Maryland Crab Soup in the Instant Pot

It has been really cold the past few days. Plus our household has come down with the crud. So it is a perfect day for soup. Last week I had Maryland Crab Soup for lunch while out at a restaurant. It cost me $19 for a bowl with a side of hush puppies. I thought I could definitely make it for cheaper than that. So I put together a Walmart pickup order which is awesome because being sick, I had no energy to try navigating the store aisles.

We had the soup for dinner last night and my son said it was the best soup I have made. Yay! That is high praise coming from him. My husband even had a bowl and he is not a soup person. My Walmart was out of the lump crab, so this entire recipe ended up being a pantry and freezer one which I think actually worked out pretty good because as long as you have the staples on hand then all you need is the canned crab.

Here is what I did:

Materials:

• 6qt Instant Pot
• Large spoon

Ingredients:

• 2 14.5oz cans diced tomatoes, don’t drain
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 3 6oz cans premium crab meat
• 32 oz mixed vegetables (I used a corn, peas, green beans, and carrot blend)
• 3 cubed potatoes
• 1tbsp minced Garlic
• 1 tbsp Old Bay Seasoning
• 1 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1/2 tbsp salt
• 1/2 tbsp black pepper
• 1 8oz jar lump crab meat
• 1/2 yellow onion diced

Procedure:

1. Place olive oil, onion, and garlic in your inner pot in the Instant Pot in Sauté. Heat until onions turn translucent.
2. Add broth, tomatoes and seasoning. Mix together.
3. Add potatoes, vegetables, and crab. Mix together.
4. Turn off Sauté. Place your lid on your IP and close vent. Set on Manual with High Pressure for 10 minutes. Remember it is going to take about 20 min to come to pressure.
5. Let natural pressure release for 15 minutes. Carefully open your vent. You might want to use a dish cloth as it could spray hot liquid if not fully depressurized.
6. Serve with a nice crusty bread (or hush puppies!). Enjoy!

If you want your vegetables to be less crunchy, set it for 15-20 minutes. If you want this to have more of a kick you could add red pepper or even more Old Bay. My son added more Old Bay to his. I think he has adjusted quite nicely to living in Maryland. He puts Old Bay on everything. His favorite is on celery or baked potatoes.

This cost about the same as that bowl I had in the restaurant, but it made about 10 servings. The most expensive ingredient is the lump crab, almost $8! So actually since I was missing that ingredient, this was way cheaper. You could tell it needed the additional texture layer you get from the big chunks of crab though. Honestly, I have tried doing the penny pinching with my family and the grocery bill, but in the end decided that paying more for high quality ingredients and special items works out because it is cheaper than the three of us going out to a restaurant plus there will usually be leftovers that can be used for lunch or the next night’s dinner.

Do you have any restaurant favorites that you make at home? I would love to hear about them. Post a comment!