Regarding Jan Roberts-Dominguez’s Wednesday column on cooking Dungeness crab: She gives bad advice on cooking live crab. Quoting from Washington Sport Fishing Rules on “Safe Handling Practices”: Cooking, rinsing or freezing does not destroy all pollutants. Crab can also concentrate pollutants in their internal organs (crab butter.) Clean crab before cooking. Eat only the meat.”
Cleaning just before cooking keeps the crab fresh and yields sweeter, untainted meat. To clean, remove the long, narrow flap; after striking the underside of the shell with a heavy knife or cleaver along the midline, remove the back shell. Fold the remaining in half along the midline and separate the two halves. Shake out the guts. Boil, per Jan’s recommendation, 20 to 30 minutes in salted water. Note: One or two crabs don’t need “several gallons” of water. Use a pot that fits the crabs with maybe an inch and a half of water over the top. Start timing after the water reboils.
Bill Best
Arlington
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