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Home My WebLink AboutOctober 09, 2003 - Crab_ an unadorned delicacy The Suffolk Times • October 9, 2003 �� • �� • una orne e lcac I'M wKrrwc;'r►its AH�'t:tt Barbara and I fiinished a scrumptious meal of just plain crabs.We picked these crabs up firelighting on a calm moonlit night in one of our creeks.They were jumbo crabs.We didn't get many but what we lacked in numbers was macle. up in size.Some of the biggest crabs 1've ever seen—and what a meal we ' .,,,��_ had,just the two � ��" '" � „� ,,, „ . � � of us.We had to ,�� '� �� ,� r� � FOGUS � , celebrate,so we , Yti,�, , , �u�,� ON went out into thc +� h N 4. �� r � ��b� � '��hi� e��" ;F,� ri � � , gaLCleLl,W11eT0 , '�� ,�,� �l�„/��µ�� l�i�� r��i��H/��uld uN� NQTUR� W8�18V8 �l tclble .�n� i �h !'Vrvu�� l��ryJ!��i�l��d��ly� i � � A ' �� 'aw� ,F'dM �h,o - � ��tia��q�l'pl�H , �� i�,'� ii by Paul and chairs,for �� r � �, '� "u * w�4�,�° m� �,� ,n�r y � � �r'�'I�x �� StOIItP.I1�IUI'gIi JUSt SUCI] OCCc1- �°' " �P u, �"�-0;,� �'j� ''�`�'l ��H, ��i��N'� �� iGII� ��i��l�� i� i�p��iUl�'iV�� '�i��,laYP �'i sions.There on a � �r�� ,Ni " ��h�� cool,bright, �► �� ,,' � �,�� sparkling day we indulged in crabs up ' to our elbows. � �� I hope you know the kind of crab- ,; t� '�� eating adventure I'm talking about, �� "��x�; � for it's one of the great feasts our local � � " � , �� waters can produce.The way we cook ;° ,, �� ,�� ,at��I �- �� rr �� I yr�"�';�� ii�N � u�, n ow-crabs is to pour boiling water over ' ""' " ,`.�1` ��'�'b� �;�� li°� them in a big pot and then let the �� „ �„��,� water come back to a boil for ]0 to 12 �,,��,' '� ,� ;i,,,, minutes.And there you have it. �� , °'�� r Nothing fancy.No spices,just plain '`" � � n'� � '� n �� „ '�>,; � crab. .�'�" ° ��, '� �� '� , �a .^ " �� i M�7,�� t �. y� ii ti, ,r � �� r�� . Out in the garden,our table and � � , � '�+� �� „�/ ° chairs are near the butterfly bushes I �,,,, � : ' , �� planted years ago.We were glad to see N µ� °,� w� °;� � � ,, the monarch butteri7ies stopping by , �� „µ, , ' ° � u,� and taking advantage of the nectar the '�t ' ,��r�;, � �� '��„ " �' '�� 'i � bushes offer.We had six of the dano- �� , �N, � �� "'"'�'° ing jewels at one time on one bush. ,� � ' ��' u ��'� � ,r,�� bB ,ut/kb iu�� i iw ��r�j�l �a� ��-� Then,far some reason,they all „ r . �� ,� � seemed to disappear.I don't know if ° � ��u�� "� � � � ��, ir��wina� ��rll M��A � � one signaled that there was better �%/� �/ � �� ll�lil��ir�7h�� nectar somewhere else and they all �� H �� -� �,�� '�, followed,or what.Then,a half-hour " " � ,��'�'��` '� ,,,�,, ��>�-� � �� later,they started to come back.No matter;we had crabs on our minds Times/Review photo by Paul Stoutenburgh and were soon deep into them. Great egrets are passing through our area on their annual First came the claws.My,what mon- migration south. They stalk the killifish in our creeks and rest sters! I would hate to have been bitten in the trees before they start on the next leg of their journey. by one of them.We cracked them with our faithful old nutcrackers and,when the broken shell was removed,there was that beautiful piece of ineat that any of you who have eaten crabs know all too well.As a matter of fact, it rcminded us of when we were in Maryland years ago and stopped at a crab cannery to watch them process garcicn on thal bcautilul fall day whcn the world was meant for living.It did make us think of time we spent in crab country down in Crisfield,Md.,where we watched the huge—and I do mean huge—vats of bright-red crabs I saw a rou of s c,a� crabs.They were cookcd bein brou ht u out of the steamin � p p in big,stcaming pols.Thc g g p g ing swim for shcller as hot-water bath.We chuckled to see this bi dark ob'cct claws were cracked, g � opened and arranged in young kids waiting for their special passed above them.OI`f cans so you could easily crab to fall out of the vat,for they all in the distance we could pick out,just onc claw at carried crab knives in their pockets. see some white"Private" They would use that knife with outh- si i�s that rin ed a bi a time.Thcn all you had ful skill to et all the meat g g g to do was to eat the meat g piece of woodland.They off the cartilage that runs