Tom Evans has been a Bay fisherman all of his life, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. He now works at Jessie Taylor’s Seafood on the waterfront in Washington, D.C.
“A lot of people have a lot of ideas about why the crabs aren’t as plentiful,” Evans said. “Some people say it’s because of all of the rain but I think it’s because of the pollution. They’re about the same size as they used to be, there just aren’t as many of them.”
The blue crab is the symbol of Chesapeake Bay seafood and has long provided a living for watermen and their families throughout the Bay region. As the crabs have become less plentiful, however, they have become more expensive.
How do buyers know which crabs are going to have the most meat? “You have to look at their bellies,” Evans said. “If their bellies are dark, they have the most meat.”
Bennet Helfgott, the vice president for operations at Slavin and Sons, a seafood wholesaler with a store in Alexandria, agreed with Evans. “ Dark crabs do tend to have more meat, but you can also tell just by picking them up,” he said. “If you lift a crab and it’s heavy, it’s going to steam up with a lot of meat. The lighter ones are hollow.”
OTHER GUIDELINES apply when purchasing crabs. At the fish market, choose only crabs that are still alive. Take a crab with little bubbles streaming from the mouth. Ask the seller to run his hand along the ones on display – then single out the ones that move.
If crabs on ice don't show bubbles, ask the seller to remove them from the ice; in a few seconds, live crabs will show movement in their appendages. All appendages – claws, feelers and flippers – should be intact.
Most crabs that are sold locally are flown in from Louisiana or trucked north from North Carolina. “You will have a good shot of crabs in Maryland and Virginia by late July or August,” Helfgott said. “I think you can get the best crabs in September and October when it’s cooler. Last year, I even had crabs at Christmas in the store.”
The cost of crabs has grown steadily. “About 10 years ago, you could get a bushel of crabs for about $60,” Evans said. “Today, they are $115 a bushel. But we’re still selling a lot of crabs. Right before the Fourth of July weekend, I bet we sold a ton.”
Helfgott, too, is aware that the price of crabs has gone up over the past few years. “I like to keep my crabs priced at no more than $25 a dozen or $150 a bushel, year round,” he said. “And that price is whether you want live crabs or you want us to steam and spice them.”
WHAT TO DO with those crabs, once they are steamed and spiced? “People who grew up eating crabs, at least on the Bay, steam them,” said Julie Clifford, a local crab aficionado. “My mother always steamed her crabs in beer so that’s the way I do them. Others prefer water but I don’t think it brings out the flavor as well.”
Eating them can also be daunting. “Eating them is a social thing,” said George Hicks, who also grew up on the Bay. “You need crab mallets, a lot of beer and some patience. The taste is worth the effort.”