When you get your hands on some crab legs, they most probably come from the larger crab species of the Snow crab or Spider crab. Crab is a real treat, and it has such a sweet, delicate flavor it would be a waste not to cook it properly.
Crab legs are best steamed to preserve that sweet, delicate flavor and prevent the chance of overcooking it. The meat is then picked out of the shell and stirred into a dish or served as is whole with a side of something and maybe even a lemon butter sauce.
Not sure what to serve with crab legs or what goes well with crab legs? When it comes to sides for Crab legs, it’s best to serve crab legs with sides that are not going to overpower the delicate flavor. Here are some suggestions for great side dishes to serve with crab legs. These great salads and vegetable dishes make great crab legs sides.
Here’s What To Serve With Crab Legs:
#1. Shaved Daikon Radish and Carrot Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing
This salad has a slight hint of Asian, but it’s subtle enough to work with the crab. The crunchiness of the ingredients works well with the soft textured crab meat; the daikon, in particular, maintains its crunch even when dressed.
The radish and carrot are shaved using a vegetable peeler and dressed in ginger dressing. The dressing is made up of grated fresh ginger, chopped garlic, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Toss the shaved ribbons in the dressing and garnish with some sesame seeds.
Not sure what to eat with crab legs? This is a great bitter-sweet salad that’s very refreshing and enhances the crab’s sweetness.
The endive, romaine, sliced pear, and sliced shallot are all dressed in a sweet honey and lemon vinaigrette. The lemon adds a nice tartness that brings out the flavor of the crab.
The salad is garnished with fresh parsley and makes one of the perfect crab leg side dishes.
Asparagus is always a great option to serve with seafood, and lemon is also a fantastic flavor to pair with crab, so this is an excellent combination of flavors.
The asparagus is prepared by trimming the chalky ends, placed on a baking sheet, drizzled with olive oil, seasoned with a squeeze of lemon, and tossed with chopped garlic, salt, and pepper. The asparagus is then roasted in a hot oven until the tops are slightly roasted and the stems are tender.
The best thing about this side dish is that it can be served hot or cold and still taste delicious.
Fennel and Apple are crisp, clean flavors, with sweetness from the apples and refreshing aniseed flavor from the fennel, enhancing the crab’s delicate flavor.
The cabbage, carrot, and fennel are all shredded and combined with the sliced apple. The slaw is dressed in mayonnaise, flavored with Dijon mustard, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, and celery seeds, and seasoned well with salt and pepper.
The slaw can be served immediately and kept in the refrigerator for up to three days.
I like feta, but baked feta is my favorite, and with the cherry tomatoes thrown in the mix, it’s delicious. The cherry tomatoes are tossed with olive oil, chopped garlic, chilies, and shallots and seasoned with salt and pepper.
The dressed cherry tomatoes are placed into an oven-proof dish with the blocks of feta. The dish is then placed into a hot oven to bake for 20 minutes and then grilled for 20 minutes until the tomatoes are blackened and the feta is golden.
The dish is finished off with some sprigs of fresh basil. This side dish can be made ahead of time and simply warmed before eating.
This dish might just become your new favorite; it’s so easy to make, refreshing, and full of flavor. This salad is perfect for summer days; it’s cool with just the right amount of Asian flavor to not overpower crab’s sweet, delicate taste.
The edamame beans are mixed with diced cucumber, chopped coriander, and green onions. The salad is dressed in a sweet and salty Asian dressing of rice wine vinegar, soy, sesame oil, maple syrup, ginger, and garlic.
The salad is finished off with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds.
Fennel is a great flavour that works well with seafood, and crab is no exception, whether it’s freshly shaved or cooked in a creamy sauce- the fresh liquorice flavour can only complement the seafood flavors.
The fennel is chopped, drizzled with oil, and roasted with some garlic until soft and tender. The fennel is blended smooth with some cream and parmesan and finished with a good squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
The pasta is cooked and tossed in the creamy fennel sauce and seasoned well. Served on the side of crab legs,now that’s a great meal!
These bite-sized stuffed artichokes make great sides with crab legs and can be made ahead of your dinner party.
The best part is you can make these all year round, as the canned artichoke bottoms are just as good as the fresh ones. The tinned ones are great; they are already prepared; all that needs to be done is to make the filling and stuff them.
