Dungeness crab

2019-05-12 a.o.

Early 2019 in Las Cruces, NM, Sam's Club started selling these fully cooked and frozen at a very reasonable price (2019: $8.50/lb. whole, $10/lb. for oversized legs and claws) which is much less than any online supplier will sell them for. On the other hand, freshness isn't always included, it would seem.

The amount of crab meat is about 1/4 of the weight of the whole crab, and closer to half for the legs. Dungeness crab tastes sweeter than snow or king crab, but it doesn't look nearly as nice. I personally find the greenish color of the meat especially off-putting.

I served this with scalloped potatoes and tartare sauce.

steaming Dungeness crab

2019-05-12 a.o.

I prefer steaming dungeness for a dryer meat with better flavor.

I tried boiling one once (cioppino) and didn't much like that because the meat was all soggy, watered down and didn't have much flavor at all left in it.

INGREDIENTS

This is what you need per serving:

1 whole crab per person

Pic1: Dungeness crab

Directions

Thaw the crabs in the refrigerator for up to 3 days in advance.
Pop the hood by carefully lifting the carapace from the back.
If you try this while still frozen, there's a good chance you'll break the shell.
Remove the gills (those fleshy grey strands that sit on the sides of the body. (Pic2)
Scrape out all the goo in the center body cavity with a teaspoon and rinse thoroughly.
I do this before I steam the crab to avoid the goo spreading into the meat.
Clean and replace the carapace.
Steam for 15 minutes over boiling water, until the meat has been warmed through.
Serve and enjoy.

Save the shells to cook crab stock.
Use the carapace as a substitute plate to serve crab or seafood casserole in.

Pic2: clean it
Pic3: steam it
Pic4: serve it

b. dungeness crab salad

Dungeness crabs are just about the right size for a nice meal for one person without leftovers. But I have occasionally prepared several extra just for this purpose.

2019-10-20

Pic5-7: the crab from yesterday's cioppino

2019-11-02

Pic8-10: preparing crab salad

Pic11-13: crab salad croissant with tomatoes

2021-08-19

Pic14+15: Dungeness crab sandwich with mayo

b. dungeness crab salad

See also: Deming, NM gardens, animals and more and avemariasongs.org

See also: Deming, NM gardens, animals and more
and avemariasongs.org