Entrée: United States – Classic Crab Boil
Serving Size: 6
Approximate Time
Prep
20 min
Cook
37 min
Additional
10 min
Total
1 hr 7 min
Ingredients
12 live blue crabs (about 4–5 lb / 1.8–2.3 kg), scrubbed
6 qt (5.7 L) water
1–2 (12 oz / 355 ml) bottles lager beer (optional; replace with water if not using)
1 / 2–2 / 3 cup (40–55 g) Old Bay or similar crab boil seasoning, plus extra for serving
1 / 4 cup (60 g) kosher salt (reduce if using very salty seasoning blend)
2 crab boil spice bags (optional, e.g., Zatarain’s)
3 lemons, halved (juice squeezed into pot, then add rinds)
2 medium yellow onions, quartered
1 head garlic, halved crosswise
4 bay leaves
1 1 / 2 lb (680 g) baby red potatoes
1 lb (450 g) andouille or smoked sausage, cut into 1-inch pieces (optional)
6 ears corn, husked and halved
1 / 2 cup (1 stick / 115 g) unsalted butter, melted, for serving
Hot sauce, to taste
Additional lemon wedges, for serving
Chopped parsley, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Set up a large (12–16 qt) stockpot. Add water, beer (if using), Old Bay, kosher salt, optional spice bags, lemon juice and rinds, onions, garlic, and bay leaves.
Bring the pot to a vigorous boil over high heat. Let the aromatic broth boil 5 minutes to infuse.
Add potatoes. Return to a boil and cook 10–12 minutes until just tender when pierced.
Add sausage (if using) and cook 5 minutes.
Add corn and cook 5–7 minutes until bright and crisp-tender.
Add the live crabs carefully, claws first, using tongs. Cover, return to a strong boil, and cook 12–15 minutes, until shells are bright red and crabs float. Rotate crabs halfway with tongs for even cooking if your pot is crowded.
Turn off heat. Let everything steep 10 minutes to absorb seasoning (shorter for milder, longer for spicier).
Drain well using a large colander or carefully pour off the liquid. Spread newspapers or butcher paper on a table and spill the boil out for communal eating, or transfer to platters.
Serve hot with melted butter, extra Old Bay, lemon wedges, and hot sauce. Garnish with parsley if desired.
Notes: If using pre-cooked crab clusters, add them with the corn and heat 5–7 minutes. To stop cooking sooner, pull items as they reach doneness or shock briefly with a quick rinse of hot contents using a colander (do not use cold water, which can wash off seasoning).
