Dungeness Crab Eggs Benedict

This Dungeness crab eggs Benedict is made with crab legs, poached eggs, and a creamy yogurt sauce, and is perfect for brunch!

Who loves crab!?

I do, I do! 

Who wishes they could eat crab all the time?

Me, me, meeee! 

If you, like me, find yourself with a craving for these crustaceous (and creepy-looking!) sea-creatures, you aren't alone!

After you decide that you MUST EAT CRAB, and proceed to douse piece after piece in decadent, rich butter, you may decide that you... still want more crab!!!

In fact, I'm nearly positive that's what will happen.

Somewhere in the back of your brain, though, you may start to wonder if there's a healthier way to eat crab.

A Dungeness crab recipe that's crab-tastic and crab-licious, but also that's butter-free!

Warning-- I make no promises to stop the corny crab jokes.

Healthy(ish) crab recipes definitely exist! I love crab fries, crab nachos, crab omelettes, grilled King crab salad, King crab Louie salad, and of course, this crab eggs benedict.

This Dungeness crab eggs Benedict is light and flavorful, and oh so delicious. Even without butter sauce.

What Does Dungeness Crab Look Like?

A Dungeness crab is the crab that you probably see in your mind when you think of "a crab."

In other words, it looks like the little crab emoji on your cell phone.

Preparing Dungeness Crab Legs for Eggs Benedict

Frozen crab legs come precooked.  That means that you simply need to heat them up, not cook them all the way through.

For this recipe, we're steaming the crab legs.  You'll need a large lidded pot and a metal vegetable steamer basket.  

Bring about a half-inch of water to a boil in the bottom of the pot, set the steamer basket inside the pot, add your crab legs, and cover the pot.

Steam them for 5 minutes for thawed the legs or 10 minutes for frozen legs.

Then, plunge them into a bowl of cold water to stop them from overcooking.  Next, you're ready to crack open the shells.

How to Crack Crab Legs

There are lots of different techniques for cracking open crab legs.

You can use a seafood cracker, a nutcracker, the back of a wooden spoon, or even the palm of your hand to crush the shells.

I prefer to cut through the shells with kitchen shears.

Whatever your preferred technique, you'll want to crack open the shells and remove the meat.

If you need more help prepping the crab, check out this tutorial on how to steam and crack crab legs.

Once you've removed the crab meat, make sure to save the shells to make homemade seafood stock.

Can I Use Canned Crab Instead?

You can, just note that it likely won't be Dungeness.

It'll still be delicious though.

How to Make Dungeness Crab Eggs Benedict

Once you've prepared the crab (which can be done ahead of time), do few final steps.

I make the sauce, toast bread, and slice the avocado while making perfectly poached eggs.

Finally, assemble your Dungeness crab eggs Benedict, serve them with the yogurt sauce, and dig in to your crab-tastic breakfast!

What If I Want a Traditional Hollandaise Instead of Yogurt?

Were you hoping to see a traditional, buttery Hollandaise sauce?  If so, I admire your buttery-optimism.  

Simply swap out my yogurt sauce for Hollandaise.  This easy hollandaise from Pinch Me I'm Eating is a little "lemon-forward," and should work well with the crab.