Stone Crab

Stone Crabs are Delicious

Recipe for Honey Tangerine Stone Crab Claws with Hearts of Palm Salad
Christmas comes early every year for crab-heads. That’s because Florida’s stone crab season opens Oct. 15. Around the first of October, visions of orange and black claws start dancing around like sugarplums in the heads of crab lovers, who can’t wait for the best tasting crab in the world to be readily available.

Whether you catch your own, get them at a fish market, or dine on them at one of the many fine restaurants that serve them, stoners (as they are affectionately known) are a delicacy to be savored. Many say the meat tastes much like lobster. Others say it’s better. But most agree that fresh stone crab is among the very best tasting thing that comes out of the ocean.

Getting stoners out of the ocean is a little different than for other seafood. For the uninitiated, stone crabs are not harvested whole. Only the claws are taken; the rest of the crab is thrown back into the water, where it will regrow its claws to legal harvesting size in 12-18 months. In Florida and Louisiana, both the large crusher claw and the smaller pincher claw can be harvested. Texas only allows the right claw to be taken. Why the right one? Because most stone crabs are right handed, meaning the large crusher claw is on the right.

Those claws are part of a large economic engine in Florida. While stone crabs are found throughout the Gulf of Mexico, ninety-nine percent of the stoners we eat are harvested in Florida, mainly in the Keys. John Easley, marketing development representative with the Florida Department of Seafood and Aquaculture, says stone crabs are one of the most valuable seafood crops in Florida, with a dockside value of $23.6 million landed in 2010. That’s 2.5 million pounds of claws.

To catch these valuable crustaceans, commercial fishermen set out a long series of crab traps, referred to as crab pots. The pots are made of wood or plastic and are cage-like with an opening to allow the crabs in, but which makes it hard for them to get out. And what do the crabbers use for bait? According to Easley, the most popular bait is . . . wait for it . . . pigs feet! No one knows why they prefer pigs feet. It’s one of the great mysteries of the universe.

The crabbers pull the traps up into their boat and reach in and remove the crabs. Did I mention that those crusher claws can break an oyster’s shell? Imagine what they could do to your finger. So how do they remove the crabs from the trap? Very carefully of course. Actually, according to Ryan Gandy, crustacean research biologist for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, getting a safe grip on a stoner isn’t as hard as it sounds. The technique, as Gandy describes it, is to quickly grab the crab’s back two legs with the tips of your fingers, then quickly move your hands up to grab each claw. Sounds like something that requires practice. “You should wear gloves,” adds Gandy.

The next part is a little different. To remove the claw, do you use a knife or special scissors? No. You pull the claws off. Literally. It isn’t as gross as it sounds. Crabs can voluntarily jettison one of their legs to escape from a predator, or if it gets caught in something. Its body will naturally seal the opening where the leg used to be, and the claw will regrow. If you do it right. “You have to break the leg off where it enters the body,” Gandy counseled. “You do one claw at a time. Grab one claw in each hand, move one of your thumbs down to where the elbow would be if it had one, and with that hand push forward and down without twisting the leg. The crab will release that claw.” Voila!

Gandy certainly ought to know a lot about stone crab. He grew up in Florida catching stoners as a kid and still catches his own, although unlike most other folks, he doesn’t even use a trap. He walks out into crab habitat and feels around for them, grabs them and removes their claws. You just feel around for them and grab them? “Yes,” said Gandy. Why don’t they pinch you? “A stone crab’s initial reaction is not to attack. It is in its little mud hole, sideways usually, and it just tries to hunker down. A blue crab will raise its claws to grab you. A stone crab will just kind of try to get away.”

So now that we can correctly remove a stone crab claw, what do we do with it? The commercial fishermen don’t put them on ice; they put their claws in a bucket of salt water and take them back to the dock, where they are quickly boiled in salty water. If you put the claws on ice or in fresh water before boiling, the meat sticks to the inside of the claws and is harder to remove.

If you catch your own, after you boil them, they’re ready to eat. South Florida natives don’t bother with a crab cracker; they use the back side of a heavy spoon to whack the claw. This breaks the claw just enough so its shell can be removed. Their are two popular ways to eat stone crabs; serve them warm and dip the claws in butter, or serve them cold and dip them in a mustard sauce. But the claw meat is so tasty, many people don’t dip them in anything – they prefer them au naturel.

