Crabs..boil or steamed?

[the butcher]

I have always boiled my dungie crabs and found the meat to be flavorful with the unique flavors of a dungenous crab. I boil the entire crab... I know some folks remove the large top shell, clean everything out and then cook...but I cook whole and find it more flavorful. Yes it can be a bit wet and soggy but the flavors are great.

I have never tried steaming... always thought steaming would lack flavor and make meat too dry due to how high the steam temp gets...

Out of curiosity, curious how others cook their dungies.

 

[Local Hali Hunter]

Steamed its the only method. I walk & crack my crab always, can't do the boiling alive method. But if I was paying $60 a crab at an asian restaurant.....hmmm

 

[scott craven]

I remove the back shell and guts and steam in about 6 oz of water or gingerale
I'm not big on boiling them whole, too much mess and smell.

 

[wolf]

I was taught a long time ago to steam , never looked back to me cooking food with guts in it is gross ...
So here is what I was taught by one of my instructors 30 plus years ago
for say 4 crab cleaned
I segment the crab into pieces throw into good size stock pot.
Put on stove turn to full
Add 1 cup of white wine
2 lemons into wedges
dash of olive oil
about a tbsp of fresh ginger grated (best way to store ginger is freeze it then grate frozen)
add your fav herb dill,cilantro,rosemary
dash of S & P.
cover when it starts to steam shake pot every couple mins try and rotate the crab around to coat all the good ness
takes about 7 mins once steaming
then start eating a nice baguette to dip into the juices is a must as well.

Enjoy
Good Luck Wolf

 

[beemer]

cleaned and steamed is my preferred method. Why torture an animal , bad karma , as well as boiling all the toxins it has filtered out just to eat them?
I have a salt mixture that I keep on the boat , garlic salt , onion salt , celery salt and Old Bay. I put two table spoons of the mix in for 4 crabs while they steam, I put half a cup of butter into the steamer. After cooking I heat up another half cup of butter and mix 2 cups of the steaming liquid and toss.
bagette is a must!

 

[BC Coast Pilot]

I was taught a long time ago to steam , never looked back to me cooking food with guts in it is gross ...
So here is what I was taught by one of my instructors 30 plus years ago
for say 4 crab cleaned
I segment the crab into pieces throw into good size stock pot.
Put on stove turn to full
Add 1 cup of white wine
2 lemons into wedges
dash of olive oil
about a tbsp of fresh ginger grated (best way to store ginger is freeze it then grate frozen)
add your fav herb dill,cilantro,rosemary
dash of S & P.
cover when it starts to steam shake pot every couple mins try and rotate the crab around to coat all the good ness
takes about 7 mins once steaming
then start eating a nice baguette to dip into the juices is a must as well.

Enjoy
Good Luck Wolf

I thought I was sitting at a cafe on the Rhone while I read that recipe. When you say segment do you mean to divide the legs with body attached as you would when eating a half crab?

 

[Clint r]

Steamed but only as a last resort or if we’re camping. Once you try this everything else is merely ok.

Ginger and Scallion Crab (Best Chinese Recipe) - Rasa Malaysia

Ginger and Scallion Crab - This delicious and easy Chinese recipe makes restaurant-worthy ginger and scallion Dungeness crab at home.

rasamalaysia.com

second choice would be this:

Curry Crab

Curry Crab is such a delicious and tasty dish...you just have to try it if you haven't before! We always manage to prepare a few dishes during crab season, while the crabs are at their best. I had this dish in Macau last year, and I knew I had to replicate it at home.

thewoksoflife.com

 

[wolf]

I thought I was sitting at a cafe on the Rhone while I read that recipe. When you say segment do you mean to divide the legs with body attached as you would when eating a half crab?

yes or you can go one step further and separate all the legs from body then that wine mixture gets into everything with that flavor, those combo of ingredients inject flavor into the crab once you do it youll never look back ....

 

[noluck]

yes or you can go one step further and separate all the legs from body then that wine mixture gets into everything with that flavor, those combo of ingredients inject flavor into the crab once you do it youll never look back ....

show off

 

[Newf]

I'm old school I guess. Big pot,,half full of water, small handful of salt for each crab into the boiling water. In goes the live crab. 5 secs later they are dead. When I go I hope i go in 5 sec. Once the water is boiling again time it for 8-10 mins and she's done. Dump the crab, run cold water over them to stop the cooking, separate the good from the crap and eat away. That's how we always did lobster so I've not changed. I will give the steaming a go to see if I notice a difference. One think I don't like is the addition of anything to crab or lobster. The taste is awesome just the way they are. I have yet to have either in a restaurant that I felt tasted better.

 

[CIVANO]

A squirt of cooking oil in the pot before boiling keeps the slime from sticking to the pot for a much easier clean up

 

[Dogbreath]

A few years back I had BBQ Crab made by Mr Sam Chae owner of Kagoagh Lodge up in Quatsino-Sam is a very careful even intense cook and it was outstanding.

