The Best Crab Claw Meat Recipes

What to Do with Crab Claw Meat 

The swimming claws of the crab are coveted because they are a type of brown meat. This means they're higher in fat than other types of crab meat. The fat content lends the meat a robust flavor, so it is good to use in soups and stews. 

Crab claw meat, including the meat from the stone crab, is prized for its delicacy and sweetness combined with a meatiness that allows this crab to exert as much as 19,000 pounds of pressure per square inch on a potential meal. Buy the stone crabs meat fresh from such brands as George Stone Crab, Captain Stone Crab or Best Stone Crabs. Here are some recipes with crab claw meat. 

Crab Cioppino 

This dish features not just crab claw meat but other shellfish. 

• 1/3 cup of olive oil 
• 1 large onion, sliced 
• 1 bunch of scallions, green and white parts sliced 
• 1 green sweet pepper, cored, seeded and chopped 
• 3 cloves of garlic 
• 1/3 tightly packed parsley, chopped 
• 1 can of tomato paste 
• 1 can tomato sauce 
• 1 cup of dry wine, white or red 
• 2 cups water 
• One bay leaf 
• 3 teaspoons salt 
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 
• 1 teaspoon each rosemary and thyme leaves 
• Five pounds of crab claw meat 
• 1 dozen hard shell clams, cleaned 
• 1 pound of large shrimp, shelled and deveined 
• 1 large loaf ciabatta bread 

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large, deep-frying pan with a tight-fitting lid. Add onions, scallions, peppers and garlic. Sauté for about five minutes, then add the tomato paste, tomato sauce, parsley, wine, water, bay leaf, salt, pepper and herbs. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat. Cover and simmer for about an hour. After that, the garlic can be taken out or left in according to preference. This base can be made as much as 12 hours ahead. Cool it, cover it and place it in the fridge until it’s ready. 

Place the crab claw meat at the bottom of a stockpot, arrange the clams in their shells over it, then arrange the shrimp over the clams. Heat the sauce until it simmers and pour it over the shellfish. Cover and simmer until the clams open, which should take about half an hour. Serve in big, shallow soup bowls with lots of sauce and chunks of fresh ciabatta bread.  

Crab and Leek Pie

Here is another of the recipes with crab claw meat:

• One baked pastry shell 
• 1 1/2 cups of shredded Swiss or Gruyere cheese 
• 2 tablespoons butter  
• 2 leeks, white and the tender part of the green 
• 1/2-pound crab claw meat 
• 4 eggs 
• 1 cup of half and half 
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice 
• 1/2 teaspoon of grated lemon peel 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 teaspoon of dry mustard 
• Dash of mace 

Carefully sprinkle half of the cheese at the bottom of the pastry shell. Cut the leeks lengthwise and wash them thoroughly to get rid of any sand. Save the tough green stalks for stock and chop the white and pale green parts.  

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Melt butter in a frying pan over medium-high heat, then add the leeks and sauté until they wilt. Mix in the crabmeat and spoon it over the cheese in the pastry shell. Beat the eggs and half and half, lemon juice and peel, salt and spices, then pour over the crab and leek mixture. Sprinkle with the rest of the cheese. Bake for about an hour or until the custard is set in the center. Remove from the oven, and let it cool for at least 15 minutes. Serve it warm or at room temperature. 

Crab and Avocado Crepes 

Another of the recipes with crab claw meat calls for making crepes first. Here’s how. 

Place two eggs, one and a half cups of milk, half a teaspoon of salt, one cup of all-purpose flour and two tablespoons of salad oil in a blender, and whirl until smooth. Then, melt a teaspoon of butter in a crepe pan. Swirl to make sure the bottom is coated then pour in about three tablespoons of the batter. Tilt the pan to coat the bottom and cook until the top is dry, and the edge is just browned. Flip and cook the other side until it is lightly browned. The first couple of crepes are probably not going to look good, but practice makes perfect. Make sure to stack the crepes as they’re made. 

Now, for the latest of the recipes with crab claw meat. About a dozen crepes: 

• 1 pound of crab claw meat 
• 1 cup sour cream 
• Unsalted butter 
• 3 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese 
• 2 ripe avocados 
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. After making the crepes, add crabmeat, one-half cup of sour cream in a bowl. Mix them until well blended. Spoon about three tablespoons down the center of each crepe and roll to close. Put them seam side down in a shallow, buttered baking pan and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Cover with aluminum foil, place in the oven, and bake for about 10 minutes, or 20 minutes if the crabmeat had been chilled beforehand.  

Peel the avocados, remove the pit and slice them. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Serve the warmed crepes right away with dollops of the rest of the sour cream and the avocado slices. 

