Are you hosting a special event? Do you want to impress your guests with a special delicacy? Consider crab dishes. However, there are different types of crab to consider, such as stone crabs, blue crab, Alaskan king crab, among others. Crab is fairly easy to cook, but you can use crab delivery services that cook and prepare the meat for you.
From there, you can incorporate the prepared crab into your favorite recipes. This article will highlight the best crab meat that you should try. Read further to know more.
Stone Crab
In general, many people consume stone crab claws cold, and they're a quality delicacy. You're more likely to find these types of crabs in fine-dining establishments. They're known for their hard shells. You can find them in the Gulf of Mexico and the Florida coast.
You can also include them in complicated recipes. Many people describe the meat as flaky and a mixture between lobster and shrimp.
The meat is also very sweet. They're one of the more expensive forms of crab due to the taste of the meat and the harvesting methods. The harvesting methods are different because these crustaceous are under legal protection.
To prevent extinction, the government restricts how fishermen harvest them. For example, fishermen will catch the crabs, cut off one claw, and release them.
This release method allows them to reproduce, and they can grow back the appendage in a year. Also, fishermen can only harvest them from October to May.
Snow Crab
In terms of texture, snow crabs have a briny flavor, and the meat texture is firm. The meat also has a slightly salty taste, and it's a great meat for dipping with your favorite sauces.
Additionally, you can shred the meat in the same manner as corn beef. It's also one of the more affordable crab options.
You can find this type of crab in many places, such as Siberia, Greenland, and the Pacific Northwest.
Dungeness Crab
Dungeness crabs are known for their sweet meat. However, it has thinner and smaller legs compared to snow or king crabs. When it comes to cooking, preparers usually steam or boil them. For boiling, chefs usually include salt, spices, herbs, or seasoning in the water.
Blue Crab
The blue crab is among the best types of crab due to its sweetness and quality flavor. Many describe the flavor as rich and buttery. The taste of the claw meat also has a nutty flavor. You can eat the softshells, and the cooked shells turn an orangish-red.
The meat of the body is white and flaky. The claw meat has a brownish color. The pasteurized versions are darker than the fresh variety.
You can find this type of crab in the Gulf and Atlanta areas of the United States.
In particular, blue crabs are great for crab cakes and soups. However, they're suitable for many other recipes. If you hear someone ordering, 'jumbo lump crab meat,' this means they're getting the full parts of the crab. If you want the jumbo lump option, you can make jumbo lump crab imperial.
Overall, preparers cook blue crab in the following manner:
- Filling a pot with two-thirds water and boil
- Adding one tablespoon of salt and two to four of seasoning to the water.
- Adding each crab one at a time. Leaving the claws attached. Cooking for eight to ten minutes.
- Draining the crabs in a colander, and placing the crabs on a cloth-covered table.
From there, they use a metallic nutcracker to access the meat. In general, this cooking method is usually how the chefs prepare all types of crab.
That said, you don't have to go through the trouble of cooking crab if you use a crab delivery service. A prepared crab will save you time and money.
Softshell Crabs
Overall, soft shell crabs are just blue crabs in molted form. This means they shed their old shells, and their new shells haven't developed fully.
Chefs generally don't boil softshell crabs, as they'll disintegrate when cooking. One way to cook them is to drench them in seasoned buttermilk, dip them in flour, and fry.
Alaskan King Crab
Alaskan king crab also has a sweet and buttery flavor. They're known for their large size and long legs. They can weigh around six to eight pounds, and some of them can grow as large as 20 pounds.
You can eat this type of crab on its own or use it for clam chowder or crab cakes. They're a premium form of crab meat due to their limited habit, and harvesters have a limited window in the season to catch them.
You can find them mostly off the Alaskan coast. This crab is a stable revenue source for Alaska.
For Alaskan Red King crab, preparers must either cook or freeze the meat as soon as possible. Crab lovers can cook them in a variety of ways, such as:
- Boiling
- Grilling
- Baking
- Steaming
When buying the crab legs, you can unfreeze them by allowing them to thaw overnight. However, don't defrost the crab legs and refreeze them, as it will diminish the flavor.
The Best Types of Crab for Entertaining
If you're entertaining guests, the best types of crab include stone crab, Dungeness crab, blue crab, soft shell crab, and Alaskan king crab. All of these crabs have a sweet, nutty, or buttery flavor.
In terms of the best crab, stone crab is considered the most valuable type of crab meat.
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