Cleaning live crab

Description

A step by step instruction to clean crab

Ingredients

Instructions

Here I have shown blue crabs found in the Chinese market.Mostly they will be alive,so cover them in a thick paper bag and leave them in the freezer for a couple of hours.This will make the crabs dormant and ease the cleaning process.Live blue crab

1.Hold the crab in one hand,(use a thick latex glove if you are too scared) and cut off the two big bitting legs first.these are the most dangerous ones and the only possible ones that could harm you.

Cutting the legs off

2.Now cut off the rest of the legs.Discard the walking legs(the one with a flat foot,seen in the above picture).the rest can be used for cooking.

3.Turn the crab upside down.You will find a flap like thing.try to flip it open with one hand while still holding the crab firmly with the other.

Lift the flap

4.Insert your thumb in between the flap and the hard shell while you pull open the hard shell with the other hand.

rip it open

shell comes off

5.Once the shell is removed,remove the white gills on both the sides.They will be like white soft watery feathers.

gills

6.clean the yellow mass too by placing the crab under running water.

remove yellow mass

7.Now your job is done.You can choose to use the crab as such or break it into two.

break tthe crab

8.rinse the legs and use them too

cleaned crab

Notes

I too was reluctant at the begining to buy live crabs,but they are not that scary,nor difficult to clean.Most of them die on your way home,due to suffocation in the car trunk!!The rest will become dormant if you place them in the freezer.Give a shot,its worth the taste.