Crab

Know what you're buying: king crab legs are the biggest (they're the kings after all) with the highest meat-to-shell ratio (60–75%), but they're pricey where $30–50/lb isn't unusual. Snow crab is sweeter, more affordable, and comes in clusters. Dungeness is sold both live and pre-cooked and the body meat is worth the cracking work. Blue crabs are smaller, sold live, and are the ones you dump onto a newspaper-covered table with Old Bay and mallets. If you're looking for guidance as to how much to buy per person, here are some helpful tips: first, people tend to underbuy crab because they forget to consider shell weight which can be significant in the overall weight of the crab. Some good guidelines are roughly 1–1.5 lbs of legs per person or 6 blue crabs per person for a crab boil (up that to 8 per person if you're in Maryland). Almost all frozen crab legs were flash-frozen on the boat, so frozen doesn't mean lower quality. Thaw overnight in the fridge, never at room temp. If anything smells like ammonia, pass.

Crab can be split into two completely different cooking jobs. If you bought frozen legs (king, snow, or Dungeness), they're already partially cooked and you're basically just reheating them — 5–7 minutes of steam is all it takes. If you're working with live crabs like blue crabs or live Dungeness, you'll need to boil them for 15–20 minutes until the shells turn bright red. Both methods are much easier than you think. Either way, the biggest mistake is the same: overcooking. Crab meat goes from sweet and tender to rubbery fast.

Most crab you buy is already pre-cooked and you're just reheating to 140°F so you don't need to stress safety. For live crab, cook until the shell turns bright red and the internal temp reaches 145°F. Blue crabs are easy to visually see doneness — they go from a blue-green to a bright orange-red when they're cooked. Live crab should be lively when you buy them (sluggish = old) and should be cooked the same day it's purchased. If buying frozen crab legs, thaw in the fridge overnight, not at room temperature. If you skip thawing and boil from frozen, you'll get uneven heating and rubbery spots on the outside while the center is still cold.