How To Cook Blue Crab On The Grill

Exploring New Ways to Enjoy Crab? Consider grilling blue crab or Dungeness crab for a fresh take. Both options are healthy and can be tailored to suit your taste preferences.

Blue crabs are quite easy to make. They travel from pot to dish in approximately 20 minutes. It doesn’t get much easier than this! There is just one aspect of cooking blue crab that might be challenging. While their claws try to fend you off, you’re transporting the tiny devils from their storage container into the pot.

Blue Crab On The Grill

The blue crab can be taken and eaten at two phases of its life cycle, according to the Department of Agriculture and Services (FDACS): when the skeleton is firm or when it is soft. The soft-shell blue crab is a hard-shell blue crab that has molted from its shell. Soft-shell crab is considered a delicacy since it may be eaten whole, including the shell.

Season crab to taste with your favorite seasonings before grilling. Preheat the grill to medium-high temperature. Unless your marinade already includes it, brush with a little olive oil. The crabs will not adhere to the grill if you do this. Close the lid on the grill—Cook for around 5 to 7 minutes. How To Cook Blue Crab On The Grill? 

Fire up the grill. You should flip each crab. Cook it for another four to six minutes after closing the grill. Remove the grill from the heat. According to the US Food (FDA), the crab is cooked when the internal temperature hits 145 degrees Fahrenheit, and the internal flesh is firm and clear, according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Basic Steps To Prepare Soft-Shell Crabs

Although you can find frozen soft-shell all year-round, the most delicious ones are caught and preserved on the East coast at the end of spring, the beginning of summer. Due to their small size, it might feel like you’ve eaten nothing unless it’s two or three soft-shell crabs as an appetizer. For the main course, 4-5 soft-shell crabs are a reasonable serving size. For its preparation:

• Put the grill on the heat for about a few minutes until is medium hot, to check the temperature of the grates, put your hand at the distance of about 2 inches and the temperature is right if you’re able to keep your hand above the grate for about a few seconds before removing it.
• Now put your favorite oil on the freshly cleaned, washed, and pat dried soft-shell crabs i.e., mustard oil, melted butter, cooking oil, etc., and let it sit until the grates of the grill are medium hot.

Cooking this seafood will also give it a nice flavor! The best way to cook frozen king crabs is by grilling them for about 15 minutes on medium-high heat. If you want more of a crispy crust, make sure to put some melted butter in between each piece of meat before putting it on the grill. This will help give it a golden brown color and better texture when it’s cooked through

What You Need To Cook Frozen King Crab Legs On The Grill

to Cook Frozen King Crab Legs on the Grill

-1 lb of frozen king crab legs

-2 tablespoons of butter or olive oil

-salt and pepper to taste

-lemon wedges

-garlic cloves (optional)

-dried thyme (optional)

When you go to your local fish market, don’t forget to ask the shopkeeper to clean the soft-shell crabs you bought for you. now moving on to the step-by-step guide on how you can wash soft-shell crabs in the comfort of your home:

• First, remove the head of the crab using a pair of scissors or a sharp knife.
• If you lift the sides of the crab and look closely, you’ll see a pair of gills. Pull out those gills using small tongs or your fingers.
• At the bottom of the soft-shell crabs, a triangular-shaped apron is present, which is longer in male crabs and wider in female crabs.
• Pull and cut off the apron from its base.
• Now rinse the cleaned soft-shell crab under running cold water and dry it with a paper towel in a patting manner.

Dungeness Crab Griddled To Cook Blue Crab On The Grill

According to the Department of Fish, the Dungeness crab is a decapod related to shrimp, lobster, and other crabs like the Redrock crab. It has a taste that is comparable to blue crab.

Prepare grilled Dungeness crab the same way as grilled blue crab is prepared. The fresh crab should take roughly 12 to 15 minutes to cook in total. If you bought a crab that has already been cooked, heat it on the grill until it is well hot. Overcooking might cause the meat to become dry.

To stun crab still alive before grilling, scald them with boiling water. Then, as mentioned above, flavor and grill the meat. Before grilling a crab that has been frozen, defrost it overnight in the refrigerator or run it under chilly water to remove any debris. Cooking a frozen crab will take a few minutes longer on each side.

Crabs’ Nutritional Value To Cook Blue Crab On The Grill

Blue crab is low in fat but abundant in protein, according to the FDACS. It is rich in calcium, iron, omega-3 fatty acids, and vitamins. It has a soft texture and a pleasant taste.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), a 3-ounce portion of blue crab has 74 cal, 15 gms of protein, and 1 gram of fat. It has 76 mg of calcium, 1 mg of iron, 30 mg of magnesium, 280 mg of potassium, and 249 mg of sodium.

Is It Necessary To Kill Blue Crabs Before Cooking Them

Before they can be cooked and eaten, you must clean blue crabs. Before you can fully clean it, the blue crab’s shell must be removed (after being humanely killed), and you must empty all other objects. You may cook the crab whole or chop it into quarters to make it simpler to consume.

How Long May Live Blue Crabs Be Kept Before Being Cooked

You must keep blue crabs in a cold, wet, and well-ventilated environment to stay alive. There’s a little more you should know about keeping crabs alive. If kept cold and damp, blue crabs may survive for up to 24 hours out of the water.

Cooking or eating crabs that have been dead for a long period is not recommended. Because germs may spread, crab flesh becomes mushy and flavorless after it dies. People might get ill not just because of the taste but also because of the side effects. If you don’t want to eat live crabs, eat dead ones.

Conclusion

Cooking blue crab is best done while the crab is still alive; it rots and becomes hazardous once it dies. When crabs are cooked fresh, they must be alive. The crabs will be less surprised due to this since they will be less aware of what is going on.