out of the steaming-hot wcre spaced every 300 to through it. crab.Let's hope somcday EBtlllg,' 400 feet and stood out Next comes the lower We'll get back to that cral� CrabS t�keS against the dark green of part of the claw,and country oP Maryland. thc woods.Then we don't forget the hinge. On a different subjcct: a ��tt�e noticed more up in the There's a knob there Barbara and I had bccn (�0111g'� bpt ti-ees;at least that's what talking of taking a canoe the results �'�thou ht the were about the size of your fin- g Y ride in one of our local until a head on a lon gcrnail that,when broken g creeks to see what the fall are well neck o ed u Our with a nutcracker,yields P PP P• weather had to offer.So WOI'th th@ "signs"turned out to be a nice little tidbit.Once when we awoke to a great egrets resting in the the claws are done,I go sparkling,crisp early morn effort. trees.Evidently they had for the legs.I break them �n ,it seemed the erfect off from the body and g p had a busy night fishing time.Barbara packed a lunch and wc the shallows and were now relaxin in work the leg through my g teeth.As you pull the leg headed for a canoe our neighbors had the trees,digesting their catch.I think along,the meat oozes kindly told us we could use. we counted six of them. �tlt. We pulled it across the marsh grass We paddled around the edge of the Uo that to all the legs that was starting to turn to a rusty creek and were amazed to see how until there's nothing left brown.In doing so we had to pass many boats there were.Every house but the body and cara- dumps of high tide bush at the edgc had its dock and boaL I can remember pace,which you flip off, of the marsh,which had its blossom, when there was an occasional rowboat leaving the exposed inner ready to burst.In a wcek or so it'll and nothing else,but that was 60 years have fluffy,creamy-white flowers that a o body of the crab.Then off g • come the"dead men,"as I associate with the high tide line We paddled up the creek to the my dad used to call them. around our creeks.Poison ivy had headwaters,where it narrowed down Those are the loose already taken on its rusty reds and to almost the width of our appendages on the top. browns and yellows. canoe,so narrow that wc They're taken off with a W��cided to have our snack couldn't turn around. knife or just pulled off. before we got into the Luckily it was high tide and Next comes breaking the canoe,so we dove into we were able to back-pad- two halves of the crab the lunch that Barbara dle to an open space,where and sucking the juice that had prcpared and,as we we turned around and went runs out between the ��>��kcd around,we could out once again into the them.Ooh,how good see the tall yellow seasidc creek.The thatch grass was that juice is! goldenrod tl�at is now in four to five feet high and in Then,for the choicest blossom.The monarch some places made almost a of all pieces of ineat,the lower pa - buttertlies lo��e this hancl- tunnel that we traveled dler is broken away from the shell, some plant.They stop to through.We paddled quietly and usually a huge piece of white sip the nectar that sup- over to where the egrets meat is exposed.At the cannery this P��s them �vith the ener- were basking in the sun.We wanted chunk of white meat is canned in a gY to keep going on their to see if we could get a picture,so, special way and brings a special price. �'ay south. with a Iong lens on the camera,we It's called lump crabmeat.There are After lunch we climbed drifted up to them.After a few shots all kinds of ways of getting into crabs. into the canoe,which we v�ere greeted by the most awful, You have to find your own special seemed a little tipsy,for godforsaken sound.It was a great way.Eating crabs takes a little doing, �'� hadn't been in one for blue heron flying out of the woods.I but the resulfs are well worth the some time,but once we imagine he was cussing us out in effort. got away from the shore heron language for disturbing his We had fun eating crabs out in the things settled down and tranquil garden. soon we got into the What a treat this fall morning quiet rhylhm of paddling. turned out to be.As we paddled back, two people in kayaks slipped by.They, too,were enjoying the splendor of the � day.