Steamed Snow Crab Legs Recipe
Steamed snow crab legs are tasty and easy to prepare. It can be dipped in lemon butter sauce and eaten with potato and corn, or you can do it the Filipino way by dipping it in vinegar with garlic and eat it with white rice. Both of these choices will give you a good tasting crab legs…
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Steamed snow crab legs are tasty and easy to prepare. It can be dipped in lemon butter sauce and eaten with potato and corn, or you can do it the Filipino way by dipping it in vinegar with garlic and eat it with white rice. Both of these choices will give you a good tasting crab legs to enjoy.
Snow crab legs are quick to cook because these are sold pre-cooked most of the time. You will know that it was cooked beforehand if the color is already orangey. Crabs and similar seafoods are prepared this way to prevent it from getting spoiled quickly. I got these crabs packaged in bags, each weighing 2 pounds. These come out frozen, so I needed to thaw it first before steaming.
Aside from snow crab legs, you can do this simple crab recipe to king crab legs, Maryland blue crabs, and dungeness crab. Make sure to adjust the steaming time depending on the weight of the crab and its state (pre-cooked or fresh).
How to Cook Steamed Snow Crab Legs with Vinegar Dip
Snow crab legs are so quick to steam. When you are using pre-cooked crab legs, it will only take a maximum of 5 minutes to steam it. I used a multi-purpose cooker for this dish because it is tall enough to accommodate the long crab legs.
Start by boiling water in the steamer. Add lemon rinds or lemon zest to the boiling water. This will make the crab smell fresh and have that hint of lemon when done. As I’ve mentioned, steam the crab for no longer than 5 minutes and the transfer it on a large plate.
Make the vinegar dip by combining vinegar and crushed garlic. I used apple cider vinegar for this recipe. You can use white vinegar, cane, or even white wine vinegar as alternatives.
Serve the snow crab legs with the vinegar dip. I enjoyed this with white rice while eating using my hands.
The traditional Filipino way of doing this is called “pinasingaw”. Halabos is also another method similar to steaming, but it cooks the crab with a small amount of water. See this halabos na alimasag recipe for more details.
Try this Steamed Snow Crab Legs Recipe. Enjoy!
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Steamed Snow Crab Legs Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lbs snow crab legs cleaned
- Rind from 1 lemon
- 6 cups water
- 1/2 cup apple cider or white vinegar
- 4 to 6 pieces crushed garlic
Instructions
- Pour water on a tall steamer. Let boil.
- Using a grater, grate the skin of the lemon to produce lemon rinds and then add these in boiling water.
- Arrange the crab legs in the steamer. Steam for 4 to 5 minutes.
- Prepare the vinegar dip by combining vinegar and crushed garlic in a small bowl.
- Arrange the snow crab legs in a plate and serve with vinegar dip.
- Share and enjoy!
Lou says
What ingredient was not listed in the ingredients after the……1 tablespoon ???
Vanjo Merano says
Hey Lou, thanks for pointing that out. It does not refer to any ingredient, so please ignore it. I also removed it from the recipe line to avoid confusion.
Julie pearl says
Now i can cook it for my husband
Vanjo Merano says
Julie, I am positive that he will appreciate your cooking.