil itself, but for the butter sauce it can be too salty. Add it to the sauce gradually if it’s not homemade.
• Beer – To add flavor to the boiling liquid. Be sure to buy extra for sipping.
• Butter – And lots of it!
• Lemon – This is also going in the boil and the sauce. Grab a few extras to cut up for serving.
• Bay leaves – Another flavor enhancer for the broth.
• Hot sauce – I use Crystal. Any good Louisiana style sauce will work. Add as much as you want, depending on how spicy you want it.
• Parsley – You can skip it if you want, it’s just for decoration.

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Blue Crab Boil Recipe

In a large stock pot, I mix together water, beer, 10 cloves smashed garlic, onion, ½ cup Old Bay, ¼ cup Creole seasoning, halved lemon and bay leaves. I bring this mixture to a boil and cook for 5 minutes.

Then, I add in potatoes and andouille sausage and boil for about 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are almost done but not quite there yet.

While the potatoes and sausage are boiling, I melt butter in a saucepan, then add remaining sauce ingredients (minus the boil liquid), bring it to a very low simmer, and cook for 5 minutes.

Next, I add corn to the pot and continue cooking for 5 minutes, then add peeled hard boiled eggs and cook an additional 2 minutes.

Carefully, I use a large slotted spoon to remove potatoes, sausage, corn and eggs to a platter.

I bring the liquid back to a rolling boil, then use tongs to place crabs in the boiling liquid. I cook them for about 12-15 minutes, depending on the size of the crabs. Once they’re done, I remove crabs to the platter.

Finally, I stir some of the boil liquid into the butter sauce to thin it down a little (I use about ¼ cup), then pour the sauce all over the boiled blue crabs, potatoes, sausage, corn and eggs. I toss until everything is nicely coated.

Tips, Notes and Variations

• You need a large pot for a crab boil. Mine is 32 quart, which is overkill, but I do recommend at least 12 quart. If you don’t have one, many party rental companies carry them.
• The fresher the crabs, the better. If you’re not catching them yourself, make sure to get them from a reputable source. Discard any crabs that are dead.
• Before boiling, place the blue crabs in a cooler with ice for 30 minutes or so to stun them. Not only is it more humane when you drop them in the boiling water, it prevents their claws from falling off while cooking.
• After the crabs cook, many people add ice to the pot to stop the cooking process, then allow the crabs to soak for some time to absorb more of the seasoning flavors. Personally, I don’t find this step necessary with the well seasoned butter sauce, but go for it if you like.
• If you don’t have enough blues to serve everybody sufficiently, you can throw some snow or king crab legs in during the last couple of minutes. These come already cooked, so you’re just warming them up. Alternately, you could throw in some shrimp or shellfish like clams or mussels.
• Leftovers? I just pick the crab meat, seal it in a zip top bag and freeze it for later use in crab cakes.
• If you don’t have that much experience with blue crabs, I highly recommend the following YouTube video: Picking Crabs the Proper Way with Bobby Abner. Not having a good picking technique can result in a lot of meat being left in the shell, and it’s too delicious to waste a single morsel.

So, how does that platter look? It’s a feast we’ll surely be coming back to. Just don’t forget plenty of paper towels, you’ll need them!

More great seafood recipes:
Shrimp and Grits
Frutti di Mare
Steamed Maine Lobster
Shrimp Etouffe
Gambas al Ajillo
Moqueca

Crab Boil Recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

This Blue Crab Boil is a total feast, complete with potatoes, corn, sausage, boiled eggs and a delicious garlic butter sauce.

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Ingredients

Crab Boil

• 6 quarts water
• 12 ounces beer
• 10 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 large onion, quartered
• ½ cup Old bay
• ¼ cup Creole seasoning
• 1 lemon, halved
• 5 bay leaves
• 1.5 pounds small potatoes
• 1 pound andouille sausage, cut into chunks
• 5 ears corn, cut into thirds
• 6 hard boiled eggs, peeled
• 12 live blue crabs

Creole Butter Sauce

• 2 sticks salted butter
• 2 tablespoons Creole seasoning
• ½ tablespoon Old Bay
• 10 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
• hot sauce, to taste
• reserved crab boil liquid (amount depending on preferred consistency)

Instructions

1. In a large stock pot, mix together water, beer, 10 cloves smashed garlic, onion, ½ cup Old Bay, ¼ cup Creole seasoning, halved lemon and bay leaves. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes.
2. Add in potatoes and andouille sausage. Boil for about 15 minutes, or until potatoes are almost done but not quite there yet.
3. While the potatoes and sausage are boiling, melt butter in a saucepan, then add remaining sauce ingredients (minus the boil liquid). Bring to a very low simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
4. Add corn to the pot and continue cooking for 5 minutes.
5. Add peeled hard boiled eggs. Cook an additional 2 minutes.
6. Carefully, using a large slotted spoon, remove potatoes, sausage, corn and eggs to a platter.
7. Bring liquid back to a rolling boil. One at a time, use tongs to place crabs in the boiling liquid. Cook for about 12-5 minutes, depending on the size of the crabs. Remove crabs to the platter, or add ice to the pot and soak them (see note #5), then add them to the platter.
8. Stir some of the boil liquid into the butter sauce to thin it down a little (I use about ¼ cup).
9. Pour the Creole butter sauce all over the boiled blue crabs, potatoes, sausage, corn and eggs. Toss until everything is nicely coated.
10. Grab a couple rolls of paper towels, then dig in!

Notes

1. How many of these you’re going to want per person will depend on size and appetites. 3-6 per person is a good guideline here, as there are plenty of other good things to munch on in this boil. If you’re buying them from a market, ask the vendor how many you’ll need. If you’re catching them yourself, cook as many as you’ve got!
2. You need a large pot for a crab boil. Mine is 32 quart, which is overkill, but I do recommend at least 12 quart. If you don’t have one, many party rental companies carry them.
3. The fresher the crabs, the better. If you’re not catching them yourself, make sure to get them from a reputable source. Discard any crabs that are dead.
4. Before boiling, place the blue crabs in a cooler with ice for 30 minutes or so to stun them. Not only is it more humane when you drop them in the boiling water, it prevents their claws from falling off while cooking.
5. After the crabs cook, many people add ice to the pot to stop the cooking process, then allow the crabs to soak for 10 minutes or so to absorb more of the seasoning flavors. Personally, I don’t find this step necessary with the well seasoned butter sauce, but go for it if you like.

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Welcome to GypsyPlate! I'm Alpana, former wordwide tour manager and professional caterer, now full time blogger. I love exploring cuisines from around the world, and my recipes have been featured on sites such as MSN, Parade, Brit + Co, CNET and AOL. You can explore my entire collection of sortable recipes in my Recipe Index or learn more about me here.