Dungeness Crab

On Mon 17 Apr 2006 05:47:07p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it PastaLover?

Quoted message said:

McGrath's, a northwestern US chain, has a restaurant here in Scottsdale,
AZ. I've enjoyed them since they opened about 1/2 year ago. However,
they've had problems getting dungeness crabs.

Well, I stopped in yesterday and they seemed to have a new supplier.
They had a whole tank of the little buggers.

So I ordered up a few oysters as an starter, along with a cup of clam
chowder, and one crab.

The oysters were perfect, the clam chowder was just the right mix of
briney and sweet and creamy. And the crab was huge!

The first couple of bits were a bit too hot. And then it cooled just
enough to dig into the best bits. I started with the cells in the body,
but by the time I got to the legs, it was cold.

So what's the best strategy? I'm thinking the best thing is to share
with someone. Give someone special half the body and half the legs and
enjoy the best of both while still warm.

But when trying to devourer an entire crab by one's self, you've got to
admit that there are going to be parts that get cold before you get to
them. Maybe the legs should go first as the body has more mass and will
stay hot longer?

Fellow crab lovers: I appeal to you. What is your "secret" strategy????

Thanks in advance.

Legs first. Eat fast. Don't share. :-)

--
Wayne Boatwright @¿@¬
_____________________

"Wayne Boatwright" <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Mon 17 Apr 2006 05:47:07p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it

PastaLover?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

McGrath's, a northwestern US chain, has a restaurant here in Scottsdale,
AZ. I've enjoyed them since they opened about 1/2 year ago. However,
they've had problems getting dungeness crabs.

Well, I stopped in yesterday and they seemed to have a new supplier.
They had a whole tank of the little buggers.

So I ordered up a few oysters as an starter, along with a cup of clam
chowder, and one crab.

The oysters were perfect, the clam chowder was just the right mix of
briney and sweet and creamy. And the crab was huge!

The first couple of bits were a bit too hot. And then it cooled just
enough to dig into the best bits. I started with the cells in the body,
but by the time I got to the legs, it was cold.

So what's the best strategy? I'm thinking the best thing is to share
with someone. Give someone special half the body and half the legs and
enjoy the best of both while still warm.

But when trying to devourer an entire crab by one's self, you've got to
admit that there are going to be parts that get cold before you get to
them. Maybe the legs should go first as the body has more mass and will
stay hot longer?

Fellow crab lovers: I appeal to you. What is your "secret" strategy????

Thanks in advance.

Legs first. Eat fast. Don't share. :-)

Yep, I'd have to agree with Wayne. :~) Dungeness doesn't really have much
meat in the body; it's all in the legs and in the "knuckles" where the meat
meets the body. Go for the legs and then contend with the "knuckles". And,
IMO, anyway, I don't care if it gets cold. I'll eat it cold or warm.

kili

PastaLover said:

[snip]
So what's the best strategy? I'm thinking the best thing is to share
with someone. Give someone special half the body and half the legs and
enjoy the best of both while still warm. [snip]

Keep practicing and you will get faster at cracking and picking the
crab. Do the legs first, as someone has already said. At home, we
like melted butter and lemon wedges. You can pop the butter back into
the microwave for a few seconds every now and then to keep it hot. It
doesn't matter that much whether the crab is hot, warm or room temp.
-aem

PastaLover said:

The first couple of bits were a bit too hot. And then it cooled just
enough to dig into the best bits. I started with the cells in the body,
but by the time I got to the legs, it was cold.

So what's the best strategy? I'm thinking the best thing is to share
with someone. Give someone special half the body and half the legs and
enjoy the best of both while still warm.

Nothing wrong with lukewarm dungeness crab. I like 'em better at
room temp (or just barely warm) anyway. And I've eaten at least
250 (300?) dungeness crabs in my lifetime.

-sw

In article <[email hidden]>,

kilikini said:

Yep, I'd have to agree with Wayne. :~) Dungeness doesn't really have much
meat in the body; it's all in the legs and in the "knuckles" where the meat
meets the body. Go for the legs and then contend with the "knuckles". And,
IMO, anyway, I don't care if it gets cold. I'll eat it cold or warm.

