How To Reheat Crab Legs [I Test 6 Methods]

Crab legs don’t come cheap so there’s no way I would let a crumb of that meat go to waste, and neither should you. I decided to do an experiment to find out the best way to reheat crab legs.

The best way to reheat crab legs is by steaming them. Set up your steamer and bring the water to a boil. Add the crab legs and steam for 5-7 minutes, you should be able to smell the crab when it’s done. You can also flavor the water with things like Old Bay seasoning or lemon juice.

How I Tested Reheating Crab Legs

I got my hands on some delicious snow crab legs, stuffed my face for lunch, and then put the leftovers away. After a night in the fridge, the crab legs were ready for reheating. I tested reheating them in:

• A steamer: The best method.
• Boiling water: Good for reheating crab legs in iterations.
• The microwave: Quick and convenient.
• The oven: Slow, but good for bulk reheating.
• In another dish: Good if you want something different.
• On the grill: Bonus method.

My goal was clear, find a reheating technique that would leave me with juicy, moist crab meat.

Note: All these methods will work for any kind of crab legs; Snow crab, Dungeness crab, and king crab legs. But you may need to adjust the timings for crab legs with thicker shells.

Reheating Crab Legs By Steaming

Time: 7 minutes
Rating: 10/10

1. Set up your steamer and bring the water to a boil.
2. Add the crab legs to the steamer basket and cover tightly.
3. Heat for 5-7 minutes or until you can smell the crab – this indicates they’re ready.

Water is standard for steaming, but you can get creative here. For example, try using beer, a mix of half water and half lemon juice, or adding seasonings like Old Bay to the water for an extra flavor kick.

If you don’t have a steamer, you can also steam crab legs in a pan on the stove. Add the crab legs along with half a cup of water and some butter, then cover with a lid heating on medium.

Results: Steaming proved to be the best method for reheating crab legs. It was easy and quick, and the crab came out perfectly heated, flavorful, and moist without becoming soggy. This method is highly recommended for its ability to retain the crab’s natural taste and texture.

Reheating Crab Legs By Boiling

Time: 2-4 minutes
Rating: 7/10

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add half a cup of minced garlic, a handful of fresh parsley, and half a cup of vegetable oil.
2. Dip thawed crab legs into the boiling water two at a time and hold them there for around 2-3 minutes.

If you like nothing less than piping hot crab legs, this is a great reheating method for you. You can keep the pot boiling while you’re eating and dip the legs a few at a time. Dip, eat, repeat.

The parsley and garlic are just examples of flavors you can add, you can pick what to use. And adding oil to the boiling water is a tip I learned from a cooking forum. It helps prevent the crab meat from becoming too soggy.

Results: The boiling method worked fine, but I preferred the steamed crab legs. The crab meat felt slightly more waterlogged, which diluted its rich flavor.

Reheating Crab Legs In The Microwave

Time: 1-2 minutes
Rating: 8/10

1. If necessary, cut the crab claws at the joint to ensure they fit in the microwave.
2. Wrap up to two claws in a damp paper towel, then cover with plastic wrap.
3. Microwave in 15-30 second intervals for 1-2 minutes.
4. Carefully unwrap the package, being mindful of the steam that will escape.

The damp paper towel is essential because it creates a steamy environment to heat the crab meat without drying it out. The plastic wrap helps to contain this steam, but you can skip it if you want.

For added flavor, consider adding some fresh herbs like dill inside the package before microwaving (I saw someone do this in a recipe once!).

Results: Microwaving crab legs worked surprisingly well, providing a quick and convenient reheating method. The crab meat was warmed through and tasted good. The only issue was it did smell a bit, which can be an issue if you have a fish hater in the house.

Reheating Crab Legs In The Oven

Time: 10-15 minutes
Rating: 8/10

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
2. Place the crab legs in a baking dish and add enough water to cover the bottom half-inch of the dish, partially submerging the legs.
3. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 10-15 minutes.

If you prefer the crab legs a bit drier on the outside, broil them for 1-2 minutes at the end of the reheating time.

Pro tip: I find the oven works well if you’re reheating the crab legs from frozen because the slower heating gives them time to gently defrost and then reheat.

Results: The oven-heated crab legs were flavorful and evenly heated, and the crab meat was moist and tender – yum! It was slower than the other methods, but it’s useful if you’ve got a lot of crab legs to reheat and no big steaming pot.