The filling comprises of parmesan cheese, lemon zest and juice, parsley, pine nuts, and a touch of garlic- the perfect flavors to pair with crab legs. The ingredients are stirred together, seasoned well, and placed on the artichoke bottoms.
They are then ready to bake when your guests arrive. Serve them hot from the oven with the crab legs, and enjoy.
#9. Crunchy Asian salad with Veggies and Peanut Dressing
This crunchy fresh salad is full of flavor and texture. Think carrot, sugar snap peas, bell peppers, and cucumber, all tossed in a deliciously creamy peanut butter dressing in some sesame oil, soy sauce, fresh ginger, rice wine vinegar, and honey to add some sweetness. The salad is garnished with toasted sesame seeds and served with steamed crab legs. Dressing this salad just before serving is key to keeping it crunchy and delicious.
#10. Refreshing Celery Salad with Onions & Parmesan
Celery can be surprisingly tasty and not just served as a crudité with some dip. This salad comprises just a few ingredients, and it’s dressed in a simple white wine vinaigrette.
The celery is chopped and tossed with chopped onion and grated parmesan, then tossed in the vinaigrette and finished with chopped walnuts.
This salad can be kept for a few days; the flavors will just develop more.
#11. Seared Broccolini with Chili Hazelnuts, Whipped Tahini
I love these flavors together, and they work great with the sweet, delicate flavor of the crab. The broccolini is seared in a pan until just cooked.
The tahini is whipped with lemon, garlic, and a touch of date syrup which gives the tahini a subtle sweetness that works so well with the crab.
The whipped tahini is spread on the plate and topped with the seared broccoli, and then it’s finished off with chili-infused hazelnuts. This side dish can be served at room temperature, so you can prepare it all ahead of time.
Everyone loves a good Caesar salad, and the saltiness from the anchovy in the dressing pairs perfectly with the subtle sweetness of the crab.
This Caesar salad has delicious garlic croutons, which are so easy to make; simply drizzle the bread with garlic-infused oil before toasting it in the oven.
This Caesar dressing skips the making of mayonnaise from scratch. It is simplified to just blending stored mayonnaise, sour cream, parmesan, anchovies, garlic, a splash of tabasco from some heat, and a dash of Worcestershire sauce for that umami flavor.
The romaine lettuce is tossed in a generous amount of dressing, topped with garlic croutons, and finished with parmesan shavings. This is a light but tasty side dish to serve with crab legs.
Crab tossed into pasta is a winner of a dish, and this pasta is full of great flavors that go so well with crab legs. This recipe calls for frozen artichokes, but the tinned ones work perfectly fine too.
The pasta is cooked per packet instructions; meanwhile, the olive oil is heated in a pan, and the garlic is cooked until lightly toasted and fragrant. The frozen artichokes are tossed in and allowed to steam through.
Finally, the capers are added, with a seasoning of salt and pepper. The cooked pasta is then added, with a good splash of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon- all of which are great flavors to pair with crab. The pasta is finished off with some fresh chopped parsley.
Cauliflower is a great flavor to pair with any shelf fish; it’s got a subtle sweet flavor. This side dish has cauliflower done two ways, part of the cauliflower is tossed with olive oil and roasted in the oven until brown and tender. The remainder of the cauliflower is boiled until soft and blended to make a silky puree.
The vinaigrette adds a nice acidity to the dish; the dijon mustard is combined with olive oil, chopped garlic, parsley, and lemon zest, Whisked all together, and seasoned well.
The dish is then plated with the purée on the base of the plate, then topped with the golden cauliflower florets, and then finished with a generous drizzling of the dijon vinaigrette.
I’ve saved the best for last, and this salad is delicious. This noodle salad makes the perfect side dish for crab legs.
The carrots and cucumber are chopped julienne style and mixed through Vietnamese rice noodles with chopped spring onion, fresh coriander, and mung sprouts.
The salad is tossed in the delicious umami dressing, which is made up of fish sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, garlic, and fresh lime. It has the perfect balance of sweet, salty, and sour flavors to serve with crab legs.
Having completed three years at cooking school, Gabi then went into the realm of private cheffing where she got to travel the world, cooking for the rich and famous in their luxury homes and holiday homes. Through her travels, she has experienced different cuisines, which she has added to her cooking repertoire.
