Cooking and Cleaning Dungeness Crab

COOKING:

Place live crab in boiling, salted water.  When water returns to a boil, cook for 18-20 minutes.  The crab will turn bright orange.  Immerse the crab in cold water before cleaning. 

CLEANING:

Refrigerate your whole cooked crab until ready to eat.  Then follow these simple steps:

REMOVE THE BACK.

To remove the back, hold the base of the crab with one hand, place your thumb under the shell at mid-point, and pull off the shell.  

The leaf-like gills are now exposed.  Gently scrape them away with your thumb or a spoon edge.  

Wash away the "crab butter"(viscera) under a heavy stream of cold water.

Many feel that the Oregon Dungeness Crab is best when served warm straight from the shell and dipped in drawn butter or seafood cocktail sauce.  It also makes an excellent ingredient for a wide variety of delicious dishes.