The Dungeness crabs that we've been getting here in Seattle have quite a
bit of meat in the body. But it's a bit tricky to extract - you have to
dig through some fibrous membranes or walls.

My fave recipe for these critters is Singapore Chile Crab. The crabs
are broken up and cooked in a wonderful sauce: sweet, hot, and creamy.
I've read that this is the national dish of Singapore, and I can see
why...

--
Julian Vrieslander

Steve Wertz said:

PastaLover said:

The first couple of bits were a bit too hot. And then it cooled just
enough to dig into the best bits. I started with the cells in the
body, but by the time I got to the legs, it was cold.

So what's the best strategy? I'm thinking the best thing is to share
with someone. Give someone special half the body and half the legs
and enjoy the best of both while still warm.

Nothing wrong with lukewarm dungeness crab. I like 'em better at
room temp (or just barely warm) anyway. And I've eaten at least
250 (300?) dungeness crabs in my lifetime.

-sw

A tip; First move - break off one of the tip ends of a leg. You now have a
pick to get at the meat.

Ken.
--
Volunteer your idle computer time for cancer research
http//www.grid.org/download/gold/download.htm
Return address courtesy of Spammotel http://www.spammotel.com/

Ken Davey said:

A tip; First move - break off one of the tip ends of a leg. You now have a
pick to get at the meat.

Real crab pickers eat the meat that's in the tip too. 😉
--

Ham and eggs.
A day's work for a chicken, a lifetime commitment for a pig.

kilikini said:

"Wayne Boatwright" <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Mon 17 Apr 2006 05:47:07p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it

PastaLover?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

McGrath's, a northwestern US chain, has a restaurant here in Scottsdale,
AZ. I've enjoyed them since they opened about 1/2 year ago. However,
they've had problems getting dungeness crabs.

Well, I stopped in yesterday and they seemed to have a new supplier.
They had a whole tank of the little buggers.

So I ordered up a few oysters as an starter, along with a cup of clam
chowder, and one crab.

The oysters were perfect, the clam chowder was just the right mix of
briney and sweet and creamy. And the crab was huge!

The first couple of bits were a bit too hot. And then it cooled just
enough to dig into the best bits. I started with the cells in the body,
but by the time I got to the legs, it was cold.

So what's the best strategy? I'm thinking the best thing is to share
with someone. Give someone special half the body and half the legs and
enjoy the best of both while still warm.

But when trying to devourer an entire crab by one's self, you've got to
admit that there are going to be parts that get cold before you get to
them. Maybe the legs should go first as the body has more mass and will
stay hot longer?

Fellow crab lovers: I appeal to you. What is your "secret" strategy????

Thanks in advance.

Legs first. Eat fast. Don't share. :-)

Yep, I'd have to agree with Wayne. :~) Dungeness doesn't really have much
meat in the body; it's all in the legs and in the "knuckles" where the meat

You're not trying hard enough. It's a royal pain to get, but most
Dungees have tons of meat in the little cells of the body, right where
the legs attach. And I think it's much sweeter than the leg and knuckle
meat.

Quoted message said:

meets the body. Go for the legs and then contend with the "knuckles". And,
IMO, anyway, I don't care if it gets cold. I'll eat it cold or warm.

kili

Ken Davey said:

A tip; First move - break off one of the tip ends of a leg. You now have a
pick to get at the meat.

Picking at the meat is how you destroy a crab. I take a more
logical approach to picking apart a crab and just use my fingers.
Every piece comes out in one chunk if you know how to do it
right. I especially like sectioning the body.

Note that this is only for dungeness. I don't have the patience
for blues, pick or not.

-sw

PastaLover said:

kilikini wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Yep, I'd have to agree with Wayne. :~) Dungeness doesn't really have much
meat in the body; it's all in the legs and in the "knuckles" where the meat

You're not trying hard enough. It's a royal pain to get, but most
Dungees have tons of meat in the little cells of the body, right where
the legs attach. And I think it's much sweeter than the leg and knuckle
meat.

