I’ve been sitting on a faux boiled crab recipe that I got from my cousin Lisa for about a year now. Why did I wait so long to make these??? By faux, I mean you don’t have to go outside and have a big traditional crab boil. You can cook them inside, with minimal fuss and cleanup. Another perk? They are even BETTER than traditional boiled crabs. This is because you take the shell off the crab before you cook them, allowing the crabmeat to soak up butter, garlic, and seasoning. These crabs reminded me of delicious French mussels, but even better because of the blue crabs!
I made the traditional South Louisiana dip that is always made for crab and crawfish boils. Combo of ketchup, mayo, horseradish, lemon, hot sauce, worcestershire sauce, and maybe some other things I’m forgetting now. Anyway, the crabs were so good that the dip was just a bad idea (except for potato dipping). You don’t need, and shouldn’t add, anything to these delicious crabs.
Has it been adequately conveyed to you that you HAVE to make these crabs???
You can make as few crabs as you want (I made only 6, which I most regretted) up to 2 dozen. In making a smaller amount, I lessened all the ingredients except the beer.
Beer Steamed Crabs
- 2 dozen live crabs
- 2-3 sticks of butter (you can use more or less depending on your preference)
- 2 whole pods of garlic (you can use more or less depending on your preference), minced or sliced
- Tony’s or other cajun seasoning
- 20 oz beer, whatever you have on hand (we used Yuengling, but ideally I would use Abita Amber)
Chill crabs on ice so they do not pinch you while cleaning them. Take off top shell and take the lungs out and spray off all the guts out of the crabs. I did not like the “killing” part of this recipe, so Geoff took over.
You’re going to need a fairly big pot. Make first layer of crabs around the bottom of the pot and sprinkle with Tony’s and slices of butter and garlic. Make another layer of crabs on top of the first layer and again sprinkle with Tony’s and slices of butter and garlic. Continue making layers until all the crabs are in the pot.
Take 20 oz of beer and pour it around the edge of the pot so the Tony’s seasoning doesn’t get poured off the crabs. You can sprinkle more seasoning after pouring the beer if you think some of it washed off.
Cover the pot and cook on medium to high heat until you see steam coming from the pot. Once you see steam coming from the pot, set a timer for 5 minutes. Once the 5 minutes is up, they are done and ready to eat!
I served it with boiled potatoes (just quartered red potatoes boiled in crab boil and seasoning) and beer! I actually made this for my birthday dinner and this meal was oh-so-worthy of the honor.
temple adventure 