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While crab legs aren’t the cheapest protein option and they can be intimidating to cook if you don’t know how, this sheet pan crab legs recipe show you it’s actually pretty straightforward to cook crab legs and these are ideal for any special occasion. These sheet pan crab legs make a great appetizer or a main course. Consider them as a Valentine’s Day or New Year’s Eve treat and definitely make them if you spot some crab legs on sale!
Enhanced with Old Bay, butter, garlic, and lemon, these juicy crab legs are sure to put a smile on everyone’s face. These snow crab legs offer such incredible flavors.
Also consider campfire shrimp scampi foil packets or this sheet pan blackened tilapia Baja fish nachos. Sheet pan honey garlic pork chops are also tasty.
Why You’ll Love It
It’s so delicious: This mouthwatering snow crab legs recipe boasts just a few simple flavours, namely the Old Bay seasoning, butter, garlic, and lemon, but it’s really tasty, and you can enjoy the wonderful oven baked crab legs flavour without overpowering it with too many other ingredients.
It’s easy to prepare: If you’re concerned about cooking crab legs because you haven’t done it before, don’t worry – this recipe is especially simple. You need to brush the seafood seasoning mixture over the crab and then bake in the oven while you prepare some garlic butter to go on the side. See? Easy!
An impressive appetizer: Choose this snow crab legs dish if you want to present something fancy but you don’t necessarily want to spend hours making something complicated. Seafood such as king crab or snow crab isn’t hard to cook and even a newbie home cook can bake crab legs to perfection for sure.
Easy Baked Crab Legs Ingredients
A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Snow crab clusters: The star of this dish is snow crab clusters and you can find frozen crab legs in most large grocery stores and also in some Asian food markets.
Old Bay: This seasoning is always good with seafood.
Melted butter: For rich decadence.
Garlic: Use freshly minced garlic.
Lemon: Another flavor that’s wonderful with crab.
How to Make Old Bay Crab Legs on a Sheet Pan
For more detailed instructions with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card.
Prepare crab legs: While you preheat the oven, place crab legs on a rimmed baking sheet, mix the olive oil with half the Old Bay seasoning and brush this over the crab legs.
Cook crab legs: Cook them in the preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until done.
Make the garlic butter: While the crab legs cook, mix the rest of the Old Bay with melted butter and garlic.
The finishing touches: Serve the cooked crab legs warm, with the garlic butter mixture and some wedges or slices of lemon on the side.
Substitutions and Variations
Snow crab legs: King crab legs are another option, but they’re more expensive, tougher to crack and you’ll definitely need crab leg crackers (here) to open them. King crabs have much thicker legs so they come individually rather than in clusters. Also, they’re not as easy to find as snow crab legs, which can usually just be cracked with your hands.
Old Bay seasoning: Swap the Old Bay for your favorite seafood seasoning if you like, perhaps Cajun seasoning.
Butter: Use unsalted or salted butter. If you’re using unsalted butter for the dipping sauce, you might want to add a pinch of salt, but taste it first.
Serving Suggestions
With a side dish: Enjoy this delicious recipe warm from the oven and give everyone their own melted butter dip and a wedge of lemon. It goes well with crusty bread or mushroom focaccia, or a simple tossed green salad.
With vegetables: Keep the sides light and simple because the garlic butter is very rich and you’ll want a nice contrast. Mashed potatoes, boiled potatoes or smoked asparagus would also be good on the side. You might like to cook some other proteins too, such as fresh shrimp or another kind of fresh seafood, or even something different like andouille sausage.
How to Store Baked Crab Legs
Store: The cooked crab should keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container in the fridge.
Freeze: Cooked crab legs can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Thaw: Defrost overnight in the fridge.
Reheat: Reheat crab legs about 12 minutes in the oven preheated to 350 degrees F if the crabmeat is still in the shell, or warm up the crabmeat if it’s out of the shell in a skillet with a splash of oil or a little butter – it will take about 4 minutes.
Top Tips
Fresh or frozen? While the garlic and lemon should be fresh, the crab legs are fine flash frozen (unless you can deal with a huge live crab!)
Grab your tools: Don’t forget the shellfish crackers for opening the crab legs, and don’t forget the napkins either!
Reheating them: Heat crab legs until they’re quite warm but not piping hot, or else you risk them drying out.
Baked Crab Legs FAQs
There are plenty of things you can make, such as crab cakes, crab bisque, crab salad, or even homemade sushi.
If you’re not using flash frozen crab legs, the other option is to deal with live crab, because crab must either be cooked right away or frozen. This is why it’s easier to find frozen crab legs. Live crab should be boiled so, unless you especially want to work with live crab, just grab a pack of flash frozen crab legs instead – it’s so much easier and still comes out sweet, moist and tender.
Easy Baked Snow Crab Legs Recipe
Sheet Pan Crab Legs
Equipment
- Baking Sheet High-Rimmed
Ingredients
- 2 snow crabs, frozen clusters
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 Teaspoons Old Bay seasoning
- 4 Tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 Clove garlic, large, minced
- 1 lemon, sliced, to serve
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place the crab clusters in a single layer on a large-rimmed baking sheet.
- In a small mixing bowl, stir together the olive oil and 1 teaspoon Old Bay. Brush the olive oil mixture over each cluster.
- Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Add remaining teaspoon of Old Bay, melted butter, and minced garlic to a bowl. Stir until combined.
- Serve crab alongside garlic butter and lemon slices.
Notes
Grab your tools: Don’t forget the shellfish crackers for opening the crab legs, and don’t forget the napkins either!
Reheating them: Heat crab legs until they’re quite warm but not piping hot, or else you risk them drying out.
Nutrition
Baked snow crab legs can be prohibitively expensive at a restaurant, so make this homemade version instead. Baked crab legs make an extra-special dinner, paired with your preferred sides, and they’re much easier to cook than you might have expected. If you’re in a seafood mood, you must make this easy baked crab legs dish.
Other Recipes to Try
- This Dirty Martini Dip Recipe is perfect for parties or casual gatherings.
- Crab Cake Egg Rolls with Fire Sauce are a twist on a classic appetizer!
- Satisfy seafood cravings with Crab Cakes and Garlic Lemon Chipotle Aioli.
- Warm up on chilly days with cozy Slow Cooker Key West Crab Lobster Bisque.
- Sheet Pan Garlic Parmesan Roasted Carrots is a simple yet elegant side dish that pairs perfectly with any main course!
Bella Bucchiotti
Bella Bucchiotti is a Canadian-based syndicated food, travel, and lifestyle writer, photographer, and creator at xoxoBella. She founded xoxoBella in 2015, where she shares her love for food, dogs, sustainability, fitness, crafts, outdoor adventures, travel, and philanthropy to encourage others to run the extra mile, try new recipes, visit unfamiliar places, and stand for a cause. Bella creates stress-free and family-friendly recipes for weeknight dinners and festive feasts.
Your recipes are exciting. I can not wait to try them
Hope you enjoy them, Phyllis!
Since my family is a seafood lover, I made it for them this past weekend. Looks like we have a new favorite!
There was no leftovers. It was so good!
Big hit with the family! Will definitely repeat.
Is this cooked from frozen? Or thawed first?
They are cooked from frozen, so you don’t need to thaw them.