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Can You Cook Crabs in a Slow Cooker?
Crabs need to be cooked in boiling water, which makes them impossible to cook in a crockpot because the temperature inside is too low. There are some great crockpot crab recipes you can make however and if you were wondering how to cook crabs in a slow cooker you might want to make a crab soup or stew instead.
Crockpot Crab Soup
For a delicious crab soup, simply combine two cups of flaked crabmeat or imitation crab, two cups of milk, two cups of Half & Half, three tablespoons of butter, two strips of lemon rind and a little salt, pepper and nutmeg in your crockpot and stir well.
Cover and cook on low for four hours, then stir in half a cup of saltine crackers to thicken the soup and a couple of tablespoons of dry sherry to add a gourmet flavor. You can also add some cooked shrimp half an hour before the end of the cooking time, if you want. This recipe will serve six to eight people, making it perfect for easy dinner party appetizers.
Slow Cooker Crab Stew
This is another great dish that you can make in the crockpot if you want to use crabs. Use imitation crabmeat for this one to get the crab flavor without the crab price tag. This recipe makes two quarts.
Combine two cups of crabmeat, two cups of Half & Half, two cups of whole milk, two strips of lemon rind, half a teaspoon of ground mace, and three tablespoons of unsalted butter in your slow cooker, as well as some salt and pepper.
Stir the mixture well, then cover and cook for four hours on low. Stir in half a cup of crushed saltine crackers to thicken the crab stew recipe and a couple of tablespoons of dry sherry. The sherry is optional but it does add a wonderful flavor.
How to Make a Crab Dip in the Crockpot
Crab dip is great if you are having a buffet because this tasty dip is easy to make and the slow cooking process brings out the flavor of the crab. You can use real crab or imitation crab in this recipe. Coat your slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray, and then add half a cup of milk and a third of a cup of salsa.
Stir them together, and then add a pound and a half of cream cheese, cut into cubes, and one pound of crabmeat and a cup of thinly sliced green onions. Cover and cook for three or four hours, stirring every thirty minutes. This crab dip is delicious with raw vegetable crudités or crackers and you can serve it in the crockpot so it stays hot.
Hopefully these recipes and ideas will show you that even though it is not possible to learn how to cook crabs in a slow cooker because the heat is not high enough, you can still make great crab soup recipes, crab stew recipes and a wonderful hot crab dip with your slow cooker. If you have some fresh crabs to cook, you boil them in a pot of salted water for ten to twenty minutes, depending on their size.
