I am so thrilled to be living close to the ocean.  While in college and living near the Chesapeake Bay, I developed a fondness for fresh seafood (especially the region’s famed blue crab) that is matched only by my fondness for fresh seafood served in a sushi roll.  Luckily, we’ve got Dungeness crab (named for the town of Dungness, Washington) here, and they’re in season.
The Dungeness crab goes by the Latin name Cancer magister, which literally means “master crab.”  They’re certainly in better health than my beloved blues – Dungeness crabs are given the green light for consumption by a number of seafood-focused environmental organizations.  The crabs have a large population size, and our fishing regulations prevent harvest during the breeding season, as well as harvest of female crabs.  The crab pots used to harvest the Dungeness must have two “escape rings,” allowing for the females and undersized males to escape, and use lids made of biodegradable material: if a pot is lost, eventually the crabs will be able to get back out again.  Despite all of these regulars (or perhaps because of them), Dungeness crab harvests average 10.3 million pounds per year in Oregon alone, and they’re our most valuable single-species fishery.

Unlike some seafood, such as shrimp, Dungeness is low in fat and cholesterol.  It’s also high in protein and minerals.  And unlike the blue crab, the Dungeness crab’s body is 25% meat by volume, which makes it a relatively high food-to-eating effort ratio.  It’s best to purchase your crabs between now and spring, as warm weather signals molting and mating time for the species, and the animals’ body weight begins to drop.  

To purchase your crab, it’s best to go straight to the source – remember, “small is beautiful.”  My friends and I try to head to the coast and find the smallest, most broken-down fishing shack in the area.  If you’re going to the supermarket for your seafood, try to pick one that sells live crabs, as they’re freshest.  If you buy live crabs, don’t attempt to store them in fresh water before you cook them – they’re used to oxygenated salt water.  Just keep your crabs in a damp place, and cook them on the day you buy them.  The best crabs should be active and respond to motion.  The next option, taste-wise, is a freshly whole-cooked crab, which is a little less awkward to handle and prepare.  Avoid crabs that have a foul odor, or feel “light” when you heft them, as that means they have not yet filled out their shell.  After that, you venture into frozen seafood-land.  When purchasing frozen crab, make sure that it’s not freezer burnt, discolored, or coated with chunks of ice.  Any pre-cooked crab you purchase should be consumed within a week of bringing it home.    

Cooking crab can be completely simple – just bring it to a boil in a pot of water for ten minutes, and dunk it in some butter.  Of course, you can alter what you boil it with (popular additions to crab boil water include beer and Old Bay seasoning), and flavor your butter (garlic is the most common addition), but the best way to enjoy a whole, fresh, crab is by itself.  Encumbering the delicate flavours of Dungeness meat with  cream cheese or mayonnaise or sour cream is an insult to the species.  Save that for the canned stuff from the grocery store.  I will say, however, that a glass of Oregon pinot gris or a bottle of ale goes down very nicely with the crab.  I hope you enjoyed these tips – happy crabbing!

References:

http://www.oregondungeness.org/fishery.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeness_crab