Stone crab factoids

• There are two kinds of species in the Gulf. One is native to South Florida, known commonly as the Florida Stone Crab, which is found from around Tampa down to the Keys. This is the most commercially caught stone crab. The other is known as the Gulf Stone Crab, and is found from Pensacola west to Texas. There is a section of the Gulf from Tampa to Pensacola where the two species interbreed and produce a hybrid.
• Stone crabs like to live near hard structures, like the limestone found around south Florida. That’s why there are so many of them there. In the western Gulf, they can be found in smaller numbers, and usually around structure that is hard, like jetties and oyster beds.
• The stone crab’s predators are turtles, big conchs, goliath grouper and man. When the crabs are still young, they are eaten by sheepshead, redfish and octopi. Octopi will actually enter the crab traps and feed on the crabs, frustrating crabbers.
• Oysters, snails, sea anemones, barnacles, conch, clams and other crabs are food to the stone crab.
• Stone crabs prefer living offshore over bays, due to salinity. When salinity increases due to lack of rain, stone crabs will come into the bays and eat oysters.
• It takes female stone crabs two years to mature enough to reproduce. They spawn from late spring to early fall. The female carries the eggs on her shell bottom and because of how it looks, is referred to as a sponge female, which cannot be harvested.
• The life span of a male stone crab is seven years; females eight.
• Stone crabs have ten legs, eight for walking and swimming, two for their claws.

Stoners for Non-Floridians

Don’t live in Florida? No worries! Florida stone crabs are available via mail-order. There are several crab houses that will pack your crabs in ice and overnight them to you. You can even order online.

And while most of the commercially caught stone crabs are from Florida, that doesn’t mean the other four Gulf Coast states can’t produce locally caught, fresh stoners. In Corpus Christi, for instance, Charlie Alegria, owner of Morgan Street Seafood Market, has fresh stoners on Thursday and Friday. He supplies a local restaurant, Water Street Seafood Company, who has added stone crab claws to its menu to gage interest. So far, interest is high. And nearby Port Aransas Seafood also has fresh stoners for its customers. Other seafood wholesalers around the coast may supply them – give your local seafood market a call.

Cooking Your Own Stone Crab

Ryan Gandy, from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, has caught and cooked his own stone crabs for years. His recipe is simple. Put on a pot of boiling water large enough to comfortably hold your claws, with room for some movement. Add salt to the water, about the same amount you’d put in pasta. Bring the pot to a boil, but don’t make it a really hot boil. Just enough to keep the water bubbling. Let the claws boil for 12-14 minutes. If smaller claws start floating during boiling, cut some time off your boil, down to 10-12 minutes. After the claws are boiled, dump out the boiled water and fill the pot with fresh, cool water to cool the claws down. Then give them an ice bath by dumping them in a large container of ice and water. Leave them there till they aren’t warm anymore. This stops the cooking process; otherwise they keep cooking in the shell. They are now ready to eat! You can either serve them chilled, or warm them in the oven. Try dipping the claws in mustard sauce or drawn butter, or get a little more creative with the tasty recipes below.

=========

Recipes

Courtesy of Florida Bureau of Seafood and Aquaculture Marketing, www.FL-Seafood.com

Mango Marinated Stone Crab Claws

3 pounds cooked medium Florida stone crab claws

2 cups ripe Florida mango, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

3 tablespoons Florida cilantro, finely chopped

2 Florida jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced

4 tablespoons Florida lime juice

1 tablespoon light brown sugar

Florida salad greens

Crack claws and remove shell and movable pincer, leaving the meat attached to the remaining pincer. Place in a single layer in a shallow dish. To make salsa marinade, combine mango, cilantro, peppers, lime juice and sugar in a mixing bowl. Taste for seasoning, adding more lime juice and/or brown sugar as needed. Spoon the salsa mixture over the meaty part of crab claws.

