Reviewed: Mar. 11, 2009

I have been using this recipe for years, and with a few modifications it is one of my favorite! Instead of the chicken broth+ soup base+ water, I just use a big box of low sodium chicken broth to make it easier. I also add two cans of chopped clams. Drain one, and use the clam juice from the other. This adds great flavor and more salt. Red potatoes and red onions make the soup more colorful. Steam your own crab legs and use the time the potatoes are cooking to de-shell the meat. It makes for much better flavor and bigger chunks of crab in the soup than if you use canned crab.

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Jeramonius

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Knoxville, Tennessee, USA

Living In: Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA

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Reviewed: Mar. 3, 2009

I use the recipe with a few changes, no water only broth, use two potatoes, dash of cayenne, worcheshire instead of soy sauce, more heavy cream than half/half & two garlic cloves. Delicious !

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husbandwhocooks

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Winterville, North Carolina, USA

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Reviewed: Oct. 26, 2007

I always like to try recipes as written the first time, but it was apparent that this was going to be too watery. I used chicken stock, left out the water, and thickened the celery, butter and onion mixture with a couple extra tablespoons of flour. I added two extra potatoes, and used about two and a half cups of whipping cream instead of the half and half. Seasonings I used were Worcestershire sauce instead of the soy sauce, a little chopped fresh basil, additional Old Bay, and a dash of cayenne pepper. The result was fantastic; thick and creamy, everything a good "Ball-mer" Cream of Crab soup should be!

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Sheila

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Chesterville, Ohio, USA

Living In: Waldorf, Maryland, USA

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Reviewed: Oct. 8, 2007

Yum, Yum, Yum! DO NOT skimp on the half and half, I use heavy cream in mine. This is a great recipe and it leaves you enough leeway to improvise you want to. It's wonderful just the way it is.

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THEIRTIEN

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Baltimore, Maryland, USA

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Reviewed: Nov. 21, 2006

The absolute best! My parents live on the eastern shore of MD an love this the best! I took this into work in Baltimore and the staff of 18 flipped out! All my Baltimore crab lovers wanted this smooth rich recipe! It's FLY as my teenagers say!!

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WeeWeeMe

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Reviewed: Nov. 5, 2006

This is an awesome recipe. To perfect it even more (no offense, Darcy!) I substitute heavy cream for the half-and-half, add more potatoes, add more Old Bay, and top with scallions.

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artcat742

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Reviewed: Oct. 16, 2006

I might try this recipe again but I do believe I will just omit the water and double the broth.

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Wilemon

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Afton, Virginia, USA

Living In: Larkspur, Colorado, USA

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Reviewed: May 11, 2006

EXCELLENT recipe! i used worchestershire instead of soy and it gave it a little something that appealed to me and my loved ones.

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Becky R.

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Reviewed: Mar. 20, 2006

Really good. Didn't have Old Bay seasoning so substituted a combo of mustard, paprika, black pepper, cloves, worcestershire and bay leaf.

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Mary A

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Reviewed: Mar. 18, 2006

With some 'tweaking", this recipe has potential. I added cooked bacon and shoepeg corn and left out the water. For liquids, I used chicken stock and heavy cream. When serving the chowder, my husband and I put on several dashes of Tabasco sauce since we like things a bit spicy.

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KOALAGIRL

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 8, 2005

This soup was incredible! I did however omit the onions and celery, add 2c fresh asparagus, 2c fresh string beans, and the corn off of two cobs. I don't know if it's b/c i added all the veggies or not but my consistency was perfect and creamy. Also I did add extra crab 1/2 fresh, and half imitation cause thats what i had. I did use all the recommended old bay cause i like salty stuff, but if you don't i wouldn't. Thanks for the recipe!

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DINA15

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Jackson, New Jersey, USA

Living In: Bridgewater, New Jersey, USA

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Reviewed: Apr. 25, 2005

Just to let you know this cream of crab soup is the best I've had. I did change a few things but it turned out fantastic and everyone loved it.

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JESSICAD1

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Reviewed: Feb. 14, 2004

I have to agree with Creme on the water. There was way too much liquid in it at the end. I poured some of it off. That being said, its a very good recipe. I personally like my seafood a bit more...fiery? So I added more OLD BAY than the recipe called for. Next time I will try adding cayenne instead. It is worth making for sure. Specially for those that dont like alot of heat or spice.

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SPEARFISHER

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Demopolis, Alabama, USA

Living In: Trussville, Alabama, USA

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Reviewed: Dec. 31, 2001

The recipe calls for far too much water. Award winning crab soup has a velvety texture. This soup is running, and had very little texture. The taste is passable, but with other recipes not half as running, I wold avoid this one. Texture is very important in crab soup and this recipe has almost none. If you decide to make it, the actual cooking time will be 2-3 times longer than the recipe calls for while you are trying to reduce all that water. Then things get overcooked, pot boils over, etc. This is one to avoid.

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CREMEDELACREME

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Reviewed: Feb. 5, 2001

I must have done something wrong because when I added the flour into the sauteed onions, there was no liquid left. I continued making it, but later, I added a lot of cornstarch and water to thicken up the soup. It turned into a thick chowder that was really very good. It took constant stirring while I was adding the thickeners, so that took a lot of time. Since I don't know what "chicken base" is, I added 3-4 cubes of chicken bouillion. I figured it was close enough. It really turned out tasty. It was my very first "seafood" dish and my family and friends gave it a "10"!!

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