Quoted message said:

meets the body. Go for the legs and then contend with the "knuckles". And,

Dungeness crab has a LOT of body meat. Probably more in proportion to
the legs. Don't get me wrong, the legs are good hunks of meat.... but
I think someone must have it mixed up with King Crab.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

IMO, anyway, I don't care if it gets cold. I'll eat it cold or warm.

Dungeness is absolutely wonderful cold. It's what they use in salads
around here.
--

Ham and eggs.
A day's work for a chicken, a lifetime commitment for a pig.

PastaLover wrote:

Ummm, crab.

Quoted message said:

So what's the best strategy? I'm thinking the best thing is to share
with someone. Give someone special half the body and half the legs and
enjoy the best of both while still warm.

Legs first.

Steve Wertz said:

Ken Davey said:

A tip; First move - break off one of the tip ends of a leg. You now have a
pick to get at the meat.

Picking at the meat is how you destroy a crab. I take a more
logical approach to picking apart a crab and just use my fingers.
Every piece comes out in one chunk if you know how to do it
right. I especially like sectioning the body.

Note that this is only for dungeness. I don't have the patience
for blues, pick or not.

-sw

Oh, gawd, it's been ages since I had a mess of blue crabs. There used to
be a little place in San Diego that served them. They take a lot of
work, but boy, they were good!

Steve Wertz said:

Ken Davey said:

A tip; First move - break off one of the tip ends of a leg. You now have a
pick to get at the meat.

Picking at the meat is how you destroy a crab. I take a more
logical approach to picking apart a crab and just use my fingers.
Every piece comes out in one chunk if you know how to do it
right. I especially like sectioning the body.

Note that this is only for dungeness. I don't have the patience
for blues, pick or not.

A few words of advice : soft shell crabs.

Dean G.

Quoted message said:

Nothing wrong with lukewarm dungeness crab. I like 'em better at
room temp (or just barely warm) anyway. And I've eaten at least
250 (300?) dungeness crabs in my lifetime.

-sw

Couldn't agree more... Don't worry about the temp. Sit back, relax, take
your time and enjoy every tiny morsel. Make a mess too... who cares that's
what makes it fun

Larry T

Dean G. said:

A few words of advice : soft shell crabs.

They're good, but at 5 bucks each, not that good.

-sw

Steve Wertz said:

Dean G. said:

A few words of advice : soft shell crabs.

They're good, but at 5 bucks each, not that good.

-sw

I have a crab and eggplant casserole recipe that is very good and nicely
stretches a small amount of crab meat.
---
JL

Steve Wertz said:

Ken Davey said:

A tip; First move - break off one of the tip ends of a leg. You now have a
pick to get at the meat.

Picking at the meat is how you destroy a crab. I take a more
logical approach to picking apart a crab and just use my fingers.
Every piece comes out in one chunk if you know how to do it
right. I especially like sectioning the body.

Note that this is only for dungeness. I don't have the patience
for blues, pick or not.

-sw

Neither do I.
IMHO blues may be tasty but not enough meat to make them worth the effort.

sf said:

Dungeness crab has a LOT of body meat. Probably more in proportion to
the legs. Don't get me wrong, the legs are good hunks of meat.... but
I think someone must have it mixed up with King Crab.

I'd eat ONLY king crab if I could afford it. <G>

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

IMO, anyway, I don't care if it gets cold. I'll eat it cold or warm.

Dungeness is absolutely wonderful cold. It's what they use in salads
around here.

It's what I usually get. I prefer it very much over snow crab.

"OmManiPadmiOmelet" wrote

Quoted message said:

Steve Wertz said:

Note that this is only for dungeness. I don't have the patience
for blues, pick or not.

-sw

Neither do I.
IMHO blues may be tasty but not enough meat to make them worth the effort.

You don't notice the work when you have plenty of crabs, plenty of friends
and plenty of beer! Picking those blues becomes a real pleasure - the
slower it goes, the more beer is swilled. ;-)

Dora