It’s that time of year again, time to eat down the freezer stash. Summer through fall I stock our freezer with frozen berries, vegetables, meat and seafood. This means that through the long dreary winter and early spring, I can make cobblers, soups and other various dishes with produce preserved at peak freshness. We also eat a lot more meat when it’s not harvest season, so all that protein stocked up helps us save money during the “meaty” months. But with spring harvest a few weeks away, it’s time to start making room in the freezer. First up, 12 pounds of King Crab Legs I have left from Alaskan Seafood!
We only ate half of the crab with this recipe, I’m saving the rest for a yummy macaroni and cheese or something equally decadent.
I was looking for something really easy for dinner to use the crab with. I didn’t just want to make a butter dipping sauce, I wanted something to make this dinner seem really fancy and special.
I knew that avocado and mayonnaise went well with crab, so decided to make a dip of the two.
Now before some of you begin freaking out that king crab is in no way affordable for someone on a tight budget, let me explain. I DID get this crab for free from Alaskan Seafood. No, it’s not what I would consider affordable. I very rarely buy king crab, but when I do (for an anniversary for instance), I get it on sale and buy one leg for each of us (which I then break up into 3 pieces each like in the photos). While that does come out to about $13-15 for two of us, it’s much cheaper than ordering it in a restaurant.
If you’re struggling to afford food to put on the table (and I’ve been there), this is not the recipe for you. But I know some of you are just trying to save some money on food. If that’s the case, eating out less is the EASIEST way to save money on food. Especially if you’re wanting something fancy like crab, MAKE IT AT HOME!!!
For the crab dip, I used my homemade mayonnaise, it’s really good stuff. You could substitute store bought mayo but it won’t have the same richness. Making your own is also cheaper. I added a little chili pepper to give the avocado dipping sauce a slight kick. If you can’t handle any spiciness ysou can skip it, but oh man is it good!
MORE DIP RECIPES ON EATING RICHLY:
- Traditional Chinese Plum Sauce
- Poststicker Sauce
- Gaucamole Bacon Burger Dip
- Two Minute Guacamole
- Pico De Gallo
- Salsa Verde
- Fresh Mango Salsa
- Pomegranate Salsa
- Healthy Honey Mustard Dip
Crab with Spicy Avocado Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 avocado
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 limes, juiced
- 1/4 cup 2 % milk
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- to taste salt
- 4 King Crab legs
Instructions
- Heat 1.5 inches of water in a pot with a steamer basket inside (high heat).
- If crab legs are frozen, rinse off any ice, then break at joints into pieces that will fit in your steamer basket.
- Place crab in basket and put the lid on the pot. Steam 7-10 minutes until crab meat reaches internal temperature of 165 degrees.
- While the crab steams, slice avocado in half and remove pit. Spoon flesh from avocado peels and place in bowl of food processor.
- Add mayonnaise, juice from the two limes, milk and crushed red pepper flakes. Pulse until well mixed.
- Taste and add salt as desired.
- Serve crab legs with dipping sauce and scissors to cut the crab shells open.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 377Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 87mgSodium: 1737mgCarbohydrates: 14gFiber: 4gSugar: 1gProtein: 32g
Nutrition information is an estimate only.
I agree with your thoughts above. I also think your advice to just buy a couple of legs is smart because I think with more indulgent ingredients, a little goes a long way. Plus I 100% agree with you, SO much cheaper than a restaurant. Around here that would be the price of a standard, restaurant hamburger, and me…I’d rather have the crab.
Me too! We are so food sisters 😉