Blue Crab

Attributes

Delicate texture, sweet meat, low fat.

Substitutes

Stone Crab, Golden Crab, Spiny Lobster, Shrimp.

How Much to Buy

Blue Crab, in shell: 3 to 4 whole crabs per serving.

Blue Crab, meat: 1/6 pound per serving.

Buying, Storage and Handling

Live:

Remember to purchase seafood last and keep it cold during the trip home.

Blue Crabs should have some leg movement when purchased.

Discard dead crabs and ones with broken shells.

Refrigerate in a breathable container (a bag or cardboard box).

Do not store directly on ice.

Meat:

Remember to purchase seafood last and keep it cold during the trip home.

Blue Crab is available fresh and pasteurized in the following forms: lump, backfin, special, claw and cocktail claw.

Pasteurized blue crabmeat in unopened containers can be stored up to six months in the coldest part of your refrigerator.

Once opened, use within three days.

Fresh Blue Crab meat should be stored on ice in the coldest part of your refrigerator and used within seven to 10 days.

Soft-shell Blue Crab:

Remember to purchase seafood last and keep it cold during the trip home.

Soft-shell Blue Crab is available live, fresh or frozen.

Fresh soft-shell Blue Crab should be refrigerated and cooked within two days.

Preparation

Keep raw and cooked seafood separate to prevent bacterial cross-contamination.

After handling raw seafood thoroughly wash knives, cutting surfaces, sponges and your hands with hot soapy water.

Always marinate seafood in the refrigerator.

Discard marinade; it contains raw juices which may harbor bacteria.

When marinade is needed for basting reserve a portion before adding raw seafood.

Cooking

To cook: Add to boiling seasoned water and simmer for 12 to 15 minutes.

Cooked meat: Toss with salad greens, use as a topping on pizza, make crab cakes or use in dips and spreads.

Nutrition

Nutritional values for approximately 4 ounces (114 grams) of raw, edible portions

Calories	90
Calories From Fat	10
Total Fat	1	g
Saturated Fat	0	g
Cholesterol	80	mg
Sodium	320	mg
Total Carbohydrates	0	g
Protein	19	g
Vitamin A	0	%DV
Vitamin C	0	%DV
Calcium	10	%DV
Iron	6	%DV
Omega-3 Fatty Acid	0.32	g

More About the Blue Crab

The blue crab, one of the most valuable crustaceans in the United States, is aptly described by its scientific name, Callinectes sapidus (Calli -- beautiful; nectes -- swimmer; and sapidus -- savory). Blue crabs have five pairs of legs and the first pair is equipped with pincers. They have a hard shell or exoskeleton which is brownish-green or dark green and drawn out on each side into a long spine. The underside of the body and legs are white. Male and female claws are various shades of blue on top and the tips of the female's claws are bright red.

Blue crabs are found along Florida's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. A shallow water crab, it can live in salt, fresh and brackish waters of bays, sounds, channels and river mouths. They are omnivorous, feeding on plants and animals. During the winter months, blue crabs move into deeper water and enter a state of semi-hibernation. They are commercially harvested by traps.

The process of molting allows the crab to shed its external shell periodically in order to grow. Before molting begins, a new soft-shell forms inside, and the crab backs out of the old loose shell. Soft-shell blue crabs are hard blue crabs that were captured when they were ready to molt (called peelers) and held in water-filled trays until their old shell has shed.