“How sweet, fresh meat!”
“How sweet, fresh meat!” Who has the sweeter, more satisfying Blue Crab meat: female vs. male?
January 20, 2019
The Dilemma
At Chesapeake Crab, first-time crab connoisseurs ask this question quite frequently: “Which is better, the male or female crab? With your Big Football Game crab order; and yes, we have crabs for this Sunday, you may notice specials for female crabs. Is this selection the right choice?
The distinguishing features between the two are subtle in taste, but large in weight and texture. Both live in brackish estuaries and salt marshes and feast on a diet of clams, mussels, snails and plants, giving their meat a salty-sweet delicate taste perfect for hot clarified butter and JO spice flavoring. Consider the following differences when making your Big Football Game selection.
The Differences
Male crabs, known as Jimmies, showcase an inverted t-shaped apron and possess flaky meat and tend to be heavier, which means more meat. Crab houses in Crisfield, Maryland claim male crabs supply a meat more conducive for crab cakes and pack ideally into 1 oz. to 8 oz. cakes. The flaky nature of the meat allows for bonding ingredients to mix and hold the cake together for baking and golden-brown searing. Captain James for Ordercrabs.com weighs in on the debate and says the Super Legend Male Crabs rivals and surpasses even the taste of the Bering Sea King Crab Legs.
Comparatively, Female crabs, known as Sooks, sport a bell-shaped apron with red hued claws at the tips, like nail polish. With quick swimming agility, the females can produce about 2 million eggs per offspring. This sponge disperses into the ocean, creating ideal conditions for egg hatching and crab nurturing, but if caught with the eggs, many diners find this sack a delicacy. Recipes requiring denser meat as Maryland Crab Vegetable Soup or Crab Tart may benefit from the sweeter, condensed meat, especially when submerged in a broth.
Your Decision
This discussion leads us back to your online cart and crab specials. Possibly, one must consider if new ideas cause stress or open a plethora of alternative tastes and experiences within the Crab Realm. Will eating a decidedly sweeter, but denser crab meat cause a desire to explore all types of crabs such as the King, Snow or Dungeness Crabs? The essence may reside in the adage that beauty resides in the eyes of the beholder. Taste preference relates to your cuisine and recipes and quite honestly, your taste buds! You won’t know unless you try, so we here at Chesapeake Crab, we say try all the Sea’s delicacies.
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