{ POWER FOOD }
Tasty Crustacean
Could a gift from the sea that’s nutritious also be delicious? Crabsolutely! Truly fine things in this life take work, and cracking into a crab is one of them. You break off claws, twist away smaller limbs, get squirted with juice, gobble every forkful and then dispense with what’s left of your dignity by sucking meat from inside the smaller pieces. And the taste is so worth it. No wonder the worldwide crab market is projected to reach 3.7 million metric tons by 2026, with North American crab eaters leading the way. For a creature that darts out from under rocks on the ocean floor, the crab has enviable seniority. It dates back to the Jurassic period, when Tyrannosaurus rex had yet to make his debut. Appearing in Greek mythology and Peruvian legend, the crab is also the symbol for the Zodiac sign Cancer, as the constellation’s arrangement of stars looks crab-like. Crabs are decapod crustaceans (meaning that they have 10 legs and a hard exoskeleton with a segmented body) of an infraorder known as Brachyura. Classifications in the wild include fiddler crabs and Japanese mitten crabs, both of which sport unusual claw types. More often consumed by humans are the Dungeness crab and the soft-shell crab, whose shell can be eaten along with the meat. The famous Alaskan King crab isn’t technically a crab at all, but a tasty impostor decapod that evolved along similar lines.
disease. And tender crabmeat’s lack of connective tissue makes it a comparative breeze to digest at any age. (On the debit side, crabmeat is relatively high in cholesterol and sodium.) Imitation crabmeat? Don’t even mention it, lest you make purists crabby. It’s made up of fish flesh processed into a paste and contains almost no actual crab. It trails real crab by a mile in most nutrients, the exception being phosphorus. So unless you’re a phosphorus freak, insist on the real thing. BUY/STORE/SERVE For these delectable decapods, the closer you get to the source, the better the payoff. You can go crabbing (in New Jersey, the best time is 4:30 to 8:30 a.m.) but you’ll need a license if you use crab pots or trot lines. Crabs can be purchased live at fish markets—choose an animal that’s moving in the tank and thus more likely to stay alive until plopped into the boiling water. (Make sure the gills
and viscera are removed before you thoroughly boil it.) Steer clear of uncooked dead crabs, as their meat becomes mushy and its flavor deteriorates. If you’re buying cooked crabmeat, look for white and avoid blue spots. You can, of course, find many processed and canned versions at your grocery store. Crab’s not a food you can store for long, so seize the day and eat it while you can. If you must store crabs, keep them moist. One trick is to put them in the fridge in an open container lined with wet newspaper. A nice garlic butter glaze can come in handy with proper seasoning. You can serve crab chilled with a lemon zest on the side. And if you’re serving a whole crab, you may wish to arm your dinner guests with a nutcracker. Crab Louie? Crab Newburg? Crab cakes? Deviled crab? Crab linguine? Crab bisque? This is a food with a sea of possibilities. —Brian Kelley
POWER UP Crab is loaded with protein. A 100-gram serving (about three-and-a-half ounces) has just 97 calories, but delivers more than 38 percent of your daily protein requirement. It’s also rich in the minerals copper, selenium and zinc. When it comes to vitamin B12, which helps the body form red blood cells and make DNA, crab’s a powerhouse—one serving meets 479 percent of your daily need. Crab is a super source of two specific “longchain” omega-3 fatty acids that have anti-inflammatory properties; studies suggest that they may boost mental function and protect against heart
DID YOU KNOW? The roughly 5,000 different species of crab vary widely in size. The pea crab is smaller than its namesake, while the Japanese spider crab can have a leg span wider than a living-room couch. BERGENMAG.COM
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