Rockefeller 3-19
 

Figured the weather forecast for today was not optimal for my small boat, so I decided to go after crabs instead. This is what 7 hours of tight-lining turkey necks and chicken got us... Not all huge but they ran Med-Large all day, with a couple nice ones mixed in. Around 55 in total kept and we threw back probably 3 dozen other Mediums. Fished a little bit and only caught one puppy black drum and missed a couple flounder, but was too busy slinging crabs to really know if the fish were biting.

Nice


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Nice

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Sweet .....time to head to the camp in Grand Chiener.....

Gonna have to go set traps in G C also. Fresh crabs yumm

I've been hungry for some crabs! Nice haul

very nice!

Nice ones.

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Very nice. Did y'all makes Rubin a boat or were y'all just roadside?

Sorry, I meant did y'all make a run in a boat....damn autocorrect...of course if you were making Rubin's in the boat that would be pretty interesting as well, love me a good sandwich.

Thanks All!
 

Thanks everyone. We fed the family yesterday and the crabs were full. Initial count was off, we had exactly 5 dozen. It was the first time boiling them without the shells or lungs on and they came out so good, this will be the way I do them going forward.

We used to be able to use a camp in Grand Chenier once and a while and it was so nice, maybe one day we will have one over there.

No we stayed dry, other than boots in the water. We were down Price Lake Rd. I guess I need to consider a good sandwich next time ;)

Cool, thanks.

7 hours for 5 dozen...man that's pretty slow. They do look good though.

Interesting, never heard of boiling crabs that way. Just curious, why? And don't you lose the "fat" by doing it that way?

Exactly
 

I agree. No one ever said it was fast :) We probably had a good 30 in the first 2 hours...then it was singles here and there afterwards.

Even surprised me
 

I just recently heard of this way and it was the first time trying it as well. My brother who went with me is the one who had experienced them cooked this way and wanted to show me. I went along out of curiosity and they turned out great. When cleaning them I left as much fat on as possible, which I know would not be there after they boiled but at least it made it to the water. In the end the positives outweighed the negatives...The seasoning was in every part of the crab, people were able to consume them faster with less mess (while eating), and we were able to boil 5 dozen all at once -- without using a huge pot. Everyone there said they would rather them this way going forward and I have to say I agree (even if I had to clean them beforehand). The last positive I thought of was this would be great for when crabs are not full, because as you are cleaning them you could notice that and just leave them for Stew :D

This is the ONLY way we boil em. Pull the backs off, the little filter thingys and give eack one a quick rinse with the water nozzle. Soak up all the seasoning good. When they come out of the pot, layer them in a ice chest, sprinkle a lil more seasoning and each crab gets a squirt of the "squirtable" butter. This butter melts down into the meat and ready to eat.

I keep my crabs ice down good and they usually don't move as I put them in the basket for cooking.

But sometimes I cook them before they all get cooled down and are still moving some.

My question...... is there any problem taking the shell off when the crab is still moving a little?

another tip I learned long ago
 

If you put the crabs in the water before the water gets hot, they will not eject their claws and legs like they do when you throw cold crabs in boiling water. While they will still lose some, almost all claws and legs will stay on the shell making it easier to get at the meat when you peel them.

Of course, this only works on the first batch because after that, the water is hot. I read about this years ago and it is a trick restaurants use to make their crabs more attractive to the consumer. Don't know about taking the shell off along with the "gills". Never saw that done and like you said, you lose the fat.

As long as you don't get bit. I ice em down where they don't move at all.

While I am not too set back by the following statement(found on a couple websites), it is a good reason I can live without the "fat" (hepatopancreas). But to each his own...I am just sharing info. If I attend a boil and its on there, you betta believe I am going to eat that sha :)

FYI: Research shows that chemical contaminants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxin, mercury, and poison-inhalation hazards (PIHs) can accumulate in the crab’s fatty tissues and concentrate in the hepatopancreas.

I have always been told that if you place them in live and kicking their natural defense will be to eject legs/claws, but having them iced down before mostly prevents this. Thanks for the info about putting in before the water is boiling, but like you said after the first batch that will not work.

I need friends like this, half of the work is done...lol

On the seasoning side, I have found the crabs are better with less seasoning. Blue crabs have such a delicate taste, the seasoning over powers the natural flavor. As an experiment, try half as much seasoning with little soak time and see how that compares.


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I boil 'em whole but I lay them 'on their back' as soon as I dump the basket. The juices flow into the shell which acts as a reservoir. when I peel the shell off I back the back down so I preserve the juice....then drink it. If you never have done this you are missing one of the best parts of a crab boil. I have collected about a quart of juice and used it as a stock for a seafood bisque....the best stock I have ever tasted. Pulling the shell off before boiling is sacrilegous to me:D.

SOmething I love to do is ice them down and pull off the back shell/clean them, the I toss them in water that's seasoned with crab boil and let them soak up some seasoning, then grill over a wood fire. Talk about good with that smokey taste. To soak them in the seasoned water I mix it up in an ice chest and add a bunch of ice so the water and crabs stay cold.

Thanks
 

Thanks for the tip, this sounds amazing. I am definitely going to try this!

That sounds really good!