Lemon Garlic Crab Feast

One-pot recipes have been gaining popularity lately, and why wouldn't they? They're easy to throw together, easier to clean, and combine most, if not all, the contents  for dinner in one go around. 

While I've tried and thoroughly enjoyed the various one-pot pasta dishes out there, my recipe for crab legs is probably my most favorite one-dish of all. 

This recipe is a rift on the low-country boil, which typically has shrimp, corn, potatoes, onions, seasonings, and sausage. While low-country boils have been modified for a in-door kitchen, they are typically cooked outside in one large pot for a crowd of hungry eaters. My first introduction to the crab-boil was at my friend's going-away party. Her family cooked up a huge batch of fish, potatoes, and corn outside. It's hard to beat food that's been cooked out in the open fields! Nevertheless, my recipe takes aspects of the boil and makes it easier for two-people to have a quick, one-pot seafood dinner.

For this dinner, improvisation is key. Hate sausage? Leave it out! It's mostly here to flavor the water. Love potatoes but aren't a fan of corn on the cob? Heap more potatoes in the pan so that the crab legs have somewhere to steam. The dish is put together in layers, each one building a delicious ladder of flavor, where crabs will steam for a few minutes at the top, and corn, sausage, and potatoes will boil underneath. 

You want to let the crab legs steam. To preserve the legs, fishermen boil them as soon as they are caught, and I've noticed that boiling them again lends them a rubbery texture. Steaming them warms them through and makes the meat silky-soft. This meat is best pulled out and dunked into decadent lemon-garlic butter. 

 Also, while butter can be easily melted in the microwave, I like slowly melting it on a stove-top to allow the oils from the garlic to slowly permeate the butter. I know, I know, this technically makes it a two-pot dinner, but it's butter, so it's worth it to wash the extra pot. 

The potatoes, corn, and crabs have been timed to all finish cooking at the same time. I highly advise adding them all to one platter or pot, dripping the butter over the whole dish and grabbing a pile of napkins, because this is one messy, delicious, deceptively easy feast. 

Recipe: 

Ingredients:

Crab Feast: 

2 small potatoes, cut into cubes (I used Idaho)

2 lemons

4-inch piece of Andouille sausage

2 corn on the cobs

1 large clove of garlic, smashed

1.5 pounds of thawed crab legs ( I used snow crab clusters)

Salt and pepper to taste

Parsley (optional, for color) 

Lemon-Garlic Butter:

1/4 cup (or half a stick) of salted butter

Half of a lemon, juiced

1 clove of garlic, minced

Black pepper

Directions:

For Lemon-Garlic Butter:

Melt 1/4 cup butter in a small sauce pan. Mince garlic and add in to the melting butter. Do not let it burn or brown. Watch over it, and once the butter is melted, add in the lemon juice and pepper to taste. To keep it warm while the crab legs steam keep the burner on warm. 

For Crab Feast 

Fill a 5-Quart Dutch oven about 2/3 of the way up with water. Bring to a boil over high heat. In the meantime, cut potatoes into half-inch chunks, shuck the corn, slice sausage into rounds, halve lemons, and smash garlic. When the water is at a boil, add in the lemon, garlic, sausage, and potatoes. Boil for 6 minutes. 

After the potatoes and sausage have boiled for 6 minutes, add in the corn cobs. Lay the crab legs on top of the cobs, making sure to tuck in the legs, which may try to sneak out the side. Put the lid on and keep boiling for 3 minutes. When finished, arrange the crab legs, corn, potatoes, and sausage on a platter or in a pan. Pour lemon-garlic butter over the whole arrangement. Sprinkle on some fresh or dried parsley for added color. The potatoes will be very bland, so you'll want to salt and pepper them to taste. Salt and pepper the corn for added flavor.

Open crab legs, dunk in the lemon-garlic drippings, and enjoy!