Maryland
Crab Soup
Every bit of a crab feast, simmered into the soup every Maryland family swears has a secret recipe.
The core ingredients are always the same — tomatoes, sweet corn, and crab — because that's the seasonal larder Maryland has in abundance. Everything else, including whichever Chesapeake seafood seasoning your family swears by, is just everything else. Roast the shells into a stock first if you've got them; it's the difference between good crab soup and great crab soup.
Read the full story — The Dead Man. In the Kitchen. With the Mustard.Crab Stock (optional)
- 2 dozen crab shells (tops), unrinsed
- 1 cup onion, rough chopped
- 1 cup celery, rough chopped
- 1 cup carrot, rough chopped
- 12 cups water
- drizzle neutral oil
No shells on hand? Substitute 2 quarts vegetable broth plus 2 cups water for the 2½ quarts stock called for below.
Aromatics & Base
- 2½ qts crab stock (or substitute above)
- 2 tbsp EVOO
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 medium yellow onions, diced
- 4–6 cloves garlic, diced
- 2 cups carrot, diced
- 2 cups celery, diced
Seasoning
- 2–4 tbsp J.O. #1, to taste
- 1 tsp mace powder (optional)
- 1 tsp dried mustard, to taste (optional)
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp Frank’s Original hot sauce
Crab-shell stock already carries seasoning from the shells, so use less J.O. #1. Vegetable or seafood stock needs more.
Vegetables & Crab
- 2 cups baby red potatoes, quartered
- 2+ cups MD sweet corn, fresh or frozen (not canned)
- 28 oz can whole San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 tbsp sugar (omit if using fresh tomatoes)
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 lb lump crab meat
Roast & Simmer the Shells optional
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Break the unrinsed shells into smaller pieces and arrange in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, drizzled lightly with neutral oil. Roast 10–15 minutes, stirring once or twice, until reddish-brown and aromatic — avoid charring. Scrape the shells, pan juices, and browned bits into a stockpot with the extra 1 cup each of onion, celery, and carrot and the 12 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 1 hour. Strain through a fine mesh sieve.
Saüte the Base 10 min
In a 10-quart stockpot, melt the butter and heat the EVOO. Sauté the onions, carrots, and celery over medium heat for about 10 minutes, dropping the heat to medium or medium-low halfway through to prevent scorching.
Add the Garlic
Stir in the garlic and cook about 1 minute — no longer, or it will burn.
Season & Add the Stock
Add the first tablespoon of J.O. #1 and the mace, if using. Stir until the onion, garlic, and celery are well coated. Raise the heat back to medium-high, add the stock, and bring to a boil.
Build the Soup 60–90 min
Add the hot sauce, Worcestershire, bay leaves, potatoes, and tomatoes (with their juice if canned; stir in the sugar if using canned tomatoes). Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 1 hour to 90 minutes — 1 hour gives a brighter, more acidic base, 90 minutes a softer, more integrated one. Either way, the potatoes should be soft before moving on.
Break Up the Tomatoes
Squish the whole tomatoes against the side of the pot with a spoon.
Add the Corn 20 min
Stir in the corn and simmer 10 minutes. Taste — if the flavor feels flat, add half the dried mustard. Simmer 10 more minutes.
Finish with Crab & Lemon 10 min before serving
Add the crab meat and lemon juice 10 minutes before serving. Retaste and add the remaining dried mustard if needed. Taste throughout and adjust with more J.O. #1 as you go.
Serve or Freeze
Makes about 12 servings. Freezes well — this is the soup meant for the middle of a January snowstorm.