This luxurious recipe for creamy crab pasta combines sweet tender crab with bacon in a delectable white wine cream sauce. The perfect dinner party choice…or for a night when you just want to pamper yourself because you are worth ALL the crab!
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Why we love this recipe
This silky, indulgent recipe for crab bacon pasta is the kind of decadent meal you want to pull out for company…or for yourself when you want a creamy, flavorful treat.
Now, while this recipe IS all kinds of luxurious and full of glorious crab and bacon and cream sauce, that also means that a little goes a long way.
Buying lump crab meat always gives me sticker shock, but because it is swirled into this rich conglomeration, you actually should serve up somewhat smaller portions than you would normally do. And here’s an interesting piece about WHY crab meat is so expensive, in case you were also wondering.
Meaning that a little spendy crab meat and decadent cream sauce goes a long way, especially when you pair this with an interesting side dish and a well behaved dessert like strawberry sherbet.
Oh, and about that basil. I’m currently in total denial that my homegrown basil season is almost over and am self-soothing myself by remembering that I can buy bunches of it at the supermarket, but if you are making this sometime when basil is not at your fingertips, the always available fresh parsley will also work just fine.
Ingredients you need
Ingredient notes and substitutions
- Crab meat: There are millions of types of crab meat out there (for more on this, check out the FAQ in this post) but I tend to go for the more expensive lump crab meat for this recipe, as you can spread it out over 6 servings. That being said, you can use the less expensive claw or backfin crab meat if you like.
- Cream: You do need heavy cream for this recipe to get the texture we are after.
- Pasta: We like linguine for this recipe, but any type of pasta will work.
- Lemon: If you don’t have a lemon on hand, bottled lemon juice will work.
- Basil: If it is not basil season (sob!) you can use fresh chopped parsley.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities and nutritional information.
How to make this recipe
STEP 1: You start by cooking up some long pasta – spaghetti and linguine are both A-OK – in salted water, and scoop out a cup of that magical pasta water before you drain it.
STEP 2: While the pasta is cooking, sauté up some chopped bacon in a heavy deep skillet until it is cooked to your liking. Scoop out the bacon to drain on paper towels, and then add some white wine to those bacon drippings.
STEP 3: Reduce it a little, and then pour in some cream. (I know, but life is short and every once in a while we get to have cream.) Simmer it for about 5 minutes.
STEP 4: Once the cream has reduced a little, you are going to pour the cooked pasta into the skillet, give it a good toss so it is nice and coated, and then stir in the crabmeat along with the chopped herbs, the cooked bacon, some butter (just a smidge!), some lemon juice, and enough of that pasta water to make the sauce the perfect consistency. Season it to taste with salt and pepper.
Now dish it out onto warmed plates and garnish it with a few basil or parsley sprigs, and speaking of that…
…this is how I know something is a hit with the Southern husband – when he eats every last morsel, except for that last smidge of garnish.
Recipe FAQs
You can find crab meat in cans or plastic containers in the seafood section of your supermarket, and yep, they are expensive. We do pick the most luxurious kind for this recipe, which is lump crab meat. It has a lovely sweet flavor and comes in larger chunks. Backfin crab meat is a mix of fin and body meat, and comes in smaller pieces and flakes. Backfin crab meat is perfect for crab cakes. Claw crab meat is darker and has a stronger crab taste. Imitation crab meat is actually not crab meat at all – it is pulverized whitefish that is shaped into sticks and dyed red. We don’t recommend it for this recipe.
You do, in order to get the flavor and texture this luxurious sauce needs. I promise we can eat salad tomorrow!
You can. (SOB.) Just skip over step 2 in the recipe and go directly to making the wine sauce.
Leave your question (or comment or suggestion) in the Comments box below the recipe and I will answer pronto!
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PrintCreamy Crab Pasta
Elevate your dinner with this recipe for flavorful creamy crab pasta cooked in a white wine cream sauce. A gourmet treat for any occasion.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 12 ounces spaghetti or linguine
- 4 ounces bacon, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 pound jumbo lump cooked crabmeat
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil, plus extra for garnish (see note)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- Juice from 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions in heavily salted water. Scoop out a cup of pasta water before you drain it.
- While the pasta is cooking, put the bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium high heat until done to your liking. Scoop out and drain on paper towels, leaving those magical drippings in the pan.
- Pour the wine into the skillet and stir over medium heat for about 3 minutes, scraping up any delectable bacon pieces stuck on the bottom of the pan. Pour in the cream and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add the cooked pasta to the cream sauce and toss. Add the cooked bacon, the crab, basil, butter, lemon juice and toss again. Drizzle in the pasta water if you need to loosen up the sauce at all, and keep gently tossing until the crab is warmed through.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper, divide among warmed plates and start twirling up that pasta deliciousness!
Notes
-
- Crab meat: There are millions of types of crab meat out there (for more on this, check out the FAQ in this post) but I tend to go for the more expensive lump crab meat for this recipe, as you can spread it out over 6 servings. That being said, you can use the less expensive claw or backfin crab meat if you like.
-
- Cream: You do need heavy cream for this recipe to get the texture we are after.
-
- Pasta: We like linguine for this recipe, but any type of pasta will work.
-
- Lemon: If you don’t have a lemon on hand, bottled lemon juice will work.
-
- Basil: If it is not basil season (sob!) you can use fresh chopped parsley.
Kristen says
This recipe is delightful! The sauce came out the perfect amount of creamy yet not heavy. Will definitely be making again!
And it’s a good way to stretch out that spendy crab! Glad you liked it.
Jane George says
Hi Kate, am I missing something, what do you do with the bacon after you cook it?
Jane! Thank goodness for you, and what was I thinking leaving out the bacon of all things! You stir it in with the crab, and it’s all fixed now. Thank you – phew! :)