Boiled Mud Crabs

I took the plunge the other day and purchased two live mud crabs even though I didn't have a clue what I was going to do with them. Like I said it was an urge! Whilst in the seafood shop in Springvale, prior to the purchase, I questioned one of the employees about what to do with the crabs. The asian man gave me a graphic detail of killing the crabs with a knife, cleaning and then stirfry in sambal sauce as "you look like a girl who likes sambal". Don't know where that comment came from. Then over came an older asian lady who yelled "don't take the string off until it's dead!" Looking at the claws I could see that was good advice!

I spent several hours of reading up on mud crabs, googling mud crabs and even speaking to friends about the best way to cook them and finally decided just to cook and eat them 'a la natural'. This decision wasn't because it was the easiest option but it was so we could see if we truly like the flavour of the mud crab as we had recently had a bad experience with tinned crab!

During my research, I also found out that the most hummane way to kill a crab wasn't to stab it as told but to put the crabs in the freezer for as long as it takes for them to not move completely, somewhat in a frozen state and then proceed with cooking. I must say I liked this option.

The mud crabs themselves were beautiful in flavour and will definitely be cooked again. As with all crabs they are very fiddly to eat but worth the effort.

Boiled Mud Crabs

Serves: 2

Points per 100g: 1

2 mud crabs 800 - 1000 grams each

salt

ice/iced water

lemon wedges

Place the live mud crabs in the freezer for 30 - 45 minutes for a 800 gram crab, longer if required.

In the meantime bring a huge pot of salted water to the boil. One the crabs no longer move place in the water and boil for 15 minutes per 800 grams.

Fill a large bucket or sink with water and ice. Once crab is cooked place the crab directly into the iced water and leave for a further 15 minutes to cool completely.

Remove from iced water and drain. Cut crab into pieces or serve as desired.

Serve with lemon wedges and Seafood Cocktail Sauce or other dipping sauce of your choice.

(click here for a printable version of this recipe)