Reheating Crab Legs In A New Dish

Time: Varies
Rating: 9/10

1. Thoroughly thaw the crab legs, if frozen.
2. Carefully remove the crab meat from the shells.
3. Choose a recipe that uses crab meat and prepare the dish, adding the crab meat at the appropriate time.
4. For example, when preparing pasta, stir in the crab meat towards the end of cooking and let the sauce warm it up.

Pasta is my go-to for using up leftover crab meat when I don’t want to eat it on its own. But it’s far from the only option.

I’ve also made crab-stuffed mushrooms, crab omelet, crab cakes, and a fresh crab salad (no reheating required for this option). The key is to select recipes where the crab remains the star of the show, so its flavor isn’t overshadowed by other ingredients.

Results: Crab linguine will never not be fantastic, but some of my purist friends hate when I use my crab meat like this because they think it’s too delicious to be used in pasta. You decide which side of the fence you sit on.

How To Keep Crab Legs Warm

Here are three effective methods to help your crab legs stay warm and delicious until you’ve finished eating them because there’s no point going to the trouble of reheating them if half of them are cold again when you go to eat them!

Wrap the crab legs in warm paper towels

Wet some paper towels with hot water, leaving them damp but not dripping. Wrap the crab legs in the towels, then cover them with aluminum foil to retain the heat. Unwrap each crab leg when you’re ready to eat it.

Keep the crab legs in warm water

After boiling or steaming your crab legs, you can leave them in the pot with the water turned off. The residual heat will keep them warm and you can take out the crab legs when you want to eat them.

Use a preheated serving bowl

A preheated serving bowl can act as a thermos. Fill a large serving bowl with boiling water and let it sit for a few minutes to warm up. Discard the water, then immediately place the crab legs in the bowl. Cover the bowl with a lid or aluminum foil to trap the heat. Remove the crab legs one a a time as you eat them.

How To Store Crab Legs

To store leftover crab legs, cool them to room temperature and wrap them tightly in plastic wrap or foil if they’re still in the shell. If the meat isn’t in the shell, place it in an airtight container. Store the crab in the fridge for 3-4 days.

For unshelled crab meat, aim to minimize the amount of excess air in the container, either by filling the container or by covering the top with plastic wrap before putting the lid on.

Avoid leaving the crab out for more than two hours. After this, harmful bacteria can start to grow. And always smell the crab meat before eating it, you’ll be able to smell if it’s gone bad.

Can You Freeze Crab Legs?

You can freeze crab legs, even if they were previously frozen when you purchased them, provided you thawed them in the fridge and they haven’t been left sitting around at room temperature. But the quality will suffer quite a lot, so it might not be worth it.

Crab meat is delicate and freezing it multiple times can leave it mushy and tasteless. If you still want to freeze your crab legs, here’s how.

1. Cool the crab legs to room temperature and pat them dry with a paper towel.
2. Wrap the crab legs tightly in cling film or aluminum foil. You want to make the package as airtight as possible to prevent freezer burn.
3. For additional protection, place the wrapped crab legs in a heavy-duty freezer bag.
4. Press out as much air as possible from the freezer bags before sealing them.
5. Freeze for up to 3 months.

If the crab meat is not longer in the shell, portion it out and freeze it in a heavy-duty freezer bag with all the air squeezed out.

Pro tip: If you have a vacuum sealer, use it. This will protect the crab meat in the freezer and minimize any textural changes.

When you want to use the frozen crab, thaw it in the fridge overnight before reheating in a steamer if you want it hot.

How To Reheat Crab Legs [Tested Methods]

In this short recipe, I show you the best way to revive and reheat your leftover crab legs.

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Seafood

Keyword: How to reheat crab legs

Prep Time: 0 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes minutes

Servings: 1 person

Calories: 97kcal

Ingredients

• 1 portion crab legs

Instructions

• Set up your steamer and bring the water to a boil.
• Add the crab legs to the steamer basket and cover tightly.
• Heat for 5-7 minutes or until you can smell the crab – this indicates they’re ready.

Notes

Water is standard for steaming, but you can get creative here For example, try using beer, a mix of half water and half lemon juice, or adding seasonings like Old Bay to the water for an extra flavor kick.

If you don’t have a steamer, you can also steam crab legs in a pan on the stove. Add the crab legs along with half a cup of water and some butter, then cover with a lid heating on medium.

Nutrition

Serving: 100g | Calories: 97kcal