Portions: 6 servings Calories: 628kcal |
There's nothing not to love in this easy, rich, cream of crab soup recipe. This creamy base with loads of crab flavor makes a perfect starting soup for a larger meal. This 30-minute one-pot creamy crab soup is a bit on the filling side, so portions are small. What it is not lacking in any way is flavor, which it has to spare.
By - Revised . Original Dec 28, 2005.
Cream of Crab Soup Recipe.
Why we ❤️ it
- Growing up in a coastal town, seafood was a staple in many of our weekly meals, and crab was one of our family's favorites.
- I also love creamy soups, so this is one of my favorite ways to serve crab meat, a creamy broth, and chunks of crab and vegetables. I love it served with some rustic bread.
- So, if you also love easy food recipes, seafood, and homemade soup, you've found the best recipe for our favorite crustaceans, a perfect blend and a new crowd favorite any time of year.
Utensils and tools
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter, salted or unsalted butter, whatever you have
- 1 small onion minced, I prefer red onion, but white also work
- 12 garlic cloves, sliced
- 2 red bell pepper, chopped
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 bay leaves, optional
- 3 cups heavy cream
- 3 cups whole milk
- 3 cups vegetable broth, or homemade, see variations below
- 2 pound fresh lump crabmeat, [0.9 kg] clean of cartilage and shell pieces
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt, (or to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper, or to taste
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, flat or curly, whatever you have
Preparation
1. Sautee vegetable
- Melt butter over low heat in a medium or large soup pot.
- Cook and stir the onion, garlic and bell peppers until they are cooked-through and the onion has turned translucent.Add the flour and cook stirring vigorously until it has turned translucent.
2. Add liquids
- Add the bay leaves and pour in heavy cream, milk, and broth, and stir in the crabmeat. Increase temperature to medium heat.Add salt and pepper, and simmer, stirring often until the liquids turn into a creamy broth.
3. Serve
- Once the broth has thickened, and taste and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with parsley.Remove from the heat and serve warm.
Top tips
- Leftovers: It can be kept overnight in the refrigerator and stored in an airtight container. If you need to keep it longer, it's preferable to keep it in the fridge.
- Picking crabmeat: Also, make sure to get crab that is as fresh as possible, and while I used local crab, I bet it works equally well with another variety.
- Gluten-free option: If you keep a gluten-free diet, substitute cornstarch for flour by dissolving the cornstarch in the liquids before adding them to the pot when it's time to add them.
- Milk substitutes: If you don't want or don't have heavy whipping cream, you can use evaporated milk or an equivalent amount of extra whole milk as a substitute. Bear in mind that cream is what makes a really rich cream of crab soup recipe.
- Cleaning crabmeat: I suggest, and I speak from experience, that you make sure there aren't any pieces of shell or cartilage in the fresh lump crabmeat, because you'll hate biting into one.
- Best crab meat options: I prefer jumbo lump crab meat, but use any kind of fresh crab meat you can find. And if you can't find it fresh, you can use canned crabmeat, and even imitation crab meat if that's what you can find in the seafood department.
You can use Dungeness crab or king crab meat for this soup, or whatever you find. Be mindful that all these small changes alter the flavors will change.
Canned crabmeat won't be as good as fresh lump crab meat, but it will still be a tasty creamy crab chowder. - Stock or broth options: I used vegetable stock, but if you can find crab stock, fish stock, or any kind of seafood stock, that will be even better. Check if they have those at your local grocery store.
- Chunky option: If you want a more chunky soup, add a cup of canned sweet corn when you add the onion. For extra veggies, you can also add a stalk of celery thinly sliced, and two potatoes diced into tiny cubes.
- Adding more spices: For a completely different flavor profile, add some curry powder. A little bit goes a long way; you don't want to overwhelm the crab flavor, so start with half a tablespoon, taste it, and add more if you find it necessary.
- Otra receta: You can also try this easy crabmeat recipe.
Serving suggestions
This recipe goes great with some warm rustic bread, or some toasted baguette, perfect for scooping all the flavors left on the bowl.
Another great choice to go with this is oyster crackers or soda crackers.
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Nutrition
Calories: 628kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 52g | Saturated Fat: 43g | Cholesterol: 64mg | Sodium: 1878mg | Potassium: 913mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1280IU | Vitamin C: 65.3mg | Calcium: 124mg | Iron: 8.8mg
Nutritional information is calculated automatically based on ingredients listed. Please consult your doctor if you need precise nutrition information.
Learn how to make this flavorful, rich, but easy cream of crabmeat soup, and seafood and soup lovers will find something in common to love.
So tasty, great flavor.