This easy crab soup recipe requires only 5 ingredients and it is done in less than 30 minutes! A hearty soup with tasty flavors from the ocean will fill you up and warm you up. This meal tastes complex but is actually very simple!
Original post created: August 2014 | Updated: June 2020
Why This Recipe Works
If I lived closer to the coast, I would enjoy tons of crab, lobster and shrimp on a regular basis. Here in the Midwest, we don’t have access to fresh catches, sadly. I love incorporating packaged crab meat into recipes such as this yummy crab soup!
The simplicity of this soup is mind-blowing. When you scroll down to the recipe card you might gasp. It requires only FIVE ingredients but doesn’t taste like it.
If you are looking for a super easy dinner option that’ll fill up the bellies at your table, you’re in luck!
How To Make Crab Soup
Requires FIVE ingredients and is done in less than 30 minutes!
STEP 1
Melt the butter in a Dutch oven or heavy saucepan. Add the crab meat, whipping cream and milk. Bring to a boil over medium high heat then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes.
STEP 2
Remove from heat and add dry sherry and a little salt and black pepper for good measure.
And that is it! Seriously.
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Recipe Notes
- Fresh lemon juice and saltine crackers are the PERFECT complement to this soup.
- If you have it on hand, add a sprinkling of old bay seasoning!
- To slim down the recipe, half the amount of butter used and replace half of the cream with milk.
How To Add Flavor To Soup
Check out these tips to learn how to add flavor to your next batch of soup!
What To Serve With Soup
Soup is an easy, comforting meal to prepare for dinner any time of the year. But what do you serve alongside it? Click over for 33 delicious ideas about what to serve with soup.
Canned Crab vs Fresh Crab Meat
Fresh crab meat is more costly since it requires extra work to harvest the meat. It has amazing flavor and will make your next recipe taste delicious! If you have the time and are willing to put in the work, I highly recommend using fresh crab meat.
Canned or packaged crab meat is available on your grocer’s shelf and can be popped right out of the can. Often it comes with fillers, so pay attention to the ingredient list. Flavors may have been added that will affect your recipe.
What is Imitation Crab Meat
Imitation crab meat is not actually crab meat, so be sure to read the label first. It looks similar to crab meat and flakes in the same way, but it is actually Alaska pollock.
Cooking Sherry vs Drinking Sherry
Both cooking and drinking sherry will work for any recipe, but there are a few notable differences to consider. Cooking sherry is sold on supermarket shelves for cooking-use only. It is not something you would drink on its own.
Sodium is added to cooking sherry to create a longer shelf life. When it is used for cooking, salt may need to be added to the recipe (after taste-testing).
Another good reason to choose cooking sherry is its affordability! Drinking sherry has a short shelf life once it is opened, so drink it quickly or it’ll go to waste.
Other Great Crab Meat Recipes
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Easy Crab Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 tbsp butter
- 1 lb crab meat
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups milk
- 1 tbsp cooking sherry
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a Dutch oven or heavy saucepan. Add the crab meat, whipping cream and milk. Bring to a boil over medium high heat then reduce to low heat. Simmer for 20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add sherry, salt and pepper. Serve with lemon wedges and saltine crackers.
Notes
- Fresh lemon juice and saltine crackers are the PERFECT complement to this soup.
- If you have it on hand, add a sprinkling of old bay seasoning!
- To slim down the recipe, half the amount of butter used and replace half of the cream with milk.
Great ! Now the kids want it all the time . I live near the bay so the crabs are free . A rather cheap soup to make
Oh, lucky! I would definitely enjoy it a lot more frequently than. Thank you, Scott.
Where does the lemon come into play?
Hi Robert, this is part of the recipe notes in the post where I share: Fresh lemon juice and saltine crackers are the PERFECT complement to this soup.
I used some left over Phillips refrigerated crab meat that had turned mushy but not spoiled, added a stalk of finely chopped celery for mouth feel, and it came out great.
Thanks for the tip! Glad you enjoyed it.
Easy, quick and damn good. Thanks
Love that review! Thank you for trying it and sharing us your thoughts.
It’s was delicious. But I did simple change, we had left over lobster and dungeness crabs.
That sounds like a great tweak! Thank you for sharing!
Wow this came out great! My husband ended up making this in our instant pot and omit the sherry (since we did not have any) and added in some chicken sausage (but I would not recommend adding too much or it will overpower the soup), shrimp and carrots. We also used half of the amount of butter.
Before adding the sausage, it was really good but we just wanted to use up leftover sausage we had in the freezer.
I will definitely be making this recipe again in the future.
Those are great tweaks. I’m with you, I like to use what I have on hand too. Apple juice is a good substitute at times for Sherry too if you ever need that hack. Thanks for sharing all this – I appreciate it and so will others who are looking at it!