r/crabbing

Say hello to Chadwick.

Working on some filler pieces in a patchwork leg sleeve. Anybody else have a crab tattoo?

Caught this bad boy today! My first ever blue lobster! Don’t know if this is good luck or bad luck 😂

Hey everyone! Your favorite Italian crabber is back once again!

Last night I went crabbing at my favorite spot with my girlfriend and we caught 8.5 kg (about 18.7 lbs) of blue crabs! I was finally able to experience a true Maryland style crab feast for the first time now that I got my hands on some J.O. #2!

Following all your awesome advice, I used equal parts water, beer, and apple cider vinegar for the steaming liquid. I pre chilled the crabs on ice, layered them into the pot with a generous coating of J.O. #2, and steamed them for about 20 minutes. And WOW... I LOVED THEM!

I also made a melted butter dip seasoned with Old Bay and a fresh squeeze of lemon, which took the flavor to a whole new level! I cannot even begin to imagine what other incredible recipes I am missing out on. This was a truly mind blowing experience, and I cannot wait to experiment with these seasonings on the BBQ as well!

Thank you all so much for the helpful suggestions and tips. Your advice made this first steam absolutely flawless, and I know future batches will only get better. God bless Maryland!

Every suggestion, tip, trick or everything else is more than appreciated!

Finally, right here in Italy, I can enjoy these delicacies like a true American! Here are some photos from today! 🦀🇺🇸🇮🇹

j.o. as always. leftover crabs from the bushel.

Been seeing a lot of crab cakes getting posted, but personally I’ve never been a huge fan.

Decided to grill up some burgers and add bacon with fresh Dungeness as a topper. Just sweet, lump crab meat gently warm-tossed in garlic butter sitting right on top of some bacon and a beef patty. It hits that sweet and salty and the garlic butter adds richness.

For me, this surf-and-turf burger the superior move over traditional crab cakes? What do you all think? How do you guys like to use up your lump crab meat?

Hey! Your favorite Italian crabber is back!

Since it's impossible to get any US spices over here, I decided to import them myself!

Now, a simple yet crucial question: what is the best way to use them? I catch plenty of blue crabs and I definitely want to try an authentic Maryland steam, but I'm also super open to other recipes, even non-crab dishes using these seasonings!

Thank you so much! 🦀🇺🇸🇮🇹

Pulled my 10 pots this morning and got 72 blue crabs, best year out here by far. Probably 6 dinks are going back in the water when I cull them.

5 crabs in the pot, 2 sent back leaving us with 2 rock crab and the largest dungeness I’ve ever seen!

This was off lowman beach park in west seattle.

Got a bushel of MD crabs over the weekend and the guy showed me this. Said he’s only seen it a few times in the years he’s been selling them.

First ever time actually going for crab, snagged this fella out of New River, NC

When I talk about cooking crab, there seems to be a couple schools of thought when it comes to prep: cracking and cleaning before cooking vs. cooking them whole.

Which method do you swear by, and does your answer change depending on the species (Dungeness, Blue Crab, Stone, etc.)?

Do you notice a real difference in sweetness or meat texture between the two?

Caught from the pier at Whiting Bay. Any idea what species these are?

My first freshly steamed MD blue crab in a decade. It’s the only way to eat them imho.

Once these crabs have taken root somewhere it’s impossible to eradicate them, but management efforts can be taken, particularly by killing off the smaller juvenile crabs, daily trapping and killing of the crabs can mitigate the damage they do.

Could half a bushel of crabs done this pot damage to get out or is someone stealing my crabs? A week or two ago the corner was bent up and I lost about a dozen crabs. After that I added the second bungee and have been making sure they are super tight as well as hooked near the corners and then onto the middle ish area to cover the whole door. I tested pulling on the middle and it was very tight and took a lot of effort to even pull up an inch. I’m convinced I have a thief but others say no. Anybody with experience know if crabs themselves could mangle a live pot this bad?