When is the best season to eat hairy crabs? How to steam hairy crabs

September is the best season for eating female crabs, October is the best season for eating male crabs, and autumn is the best season for eating hairy crabs. When choosing hairy crabs, choose those with bright, shiny, dark green shells, thick and solid bodies, and those with "golden hair and golden claws" are better. How to steam hairy crabs? Let's take a look!

Contents of this article

1. When is the best season to eat hairy crabs?

2. How to steam hairy crabs

3. How to choose the best hairy crabs

When is the best season to eat hairy crabs?

Autumn is the best season to eat hairy crabs. Crabs are available all year round, but autumn is the best season to eat crabs. "Nine females and ten males", "round navel in September, pointed in October", all refer to the time to eat crabs.

The Chinese hairy crab is a type of river crab, and its scientific name is Chinese mitten crab. Generally speaking, the Chinese hairy crab refers specifically to the Chinese mitten crab of the Yangtze River system.

It is widely distributed along the long coastline of my country, from the Liaojiang River in the north to the Pearl River in the south. Among them, the Yangtze River system has the largest yield and the most delicious taste.

Now it is introduced to all major lake areas for cultivation and breeding. In the past, hairy crabs gave birth to seedlings near the Yangtze River estuary. After growing into young crabs, they migrated upstream of the Yangtze River and grew in lakes, rivers and harbors in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

How to steam hairy crabs

When steaming hairy crabs, it is best to tie the crab claws and legs with a string to prevent the crabs from struggling when heated and causing the legs to fall off, affecting the taste and appearance. Make sure to place the crabs with their lids facing down on a plate to prevent the crab roe and crab oil from leaking out. Steam for about 15 minutes after the steamer starts to steam, until the crab shell turns red and the crab meat is cooked through, then serve with soy sauce and ginger vinegar dishes.

When choosing hairy crabs, choose those with bright, shiny, dark green shells. They are generally thick and solid, and it is better to choose those with golden hair and golden claws.

The hairy crabs with protruding belly buttons are usually fat and juicy. The crabs that feel good when you hold them in your hands are usually plump and juicy, with full crab meat.

If you touch the area near the eyes of a hairy crab with your hand or a branch, and the eyeballs will flicker and react quickly, or if they spit out white bubbles, they are generally fresh.

How to choose the best hairy crabs

When choosing hairy crabs, you can observe the crab shell, abdomen, crab legs and other parts. The shell of a good hairy crab is mud-green in color, smooth and shiny, the abdomen is white, round and full, the sharp claws of the crab legs are golden yellow, the hair on the crab legs is yellow, and it feels hard and elastic when pinched.

Generally speaking, September is the best season to eat female crabs, and October is the best season to eat male crabs. When selecting hairy crabs, you can distinguish them by observing their abdomens. If the abdomen is pointed, it is a male crab, and if the abdomen is round, it is a female crab.

In addition to selecting crabs by observing their appearance, it is recommended to pay attention to the condition of the hairy crabs when purchasing. Those that are more flexible and have bubbles coming out of their mouths are healthier. If the hairy crabs are already dead, it is best not to buy them as they are prone to deterioration and affect their consumption.

The shelf life of hairy crabs is relatively short. Once dead, they are very likely to be infected by bacteria and deteriorate. It is recommended that you buy hairy crabs according to your needs, buying only as much as you will eat, to avoid buying too many that are difficult to preserve.