This Crab Scrambled Eggs is an easy yet fancy breakfast to treat yourself on weekends or impress others on special occasions. It also doesn’t take much more time to prepare than normal scrambled eggs.
One of our favorite weekend breakfasts is this crab scrambled eggs. We have been making it at home many times for the last few years after we tried a similar dish at a restaurant in downtown Chicago. It was a special seasonal menu item back then and they no longer made it.
The dish features soft and luscious scrambled eggs, and the fresh crab meat brings a subtle sweetness that pairs very well with the richness of the eggs. It doesn’t take a lot of efforts to prepare, but the result is beautiful. Serve it on a slice of bread and a glass of smoothie or milk on the side for an absolutely healthy, delicious and filling breakfast.
Ingredients
The two main ingredients of this dish are eggs and fresh crab meat. To season it, you just need salt and pepper. When serving, you can sprinkle some thinly sliced chives or scallions on top.
Try to use the best eggs you can find. I love using eggs from my local farmers’ market. An important tip to increase the richness of scrambled eggs as well as enhance the color is to remove some of the egg whites. It is a wonderful tip we came across on Quora a couple of years ago. For two people, I suggest using four large eggs less one egg white.
For this crab scrambled eggs, I like to use dungeness crab meat. Other options that will work are blue crab, snow crab, king crab or even refrigerated canned fresh crab meat. The version we had at the restaurant used snow crab.
How to Make Crab Scrambled Eggs
There are more than one way to make scrambled eggs. The method we suggest in this recipe is what we think works best for this dish. The goal is to have soft, fluffy scrambled eggs and the crab meat incorporates nicely with the eggs.
The first step is to briefly sauté the crab meat. This step helps removing excess moisture, thus concentrating flavors and improving textures. In addition, we also break the crab meat into smaller pieces so that later they will incorporate with the eggs better.
If you use refrigerated lump crab meat, this step is important since this type of crab meat often has quite a bit of excess moisture and sometimes, an aftertaste.
Next, pour beaten eggs into the pan. Once you see the eggs start to set around the edges, use a spatula to pull the set outer edges towards the center. Keep doing that to gather all the egg curds in the center of your pan.
Quickly turn the pile of egg curds over so that any undercooked parts can get some heat. Swirl and move around to break up the scrambled eggs slightly. The eggs will continue to cook from residual heat, so remove it from the pan when it’s 90-95% cooked to your liking to avoid overcooking.
It is best to make this crab scrambled eggs in a nonstick pan. I use a Scanpan skillet to make this dish. Also, when scrambling the eggs, pay attention to the heat and adjust the heat or briefly take the pan off the heat as needed to avoid overcooking the eggs. I usually stick with low to medium-low heat.
I’d love to hear what you think about the dish, so please feel free to leave a comment. New recipes are added every week so let’s connect on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for the latest updates.
Scrambled eggs are great for breakfast, but here are some dinner recipes featuring scrambled eggs:
Crab Scrambled Eggs
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs less 1 egg white
- 1/3 cup fresh crab meat (about 1.5 oz or 45 grams)
- olive oil
- salt
- black pepper
- thinly sliced chives or scallions (for garnishing, optional)
Instructions
- Crack 4 large eggs less 1 egg white into a bowl. It means we need 4 egg yolks and 3 egg whites. Beat well. Add a teaspoon of olive oil, a pinch of salt and stir to combine. Set aside.
- Place a nonstick pan over medium heat. Add some olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add fresh crab meat. Stir, break the crab meat into smaller pieces and briefly sauté to remove excess moisture. Season with salt to taste.
- Spread the crab meat pieces evenly and pour beaten eggs into the pan. Lower the heat to low-medium low and wait for a few seconds to let the eggs set around the edges.
- Once you see the eggs start to set around the edges, use a spatula to pull the set outer edges towards the center. Keep doing that to gather all the egg curds in the center of your pan.
- Quickly turn the pile of egg curds over so that any undercooked parts can get some heat. Swirl and move around to break up the scrambled eggs slightly.
- The eggs will continue to cook from residual heat, so remove it from the pan when it’s 90-95% cooked to your liking to avoid overcooking. Sprinkle black pepper and chives/scallions (if using) on top and serve immediately.
Rick
Delicious! I’ve been eating this for breakfast every day for the last 2 weeks. What a treat! I’ve been crabbing and fishing off the central Oregon coast.
Sophie
That sounds so cool! I’m glad you like the dish that much. Well, I won’t complain if I can eat it for breakfast every day :). Thank you for taking the time to come back and comment!
Colleen Fleming
What a treat!!! I’m gonna try this!