King Crab, Easy & Unbelievable
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DECEMBER 22, 2009
Lisa found a wonderful yet simple recipe today from one of our favorite b&b's in the Matanuska Valley. This one is great for the holiday season as King Crab is a traditional menu item for a New Year's Feast here in Alaska. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
1 or 2 crab legs per person. You will find them frozen. They are all flash frozen on the boats.
Disposable aluminum roasting pan. That's it!
Heat oven to 450 degrees. Remove the crab legs from the freezer before you start dinner. Place the frozen legs in the roasting pan. A claw end may stick out, and that’s ok. Cover over the roasting pan with aluminum foil to make a tent over the crab legs. Take care—their spiney edges are very sharp. As you’re cooking dinner, put the crab legs into the hot oven a half hour before serving time. They can put off an unpleasant smell as they steam. I prefer this method to steaming them in a pot because there’s not as much water to take away their flavor. The ice melting off of them will provide plenty of water for steaming. Have a pair of kitchen shears or scissors at the table for each person having crab. As the last thing, prepare small bowls of melted butter and take to the table. Use tongs to carefully transfer the crab legs from the roasting pan to a serving tray or plates.
How to show your guests how to eat a King crab leg: After the crab shell is cooled a bit, grasp the leg sections, one hand on each section. Crack the leg at the joint. Carefully separate and pull apart, bringing the tough cartilege along with it. With each section separated, take the shears and cut up the side of the shell from one open end to the other. Crack it open slightly, then break the shell so that you may extract the whole thick piece of crab meat. A solid chunk several inches long is a thing of beauty, and you won’t believe how delicious it is. Dip it in butter and savor. Some people enjoy the backfin meat, but most Alaskans just toss it to the dogs. You’ll want to remove the disposable roasting pan to the garbage right away because the smell can be pretty bad after you’ve enjoyed your crab and it’s no longer alluring.
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