Chow Down on Chesapeake Cuisine How to Pick a Crab 1 FLIP IT The key to every crab is on its belly. Starting at the top, pull off the thin strip of shell in the middle. On males, it looks like the Washington Monument, on females, more like the Capitol dome. Once you remove it, you can pop the top shell off the body. 2 CLEAN IT Crabs are steamed whole — that’s where that perfect flavor comes from — but you’ll want to remove some bits before you indulge. Take a finger and clear out the spongy gills on either side of the crab. 3 SPLIT IT With your thumbs on each side of the abdomen, break the crab in half and scoop the meat from the body. Some people love the yellow “crab mustard” in the middle, but for your first time, you might want to remove that, too. 4 SNAP IT Snap off the legs. If you get it right, each will come out with a bit of delicious meat at the end. The last leg is called the backfin and is home to “the jumbo lump,” also known as the best meat in any Maryland blue crab. You may want to save that part for last. 5 CRACK IT 56 DESTINATION MARYLAND Adobe Stock/Brian Yarvin Grab your mallet and crack the claw on the bottom, just behind the pinchers and in the middle of the first joint. Then, snap them each in half. There’s good meat in those, and the claws are where most Maryland kids get their first taste of crab. 6 DO IT ALL AGAIN There are two particularly great things about a Maryland crab feast. One, it’s the only eating you get to do with a hammer, and two, you never eat just one.
Maryland Official Visitors Guide 2024 Maryland Official Visitors Guide: Page 56
