Autumn marks the prime crab season. This might not be the first ingredient you associate to the cold autumnal months, however, after a summer of ending in nutrient-rich waters with a healthy supply of food, crabs are in fact at their best in the coming months.
Family firms, Favis of Salcombe have been fishing for crab and lobster off the South Devon coast for generations, so we talked to Pippa and Nigel Favis about the Autumn season of this beautiful crustacean.
They said: “The meat is absolutely at its best at this time of year – the brown meat in particular is really rich and delicious. At this time of year, the coral inside the crab starts to firm up and becomes thicker and richer. As the season goes on through September and into October it gets better and better and into November and December when crab is in its prime. The brown meat really firms up and becomes more solid and that makes it much more delicious. If you compare to crabs in July, the autumn species are much heavier. They start feeding from April time and they get more and more healthy as the season progresses”
Favis’ Top Tips for Buying Crab:
BUYING LIVE CRAB:
- Always look for a lively crab – check where it’s from and that it is sustainably sourced.
- Pick up the crab, it should feel heavy for its size, if not, it is probably empty and will have very little brown meat. Make sure the tail flap underneath is tight to the body, a hanging tail is a sign of a crab on its way out.
BUYING COOKED CRAB:
- Ask when it was cooked, where it’s from and how it was cooked. Cooked crabs have a fairly short shelf life so ideally buy one cooked that day. Make sure it was chilled quickly and keep it chilled until you eat it.
- Again, holding a cooked crab gives you a good idea of the quality. It will lose a small amount of weight when cooked byt should feel heavy. Tip it face-down to ensure it’s not just full of water.
BUYING PICKED CRAB MEAT:
- Trying to buy fresh unpasteurised, hand-picked meat – the crab meat should be full of large lumps of fantastic meat, it should be reasonably dry, not too wet and above all, should have a fantastic taste.
DID YOU KNOW…?
Crab is low in saturated fat, high in Omega 3 and packed with vitamins and minerals including vitamin C and iron. It is a very good source of protein too.