Blue Crabs with Peppers and Onions
A recipe of blue crabs with peppers and onions seasoned with aromatic herbs and spices. Excellent taste and simple cooking to make a great meal. You can also serve this dish as an appetizer when serving many family members or at dinner parties.
Blue crabs are one of the most delicious crustaceans that are cost-effective and available for cooking and eating. They’re also incredibly easy to prepare, especially if you have a steamer! That’s because blue crabs are best cooked by steaming them when seasoned. The crabs will be soft, tender, and moist.
In this recipe, the taste of the crabs is enhanced by the peppers and onions and the seasoning mixture. This simple recipe can be prepared easily at home without much effort.
As long as you have live blue crabs and the right seasonings, you only need a large pan and some patience while they cook. This recipe combines some of my favorite things: bell peppers and red onions with a spicy blend created with NouBess Fish Seasoning and NouBess Cajun Seasoning. The perfect balance of aromatic herbs and spices.
Ingredients needed for Blue Crabs with Peppers and Onions
- Blue Crabs: buy live ones if you can. The frozen crabs barely have any flavor.
- NouBess Cajun Seasoning: you can get it from NouBess.com
- NouBess Fish Seasoning: you can get it from NouBess.com
- Olive Oil: regular or extra virgin oil
- Garlic Cloves: fresh garlic cloves for a fresh flavor.
- Tomatoes: pick juicy tomatoes because you need the juice to help cook the vegetables and crabs.
- Bell Peppers: Add 1/2 of each pepper (red, yellow, orange, green). This mixture will make the crabs very delicious.
- Onions: I usually use red onions, but white onions or shallots are also fine.
- Lime Juice: you can use lemon juice if you prefer.
- Oyster Sauce: choose a brand that does not contain a lot of sodium
- Salt and Pepper to taste.
How to handle live blue crabs before cooking
The recipe will taste better with live blue crabs. It is best to start prepping for this dish the day before as you need to ensure that the crabs are not alive when cleaning them.
- The fishmonger might place the blue crabs in a paper bag at the fish market.
- When you arrive home, place the paper bag in a plastic bag in the freezer overnight. A plastic bag is needed to catch any liquid from the crabs. The claws will perforate the bag.
- Remove the bag and place it in a bowl inside the sink. Let the crabs thaw for about 2 hours less, depending on their sizes.
- Remove them from the bag and place the crabs in the bowl. Add water and rinse. At this time, make sure that they have fully expired before cleaning.
How to prepare the recipe
- Clean the blue crabs, rinse them, and set them aside.
- Mix the fish seasoning and the cajun seasonings in a small bowl and set aside.
- Slice the onions and the bell peppers, place in a bowl, and set aside.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the chopped garlic and chopped tomatoes.
- Add one tablespoon of the mixed seasoning to the tomatoes and garlic mixture, and cook, stirring until the tomatoes release their juices.
- Add the sliced onions, and mix until well combined.
- Add the peppers, and mix until well combined.
- Add the oyster sauce and mix well. Season with salt and pepper if necessary. Cook the vegetables in the seasoning for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the blue crabs in a single layer and cover them with vegetable mixtures.
- Drizzle the lime juice and olive oil over the blue crabs, lower the heat, and cover. Cook for about 20-25 minutes.
- Serve immediately as an appetizer or main course with your choice of entrees.
Notes and Tips
- Clean the blue crabs first.
- Have everything sliced and all your ingredients ready to go.
- I use no-salt seasonings only because oyster sauce contains a lot of sodium. This way, I can control the salt amount in the mixture before adding the crabs.
- For the crabs to be seasoned perfectly, place them on top of half the peppers and onions mixture and cover with the remaining peppers and onions.
- For best results, do not overcook and serve immediately.
- Other vegetables to consider adding or substituting are cabbage, asparagus, carrots, or snap peas.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
The most significant thing to remember is that blue crabs are suitable for various cooking styles. They can be eaten steamy or roasted with spices and then served with a Zesty Shallots and Parsley Sauce.
I hope you enjoy this recipe for blue crabs with peppers and onions. It’s a simple and delicious way to prepare these little crustaceans, and it makes a great dish for any seafood lover!
Blue Crabs with Peppers and Onions
Ingredients
- 6 Blue Crabs cleaned and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil plus more for drizzling
- 4 Garlic Cloves
- 2 Tomatoes medium-sized and cut into chunks
- 2 tablespoons NouBess Cajun Seasoning Salt-Tree
- 2 tablespoons NouBess Fish Seasoning Salt-Tree
- 1/2 Bell Pepper half of each Pepper, red, green, orange, and yellow
- 2 Red Onions medium size and sliced
- Juice of half a Lime
- 1 1/2 tablespoons Oyster Sauce
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Clean the blue crabs, rinse them, and set them aside.
- Mix the fish seasoning and the cajun seasonings in a small bowl and set aside.
- Slice the onions and the bell peppers, place in a bowl, and set aside.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the chopped garlic and chopped tomatoes.
- Add 1 tablespoon of the mixed seasoning to the tomatoes and garlic mixture, and cook, stirring until the tomatoes release their juices.
- Add the sliced onions, and mix until well combined.
- Add the peppers, and mix until well combined. Add the remaining seasoning.
- Add the oyster sauce and mix well. Season with salt and Pepper if necessary. Cook the vegetables in the seasoning for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the blue crabs in a single layer and cover them with vegetable mixtures.
- Drizzle the lime juice and olive oil over the blue crabs, lower the heat, and cover. Cook for about 20-25 minutes.
- Serve immediately as an appetizer or main course with your choice of side dishes.
Notes
- Clean the blue crabs first.
- Have everything sliced and all your ingredients ready to go.
- I use no-salt seasonings only because oyster sauce contains a lot of sodium. This way, I can control the salt amount in the mixture before adding the crabs.
- For the crabs to be seasoned perfectly, place them on top of half the peppers and onions mixture and cover with the remaining peppers and onions.
- For best results, do not overcook and serve immediately. Other vegetables to consider adding or substituting are cabbage, asparagus, carrots, or snap peas.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- The serving is one crab for each person. Add more crabs if you need them.
Additional Notes:
How to handle live blue crabs before cooking
The recipe will taste better with live blue crabs. It is best to start prepping for this dish the day before.- At the fish market, the fishmonger will add the blue crabs in a paper bag.
- When you arrive home, place the paper bag in a plastic bag in the freezer overnight.
- Remove the bag and place it in a bowl inside the sink. Let the crabs thaw for about 2 hours less, depending on their sizes.
- Remove them from the bag and place the crabs in the bowl. Add water and rinse. At this time, make sure that they have fully expired before cleaning.
Nutrition
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.
Nutrition info is automatically generated and provided as a courtesy and as an estimate only.