 

[Gear'n'beer!]

Crack in half, clean poop and gills out. Fresh herbs out of the garden and steam. Can’t bring myself to doing the whole live thing and tilting the shell back and drinking the liquor…..gross!

also to the original poster…..I’m no rocket appliantist but to my grade 7 education I believe both steam and boiling water are 100 degrees c. Just sayin”

 

[FisherTim]

I’m no rocket appliantist but to my grade 7 education I believe both steam and boiling water are 100 degrees c. Just sayin”

The hottest water can get is 100c. The COLDEST that steam can get is 100c. The actual temperature of steam can easily exceed 4-500 degrees or more. It's kind of like saying Ice and cold water are both 0 degrees.

 

[Gear'n'beer!]

The hottest water can get is 100c. The COLDEST that steam can get is 100c. The actual temperature of steam can easily exceed 4-500 degrees or more. It's kind of like saying Ice and cold water are both 0 degrees.

That is under pressure…..not in a pot on your stove. Much like applying vacuum you can lower the boiling point. But what do I know.

 

[FisherTim]

That is under pressure…..not in a pot on your stove. Much like applying vacuum you can lower the boiling point. But what do I know..

Yes, you are correct, but there is an immense amount of HEAT ENERGY required to turn 100c water into 100c steam. It takes 5 times as long(and as much energy) to turn a litre of water from boiling into steam than it takes to turn the water from 0 degrees to 100 degrees. So while the temperature of 100c steam and 100c water is the same 100c steam will condensate back into water when it hits the relatively cold crab, The same heat energy that was needed to make the steam will now get transfered into the crab.

This is the same principle because of which we use a salt ice slurry for tuna. The ice wants to melt because of the salt, the actual act of the ice melting requires a lot of heat. That heat energy gets pulled from the tuna. That's why a slurry cools fish so much faster than straight ice.

But... The main topic is flavour not cook time, I'm excited to try some of these recipes. I personally like to steam with a buttery garlicy sauce. I wonder how a pressure cooker would affect it though. May be another thing to try.

 

[IronNoggin]

I almost always steam in a seafood steamer with water, a little white wine & garlic.
That's after removing the cap , gills etc.

When I don't do that, I follow a recipe created by Ernie Ross many years ago:

Ernie's Crab Recipe

Clean crab as per usual.

In a large skillet, add two tablespoons each of Sesame and Olive Oil, and warm to medium heat. Dump the crabs in on the oil, and use a barbee brush to ensure each piece is well coated. Toss in a fair amount of chopped up garlic clove, a squeeze or two of fresh lime, and about 1/2 a cup of good white wine. Cover, and bring the heat up to 3/4 throttle. Only let the crabs steam in this for about 4 - 5 minutes, then remove the crabs to a lidded casserole dish.

Render the juice down on high heat, then toss about a cup of Thai Sweet Chili sauce in with it. Heat until quite thick, then toss the crabs back in for another 5 minutes, ensuring each piece gets well coated. Remove to casserole dish, and let sit for 5 minutes while you get everything else on the table. Remove lid and serve.

No Butter required! Somehow the flavors actually penetrate the shell quite nicely, leaving a very wonderful tasting meat inside! 'Tis a tad messy, so have lots of paper towels on hand! Goes well with a black bean / rice combo and whatever fresh greens you're into. Of course don't forget the balance of the chilled wine to quaff it down with.

Cheers

 

[adanac]

I used to always crack and clean and steam method. Recently I have been steaming whole and then cracking and doing whatever I do with it. Much sweeter more intense flavour . if we are doing Singapore style Chilli crab, a friend of mine showed me that his family ( Vietnamese ) spoon in sticky rice into the shell and mix it around with the pockets of headfat. sounds a bit out there but it is stunningly good.

 

[Rain City]

I used to always crack and clean and steam method. Recently I have been steaming whole and then cracking and doing whatever I do with it. Much sweeter more intense flavour . if we are doing Singapore style Chilli crab, a friend of mine showed me that his family ( Vietnamese ) spoon in sticky rice into the shell and mix it around with the pockets of headfat. sounds a bit out there but it is stunningly good.

The head fat is amazing. My wife (chinese) takes the top shell off and just cornstarches the whole thing and frys it. The chunks of brain and whatever else in there is super rich and gelatinous and chewy, all at the same time. Most Asian people, when cooking crab whole, will "****" the crab. You stick a chopstick up its a$$ and a gross amount of liquid comes out. That stuff is no bueno.

 

[adanac]

The head fat is amazing. My wife (chinese) takes the top shell off and just cornstarches the whole thing and frys it. The chunks of brain and whatever else in there is super rich and gelatinous and chewy, all at the same time. Most Asian people, when cooking crab whole, will "****" the crab. You stick a chopstick up its a$$ and a gross amount of liquid comes out. That stuff is no bueno.

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