Steamed Crabs Annapolis

Steamed Crabs Annapolis – It’s hard to imagine that after eight years of weekly recipes, many Maryland Galley Pirates have yet to post the iconic Maryland classic, Steamed Crabs. This is largely due to the fact that crabs have been so scarce in recent years that I usually have to buy them from Annapolis Seafood. Or from Dave’s Crab Truck on Rt. 2. And it costs a pretty penny. But Chesapeake Bay crabs seem to be quite plentiful this year. We just caught over a dozen off our dock in Spa Creek. The following is less of a recipe than just that

. You won’t find any recipe books in this post. You just need live blue crabs, water and maybe some Old Bay seasoning.

Steamed Crabs Annapolis

Blue crabs often hang from piers, lines and ladders on docks. They are pretty easy to spot. Tim and Evelyn went crabbing with a net and a bucket…and a St. Bernard curious.

Buddy’s Crabs & Ribs In Annapolis

Place them and throw them in a bucket of bay water. The rule of thumb is to keep the males as long as they are 5.25 inches wide and release the females. Males (jimmies) and females (sooks, or sallies for the young ones) are easily distinguished by two distinct ways: their claws and their aprons.

At least the crabs are lively. They will rush at you and anything around them and do their best to escape the bucket. (if you have a trap, they can be kept in that cage and submerged in water until “preparation time”). One way to make them easier to handle is to refrigerate them. Place them in a paper grocery bag that is placed loosely in a large plastic bag (to prevent leaks), but do not seal tightly. Place them in a refrigerator or icebox (do not freeze!) and close the lid gently, allowing some air to enter. The cold will calm them, but not kill them. You want them alive when you put them in the steamer.

And this is the big difference between cooking lobsters and cooking blue crabs: lobsters are submerged in a pot of boiling water; put the blue crabs in a pot with a tray (or a bunch of crushed beer cans) and about 3 inches of water so they steam instead of boil. Here’s what a crab steamer looks like:

Steamed Maryland crabs are usually cooked alongside sweet corn (and often fried hushpuppies) and washed down with plenty of cold beer and hours of conversation. To use as few pots and pans as possible, I like to cook the sweet corn in the bottom few inches of the steamer without a pan.

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Once the corn is cooked, remove the cobs with tongs and keep warm, place the pan over the remaining water and you’re ready to throw in your crabs. Place the live crabs in the steamer. Sprinkle Old Bay seasoning on top. Place the steamer on the stove burner and place the lid on top. I repeat: put the lid on! Light the burner.

Ok, let’s stop here. If this makes you dizzy or finds the thought of slowly vaporizing something alive, you should probably stop reading this. The somewhat cool and sleepy crabs will begin to come to life and you will hear a wave of claws clashing in the pot. Know. It can be very depressing if you think about it too much. Note that these are bottom feeders, several steps above insects in my book. Let’s just say you’d never make a pet out of one.

Ahhh. After about 20-30 minutes, the crunching pot calmed down and the blue crabs turned from blue to red. And ready to eat.

Take your time. Eating crab is not so much a meal as it is a social event. It takes a long time to get every morsel out of a steamed crab. “Clean your rooms!” as my friend Carol always says to the kids at the table who seem to want to rush through the process. Soak crab meat in drawn butter, malt vinegar and Old Bay.

Chesapeake Crab House Crush Bar Opening Soon U Street Dc

The day got away from us so we didn’t get to enjoy these until after dark, but they are always delicious any time of day. We just replaced candlelight with the sun, wine with beer, and a Santa with a St. Bernard. Phew! What a day!

Yes, you can make a full holiday meal in a small sailboat kitchen. Check out this month’s Spinsheet! And click the image below for our Thanksgiving Turkey Oyster Gravy recipe…from the gallery to the gym! Bryan and I both grew up in Maryland, and when you’re from Maryland, you eat Maryland steamed crab. But since we moved to Denver 24 years ago, we’ve been a little rusty on the best places to go. Over the past year, we’ve been back and forth to Maryland quite a bit for family stuff, which has allowed us to reacquaint ourselves with crab houses all over the state. So, I thought I’d share with you my list of the best places in Maryland to get steamed blue crabs. Everyone has their favorites, especially neighborhood dives – so please add yours in the comments!

Summer is prime time for crabs as they move into the Chesapeake Bay during the warmer months. The truth is that some places in Maryland, especially in the winter, ship in Louisiana crabs – which are very good – just wanted you to know. Of all the places below, you’ll get the best crabs closest to the water. This seems obvious, but sometimes you can’t get through the state and need a fix.

Crabs – at any time of the year – are expensive. I listened to a few gasps of shock when the server told them the prices the last time we went out. Obviously the cost changes with the season, but all you can eat will usually be $35-$55 per person, all small crabs with a time limit. We like to sit and enjoy eating crabs, so we usually go for that option – but if you know you’re only going to eat a certain number of crabs, it can be less of a hassle and less cost to get some large or really big (up to $100 a dozen) and go to town.

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Don’t know HOW to eat crabs? Here’s a video from Visit Annapolis that covers the basics. Skip to 1:40 if you just want the instructions. Trust me, everyone has their own opinion on this! For example, I don’t remove the claws first – no way! Ask your server for guidance if you have any questions. Hugging the Chesapeake Bay with more than 3,000 miles of shoreline, Maryland boasts some excellent seafood. In fact, it’s so ingrained in the area’s food culture that in addition to the millions of crab stickers you’ll see on the street, there’s an official Maryland Crab & Oyster Trail. This culinary adventure guides fans around the state, helping them try all the notable seafood restaurants.

Whether you’re looking for tasty hard crabs, a flavorful soft shell, or the state’s signature crab soup, Maryland’s famous blue crab dishes delight the taste buds of millions every year. With many delicious options in Anne Arundel County, we’ve narrowed down our favorite places to satisfy your seafood cravings.

Here it is. If you’ve tried all of these, check out the Crab and Oyster Trail for more ideas. If you love seafood—and especially crab—there’s no better place than Anne Arundel County. Tie on your bib and get out of the cracker – it’s dinner time!

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How To Buy Crabs

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