Crabmeat Chaud-froid 

Crabmeat Chaud-froid is another of the recipes with crab claw meat. This is often served as an hors d’oeuvre. 

• 2 cups of cooked crab claw meat 
• 3 tablespoon butter 
• 2 tablespoons minced shallots or scallions 
• 3 tablespoons cognac 
• 1/8 teaspoon dry mustard 
• Pinch of Cayenne pepper 
• Salta and pepper to taste 
• 1 1/4 cups of heavy whipping cream 
• 1 1/4 cups of white wine and fish stock 
• 1 sprig of fresh tarragon or 1/4 teaspoon of dried tarragon 
• 1 envelope of gelatin softened in 3 tablespoons of dry vermouth 

Flake the crabmeat. Heat the butter in a skillet until it bubbles. Stir in the shallots or scallions and the crabmeat. Cook gently for about two minutes. Stir in the mustard and Cayenne pepper and add salt and pepper to taste. Pour in the cognac, and boil at high heat until it is almost gone. Chill. 

When the crabmeat mixture is nearly ready, simmer the cream and stock together with the tarragon. Reduce it to about two cups then dissolve the gelatin completely in it. Strain it, correct seasonings, and cool it. 

When everything is cool, fold the sauce into the crabmeat then arrange it in decorative shells made of glass or porcelain. Decorate with slices of truffles, shrimp or tarragon leaves. Chill again just before serving. 

Crab Ravigote 

• 2 cups of cooked crab claw meat 
• 1 tablespoon olive oil 
• 3 tablespoons of wine vinegar 
• 1/8 teaspoon of Cayenne pepper 
• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard 
• 1 hard-boiled egg, finely chopped 
• 1 teaspoon minced parsley 
• Salt to taste 
• 1 cup of green mayonnaise 

Combine the oil, vinegar, pepper, mustard, chopped egg and parsley in a bowl, and mix until well blended. Add the crab and salt and spoon into small dishes or scallop shells. Add a blanket of mayonnaise whose recipe follows. 

Mayonnaise Recipe

• 3/4 cup of mixed greens such as watercress, sorrel or spinach 
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, tarragon or dill 
• 1 egg 
• 1 egg yolk 
• 1 cup of olive oil 
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of mild vinegar or lemon juice 
• Freshly ground salt and pepper to taste 

Blend the greens, the herbs, the egg, egg yolk and pepper in a blender until the greens are pureed, then very slowly add a thin stream of oil until the mixture becomes very thick. Add the vinegar or lemon juice until the oil is used up. Correct the seasonings and refrigerate until needed but use it within a few days or the greens will turn sour. 

Crab Bisque 

One of the recipes with crab claw meat is a type of heavenly soup. 

• 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh stone crab claws meat
• 2 tablespoons butter 
• 1 teaspoon of onion or shallot, finely chopped 
• 1 tablespoon of parsley, finely chopped 
• 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour 
• 2 cups of chicken broth 
• 2 cups of light cream or half and half 
• A pinch of Cayenne pepper 
• Salt to taste 

Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the onion or shallot, and cook until golden. Add the crabmeat and parsley and cook over low heat, stirring, for about five minutes. Add the flour, whisk into blend, and cook an additional three minutes. Stir in the chicken broth, partially cover the pot, and cook for about 20 minutes. Add the pepper and cream at the last minute, and heat but don’t boil. Add salt to taste just before serving. 

Crab Pappadams

The last of the recipes with crab claw meat has an Indian influence. 

• 8 ounces of crab claw meat  
• 2 cups of neutral oil 
• 1/4 package of mini, uncooked pappadams 
• 2 scallions, finely diced 
• 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise 
• 1/2 teaspoon of curry powder. Toast in a dry pan for a moment to bring out the fragrance. 
• 1 teaspoon of grated lemon zest 
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice 
• 1/4 teaspoon of coarse salt 
• 1/2cup of dry, lightly toasted coconut 

Heat the oil in a pot until it reaches 325 degrees F. Fry the pappadams until they are crispy, with blistered surfaces. Place them on paper towels on a tray. Don’t crowd the pot but fry the pappadams in batches.  

Mix the scallions, mayonnaise, curry powder, lemon juice and zest in a bowl, then gently add the crabmeat. Make sure that some large chunks remain. Scoop about a tablespoon of the crab mixture into the center of each pappadam then garnish with toasted coconut. 

Where to buy stone crab claws? 

We believe that the best stone crab claws are never frozen, that's why we have a dedicated team of more than 80 fishermen bringing in the freshest stone crabs for you.

Packed and delivered in less than 36 hours of being caught and cooked to get them to you overnight all around the US and Canada. Order now your fresh stone crab claws with us while they’re still in season: Start here.