Crab buying tips
- There are three types of king crab available on the market: red, golden, and blue.
- Red king crab is the most desirable, with the most delicate and sweet meat; golden king crab is more common and blue king crabs tends to have extraordinary large right claws.
- King crab is typically sized by "count," or how many legs make 10 lbs. For example, a size "12-14" king crab contains between 12 and 14 legs per 10 lbs. of crab. The claws are not counted in this measurement.
- King crab sizes range from "6-9" to "21-24."
Cooking King Crab Legs
The majority of Alaska crab is cooked and blast-frozen to seal its prized taste. In fact, most king crab is sold pre-cooked — so preparing it can be as easy as re-heating.
- Thaw first: If you've purchased frozen crab legs, thaw them before conducting prep work.
- Thaw crab legs in your refrigerator one day prior to preparing.
- If you're pressed for time, you can run the crab legs under cold water to thaw them quickly.
- Prep quick tips: There are a variety of ways to prepare king crab, but steaming, boiling, and baking are preferred.
- When steaming, boiling, broiling, or baking, king crab takes only 4-8 minutes to reheat.
- If you must microwave king crab legs, microwave them on high for 3-4 minutes.
- Be careful not to overcook your king crab — or you'll lose the delicious taste and texture.
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