Cover and marinate in refrigerator at least 2 hours. Serve claws on a bed of salad greens with mango salsa as an appetizer. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutritional Value Per Serving (4 medium claws with salsa): Calories 132, Calories From Fat 3, Total Fat 0.29g, Saturated Fat 0.06g, Trans Fatty Acid 0, Cholesterol 45g, Total Carbohydrates 19g, Protein 60g, Omega 3 Fatty Acid 0.08g

Stone Crab Claws Miami

3 pounds cooked medium Florida stone crab claws

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup extra-dry vermouth

2 tablespoons Florida lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

Crack claws and remove shell and movable pincer, leaving the meat attached to the remaining pincer. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add stone crab claws and cook for 3 to 4 minutes until heated through, turning claws frequently. Turn heat to high; add vermouth, lemon juice, salt and pepper to pan. Cook 1 minute more, spooning vermouth sauce over claws. Serve claws hot or cold as an appetizer or entrée. Yield: 8 appetizers or 4 entrées.

Nutritional Value Per Serving (4 medium claws): Calories 205, Calories From Fat 121, Total fat 14g, Saturated Fat 2g, Trans Fatty Acid 0g, Cholesterol 45mg, Total Carbohydrate 3g, Protein 15g, Omega-3 Fatty Acid 0.05g

Curried Stone Crab Claws with Hot Marmalade Sauce

3 pounds cooked medium Florida stone crab claws

1/3 cup orange marmalade

1/4 cup Florida lime juice

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 clove Florida garlic, minced

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 teaspoon curry powder

Crack claws and remove shell and movable pincer, leaving the meat attached to the remaining pincer. Set aside. In a medium sauce- pan combine marmalade, lime juice, soy sauce, garlic and cornstarch; mix well. Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, until sauce is clear and thickened. Reduce heat and keep warm. In a large sauté pan, melt butter on medium heat; stir in curry powder. Add stone crab claws; turn to coat with curry butter. Sauté for 2 to 3 minutes until claws are heated through. Serve with hot marmalade sauce. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutritional Value Per Serving (4 medium claws with marmalade sauce): Calories 346, Calories From Fat 202, Total fat 23g, Saturated Fat 14g, Trans Fatty Acid 0.68g, Cholesterol 105mg, Total Carbohydrate 22g, Protein 17g, Omega-3 Fatty Acid 0.09g.

Honey Tangerine Stone Crab Claws with Hearts of Palm Salad

3 pounds cooked medium Florida stone crab claws

1/2 cup Florida sugar

1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup Florida honey

1/2 cup Florida tangerine juice

8 hearts of palm, fresh or canned

1/4 cup red onions, thinly sliced

1/4 cup Florida red bell peppers, roasted, thinly sliced

1/4 cup Florida yellow bell peppers, roasted, thinly sliced

2 medium Florida tangerines, peeled and sectioned

1/4 cup fresh Florida tarragon leaves, chopped

2 cups fresh Florida spinach, finely chopped

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh Florida parsley, finely chopped

Crack claws and remove shell and movable pincer, leaving the meat attached to the remaining pincer. Set aside. In a small saucepan, combine sugar, vinegar, honey and tangerine juice. Bring to a boil and cook until thickened to syrup. Remove from heat, cool and set aside. Slice hearts of palm into thin strips. In a bowl, combine the hearts of palm, onions, peppers, tangerine segments, tarragon and spinach. Dress salad with olive oil and vinegar; toss until moistened. Serve salad in the center of each plate with stone crab claws arranged around the edge. Drizzle the honey tangerine sauce over all and garnish with chopped parsley.

Serve extra honey tangerine sauce on the side. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutritional Value Per Serving (4 medium claws with salad): Calories 499, Calories From Fat 247, Total Fat 29g, Saturated Fat 4g, Trans Fatty Acid 0g, Cholesterol 190mg, Total Carbohydrate 51g, Protein 15g, Omega-3 Fatty Acid 0.05g

Stone Crab Claws with Spicy Golden Mustard Sauce

3 pounds cooked medium Florida stone crab claws

2 tablespoons dry mustard

1 1/2 cups mayonnaise

1 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon half and half
Crack claws; remove shell and movable pincer leaving meat attached to the remaining pincer. Set aside. Combine mustard, mayonnaise and Worcestershire sauce; blend slowly for 3 minutes. Add small amounts of half and half until mixture has a creamy consistency. Serve claws with mustard sauce on the side. Note: Sauce can be refrigerated up to 5 days.

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutritional Value Per Serving
(4 medium claws with mustard sauce) Calories 668, Calories From Fat 598, Total Fat 62g, Saturated Fat 10g, Trans Fatty Acid 0g, Cholesterol 76mg, Total Carbohydrate 1g, Protein 15g, Omega-3 Fatty Acid 0.06g.