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flying makes me crabby

SauteedSoft-ShellCrabsWithJulienneOfCucumber.jpg


Jet Blue's debacle in February makes me grateful that I no longer travel with live crabs. (Actually Jet Blue is just one of many reasons.) But our work with Virginia Seafood presented more than a few opportunities to share a room with a crustacean. Like the time we did the wine and seafood media event at the James Beard House--basically a soft shell show 'n tell. In addition to coolers full of crabs, we were traveling with a chef and a marine biologist, whose sole job was to keep the soft-shells in a suspended 'nether' state, called peelers. This nether state requires keeping water and salinity at an exact stage--obviously a challenge under normal circumstances, much less when running the security gauntlet.

Fortunately, the scientist did his magic, which meant that the aquarium of peelers shed on cue giving the media and guests an up-close and personal experience with the growth and lifecycle of crabs. For this to happen in real life, we need to wait till spring, when the crabs of the Chesapeake Bay begin to shed naturally, around the first full moon of May. I've already got my calendar marked. Here's a recipe that Chef Marcel Desaulniers of the Trellis in Williamsburg provided years ago and that I look forward to using every spring. (Thanks Marcel!)

flying makes me crabby posted by Pat on February 28, 2007 @ 11:34 AM
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