Seafood Boil in a Bag with Garlic Butter

It’s a dish that includes a variety of seafood, such as shrimp, crab legs, or crawfish, along with vegetables like corn on the cob and potatoes. It’s all cooked together in a large bag along with spices, butter, and/or broth.

The bag is sealed and cooked in a large pot of boiling water, on a grill, or baked. Once the seafood and vegetables are cooked through, the bag is opened and the contents are dumped out onto a large platter or newspaper-lined table for serving.

The seafood and vegetables are often served with butter or a variety of dipping sauces.
Check out our post on What is a Seafood Boil for additional commentary and tips.

Use an oven bag that will hold 4-5 pounds at least. You can find one at your local grocer or here on Amazon. Oven bags are great for cooking juicy, tender meat and vegetables. It’s also great for easy clean up. I grab the turkey size to be sure it can all fit.

Keep in mind the potaotes and corn have longer cook times than the seafood. You will need to cook those first before adding it to the seafood. Par boil these first will ensure your seafood isn’t overcooked while you wait for the potatoes to soften.

Par boiling is when food is partially cooked in boiling water before it is finished cooking by another method, here it will be finished off in the oven. The food is usually boiled for a shorter period of time than it would be if it were being fully cooked in boiling water. The purpose of par boiling is to partially cook the food so that it can be finished cooking more quickly or evenly using another method.

Seafood cooks extremely fast. It also isn’t cheap! To ensure your money is put to good use, boil your vegetables first.

You will need butter, garlic, lemon, white wine (or broth), and Old Bay Seasoning. I also add Cajun seasoning because I prefer a kick in the taste.

The star of a boil is the garlic butter that seasons the entire dish. Butter adds a rich, creamy taste and texture to the seafood.

Cooked shrimp will turn pink and opaque. The shrimp will also become firm when you touch it. Perfectly cooked shrimp usually has a C-shape, as opposed to a tightly curled O shape.
Check out our guide on How to Tell if Shrimp is Cooked here.

Most crab legs will come precooked and often frozen. Sometimes, if it’s sold thawed, then it has been thawed from frozen. After the crabs are caught they are cooked on the boat and then flash-frozen right on the spot.

Crab should be cooked until the flesh is pearly or white, and opaque. You won’t be able to tell much by the outside color, because when you bought them they were already pre-cooked and orange. Examine the shoulder (this is the large white part of the cluster). It should be pearly white.

My favorite way to reheat is on the stove using additional butter. Microwaved seafood can turn out mushy, so I avoid it.

If you know you’re going to freeze some, pull the seafood early so it’s slightly undercooked, it finishes when reheated and keeps good texture. You can freeze the seafood boil even with the sauce. It freezes beautifully on its own or with the seafood. When you reheat, warm it low-and-slow so the butter re-emulsifies.