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Old-School Baltimore Crab Soup Recipe

Recipe by: FoodJunkie

"This crab soup recipe mirrors the traditional crab soups made by Baltimore women over the last 50 years. It is a milder-flavored, lighter-colored soup than the ones typically served in modern seafood restaurants. Homemade crab soup is a staple at most Maryland cookouts and family gatherings. Serve with crackers."

Directions
Ingredients
Nutrition

Directions

Prep25 m
Cook4 h
Ready In4 h 25 m

1Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the carrots, and cook uncovered until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well, and set aside.
2Place the ham bone, barley, salt, and pepper in large stock pot with 4 cups of water. Simmer over medium heat for 30 to 45 minutes. Add cabbage and tomatoes; continue simmering for 15 more minutes. Stir in the potatoes and carrots. Simmer until the potatoes are tender and easily pierced with a fork, 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in 1 cup of water, corn, green beans, lima beans, and peas. Simmer for 20 minutes.
3While the soup is simmering, clean the crabs by opening it and discarding the lungs and mouth. Remove the yellowish-brown tomalley and set aside. Break the crabs in half and add to the soup along with the seafood seasoning. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4Meanwhile, place the bacon in a large, deep skillet, and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Drain the bacon slices on a paper towel-lined plate. Cook and stir the reserved tomalley in the remaining bacon grease over low heat until the mixture becomes gravy-like. Stir the cooked tomalley into the soup with 1 more cup of water. Continue simmering for 45 minutes, then add the lump crabmeat. Season with additional salt, pepper, and seafood seasoning, if necessary. Simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low, until ready to serve.

Footnotes

Cook's Notes
There are several types of Maryland-style seafood seasonings available. The most popular brands are Old Bay(R) and J.O. Spice(R).
If soup is too thick, add water, one cup at a time, and stir while simmering to thin out the soup. If soup becomes too thin or watery, add a can of tomato paste, stir and simmer, this should thicken the soup to the desired texture. Again, it's merely a matter of preference.

Ingredients