Your Essential Guide to Soft Shell Crab

In many ways, soft shell crabs are the snow cones of seafood: an iconic, delicious and timeless summer treat. Soft shell crab also has a universal appeal and versatile flavor profile, making it suitable for diverse audiences and cooking methods. Party planners rejoice! So, don’t let menu planning dampen your summertime bliss! Here's your guide to soft shell crabs: their production process, purchasing tips, cooking methods (including humane ways to prepare live crab), how to eat soft shell crabs, and delicious soft shell crab recipes.

Soft shell crabs are actually "hard shell crabs" that are going through the molting process. Unlike humans, whose skin grows and stretches to accommodate growth, a crabs' shell is external and must therefore be shed and replaced or "molted" as the crab grows. To initiate the molting process, the crab releases enzymes which separate its old shell from the underlying skin. Over the course of several weeks, the crab then grows a new, soft, paper-like shell under the old shell. The crab then ingests enough water to bloat itself, loosening the old shell. A king crab may molt 20 times in its lifetime, molting yearly in adulthood (young crabs molt more frequently). In addition to their shells, soft shell crabs can also replace their legs (ie. in case of injury or the loss of a leg), in as few as three molt cycles. There's some confusion on how to spell it - they're not soft-shell crabs or soft shell crabs, just soft shell crabs. Easy!

Harvesting Soft Shell Crabs

After molting, the soft shell crab converts its water bloat to protein while the new shell hardens. This "intermolt" period is the worst time for harvesting crabs, since the water bloat affects flavor. Within a few hours of molting, the new shell begins to harden, and within a month, it's impenetrably hard. To access crabs while their shell is still soft, fishermen typically capture and hold them in saltwater tanks before molting. Then, when the crabs shed their shells, they’re pulled from the water to prevent the new shell from hardening.

When is Soft Shell Crab Season?

Soft shell crab season starts in spring through fall along the Gulf Coast, with slightly shorter seasons along the Chesapeake and East Coast. Soft shell crabs are not in season during the winter months, when the water temperature drops.

When you are purchasing soft shell crabs, keep the following in mind:

Soft shell crabs come in different sizes. Soft shell crabs are categorized into 5 basic size categories: mediums, hotels, primes, jumbos, and whales. These size categories are defined as:

• Mediums: 3.5 to 4 inches
• Hotels: 4 to 4.5 inches
• Primes: 4.5 to 5 inches, on average
• Jumbos: 5 to 5.5 inches
• Whales: over 5.5 inches, on average

We carry jumbo blue soft shell crab.

There's a two-step process for humanely killing soft shell crabs:

1. Chill the crab. Since crustaceans are cold-blooded, they are rendered insensible to pain at sufficiently cold temperatures. So, chilling them either in a saltwater ice slurry (crushed ice mixed with salt water) or by putting them in the freezer will render them calm and unable to feel pain.
2. Quickly cut off the front of the crab. Hold the crab in one hand, and using a pair of kitchen shears, cut off the front of the crab, about 1/4 inch to a 1/2 inch behind the eyes and mouth.
   
   

Soft shell crabs have a rich, buttery sweetness and tender, flaky meat. The body meat is white, the claw meat brown, and shells orange-red. Since soft shell crabs are eaten shell and all, the shell adds a crunchy texture. Soft shell crabs are perfect for boiling, broiling, frying, grilling, sautéing, or steaming.

No crab crackers required! Soft shell crab is easy to eat, and the whole body and shell is edible.

We've collected a few of our favorite soft shell crab recipes for you to try! These recipes are simple summer fare sure to delight your whole family.