Fourth of July… Brings Out the Crab in You!

I brought a bushel of crabs and thought I was gonna cook them all in one night and eat them. Boy was I wrong. Not only was a bushel more than I could handle, but a got a group of male crabs that had to be on steroids. Boy were they mean… but boy were they good. So of course I didn’t read this before I cooked the first patch, so here you go. Below is a good way to cook live crabs from helpwithcooking.com

Steaming live crab

1. In a large pot or steamer pour 1 cup of vinegar, 2 cups of beer or water and 2 tablespoons of salt, so that you have 3 – 4 inches of liquid.
2. Bring the liquid to a rapid boil.
3. As the liquid is heating up, place the live crabs into the freezer or into a large bowl of ice water for about 3 minutes. This is done to stun the crabs before cooking, and it keeps their legs and claws intact through the steaming process.
4. Once the liquid is boiling fiercely, place the live crabs onto a steaming rack situated well above the liquid, sprinkle them with seasoning and cover the pot with the lid.
5. Steam over a medium – hot heat for at least 20 minutes depending on the size and numbers of crab. Start timing once the water is boiling again. The crabs should turn a bright red or orange color when done.
6. Remove the crabs and rinse under cold water, which will also stop the cooking process.
7. Serve hot.