Maryland Crabs | Edgewater Seafood

Health Benefits From Eating Crab

October 12, 2021

How to Pick Crabs – Part 2

October 22, 2021

Published by admin on October 18, 2021

Hardware Checklist

Below are the tools you will need for picking a crab.

Crab cracker
Wooden mallet
Crab knife
Seafood pick

Pull Off Claws & Legs

The first picking move is removing the claws and legs. The best way is to grab the base of the claw or leg and pull it off. All the appendages are then set aside for later.

Peel Off the Apron

Turn the crab upside down, and you’ll find a plate (called the apron) covering the bottom. A male crab (“Jimmy”) will have a pointy and narrow apron. An immature female crab (“Sally”) has a triangular plate. A mature female crab (“Sook”) has a very wide apron. Stick your finger beneath the plate and peel the whole apron off while grabbing the base of the crab.

Open the Body

Wedge each of your thumbs on the opposite side of the crab’s body. Next, pull off the top of the crab from its bottom. Be prepared for seeing stuff that might look a bit gross.

Remove Lungs, Etc.

A crab’s lung is made up of what looks like feathery cones lining the sides of the body. Pull them all off and throw them out as they are not digestible and taste awful. Next, scoop out the gooey material in the center of the body.

The green stuff is the tomalley, which functions as both the pancreas and liver of the crab. This “crab fat” is edible and enjoyed by some.

A female crab may have bright orange material inside, which is her roe or eggs, which is also called “coral”. It is considered delicious by many and used as an important ingredient for soup.

Part 2 will cover Accessing the Meat, Extraction, The Claws, The Legs, and Nut Cracker Ending.

Craving Crab?

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