Stone Crab Helpful Hints

The SCK's received a 'kind' email from a fellow crab lover in Wilmington, NC.  In part, his email expressed the lack of information available on the web about stone crab, which has prompted me to compile a list of  helpful hints we have discovered, stumbled over, repented from, or had gracious folks share with us after we really messed up badly.  Note: The former sentence should provide some insight into the SCK's standard research method. Pretty sad isn't it?

1. Stone crabs bury themselves in the mud for the winter. Early in the spring, we discovered that the first stone crab came out of the mud in very shallow water. Local crabbers told us that it was because the shallow water allowed the mud to warm up faster. Hence, the crab climbed out earlier.

2. Firm mud is around oyster banks have been the best inshore harvesting grounds.

3. The type of bait ( pig feet, chicken, menhaden, venison, etc. ) did not make as much difference as much as the 'double thaw'. A researcher from Duke University taught us that freezing, thawing, re-freezing, prior to baiting produces the best scent trail. The flesh cell structure is significantly damaged during the second freeze and quickly breaks down in the water during the second thaw. Flesh is water soluble. Oil is not.

4. Harvesting claws is a learned skill that just takes practice. Take a look at Josiah's harvesting video in the how-to section of the blog. If meat is hanging off of the claw when harvested it is likely that the crab will die. However, even the best harvester is going to grab a crab that has just molted and .... break off the whole joint. The fact is when harvesting, some crabs are going to die. That's why the SCK's harvest only from male stone crabs.

5. Boil and blanch the claws as soon after harvesting as possible. But in the meantime soak them in a bucket of water fresh from the river, not ice made from fresh water. The salt within the claw will absorb the fresh water diluting the flavor. It will also raise the claw weight which is an old crabber's trick for getting more pounds of catch. Same works for shrimp. Another reason not to use ice is that we have found that the meat sticks if we use ice prior to blanching.

6. Use a little vinegar in the boiling water, not enough to taste but a little vinegar will help keep the meat from sticking within the claw.

7. A stone crab can pinch with nearly four times more pressure than an alligator can bite. So ... keep your fingers away from those claws. However, should you find yourself in the grip of a stone crab claw, don't panic, and place the crab on its back. Stone crabs are similar to alligators in that when they are placed on their back, they tend to relax. He will either relax enough to get finger free or you can roll the claw across his belly and snap the claw.

I'll post more tips later. However if any of our visitors have any tips you want to share ... please send them on. The Lord knows we can use all the help we can get !!!