Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with crab

How does a person get crabs in the UK?

K.P. — Fri, 29 May 2009 01:41:51 -0800

Where can one purchase pet hermit crabs in the UK? A friend of mine would like to get a few hermit crabs to keep as pets, but is having trouble finding some. Ideally they would like to visit the store/seller before buying (so I'm looking for a place within a day's travel from Seaford or Brighton) to check that they're healthy and raised in good conditions. Failing that, they might consider ordering some by post from a reputable supplier.

Several have been spotted on eBay but they're all underwater dwellers for eating aquarium algae and they are looking for a terrestrial bunch.

What can I do with crabapples?

grobstein — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 15:50:05 -0800

What can I do with crabapples? The trees outside of my apartment are heavy with crabapples, which are just about ripe right now. I can't eat them straight, but can I cook something nice with them? A jam, for example? All ideas welcome; personal experience a plus; links to recipes are great.

I'm a novice in most cooking skills but willing to experiment. I don't have any special equipment, but I could buy something if there was a decent chance of re-use.
[stipulate that the crabapples are mine]

Help me eat this delicious Chinese crab dish

ghost of a past number — Tue, 27 May 2008 13:40:48 -0800

Help me eat this delicious Chinese crab dish. Feeling adventurous at lunch time today, I ordered some ginger and green onion crab from a delivery place. What I got was one crab, cut in quarters, seasoned with delicious faux-chinese goodness, breaded and deep fried. Shell and assorted inedible parts where still attached, and I couldn't figure out how I'm supposed to eat this, with chopsticks no less.

Should I pick this up with my fingers and just eat the meat parts? Is there some trick to getting the meat out of the shell? Is the shell edible? Or is my local non-Chinese Chinese cook clueless?

Apologies if my display of ignorance is offensive to anyone. Anyway, it was really tasty and the people watching me were amused.

Why don't we see coconut crab sized insects?

fnerg — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 14:03:40 -0800

Why don't we ever see insects as large as a coconut crab walking around? I've read that the thing limiting insect size is the rate of oxygen diffusion through their tissues. Do arthropods have the same limitation? If so, why no coconut crab-sized cockroaches? (Not that I'm hoping for that or anything) If the coconut crab has a different kind of breathing apparatus, how does it differ from an insect's?

Where can I buy live dungeness crab in SF?

tumbleweedjack — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 13:02:50 -0800

Where can I buy live dungeness crab in San Francisco? The closer to Market and Castro street, the better.

What does imitation crab meat taste like?

GardnerDB — Sat, 26 May 2007 13:10:08 -0800

Does imitation crab meat actually taste good and what can I do with it? I love crab, but I rarely eat it because it's too expensive and not easily available in my area. Does imitation crab meat taste pretty good? Does it taste like real crab meat? It probably doesn't taste exactly the same, but is it close enough? What are some tasty things to do with it?

Crabs? This is SPARTAAA!"

luftmensch — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 21:39:32 -0800

On a visit to a park lake in mid-southern Illinois today, I encountered many little muddy burrows in the ground, ranging from one to two inches across. I spotted little digging crab claws in one of the more freshly-muddied holes; others looked less recently dug. My search skills fail me as to what these critters could be. The lake was fed by a small stream, and the town (Sparta, IL) is a bit less than 20 miles from the Mississippi.

Korean. Boy. Crab. Flower. Rain. Huh?

typewriter — Sun, 28 Jan 2007 11:29:00 -0800

I was given a wee bookmark from my friend with an image from an apparently well-known Korean folktale. My friend, (who is Korean) doesn't know the folktale. Neither do I. But I have a burning desire to find out. The image is of a boy kneeling on an oversized crab, reaching up to grab a big flower. It also appears to be raining. Looking at it, I thought it might be a folktale about selflessness, as the crab is helping the boy reach the flower, even though the crab would not benefit from the flower. Sort of like "The Giving Tree." The bookmark itself is unremarkable, kind of a metal gold thing. I know that it is the work of a Korean artist, but not who, so that doesn't help me track down the original folktale. Also, I'm not at all convinced that my friend who gave me the bookmark isn't pulling my leg, because she is cheeky like that. But if not, I'd like to find the folktale before she does!

Well, aren't YOU crabby tonight...

symphonik — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 02:18:51 -0800

Hmm... ruh-roh. I've just developed a craving. Where can I get really good crab in the San Francisco Bay Area? I live south of the City, so if there's some phenomenal seafood restaurant that serves heaping piles of Alaskan King Crab here in the Valley, great—but I'll be more than happy to hop Caltrain for this.

Don't ask me what started it. I was reading Jared Diamond's new book (which by the way, is very good) and all of a sudden, my mouth begins watering for a big wad of crab meat doused in melted butter. Yum.

Help me get my fix!

Crabs!

atom128 — Fri, 17 Feb 2006 08:18:22 -0800

Where is the best place in SF to buy live crabs? I have a hunger for some tasty seafood.

Has anyone ever eaten a hermit crab?

u.n. owen — Sun, 09 Jan 2005 01:43:41 -0800

So I live in a tourist town in Florida. Every third shop in the main strip area sells hermit crabs. Well, one of these shops doesn't just sell hermit crabs, it sells HUGE hermit crabs. What I'm wondering is: has anyone ever eaten one? [+] Google gives no hermit crab recipes. Before this week I'd never seen a hermit crab that would have even been big enough to have any meat, but these look like they would.

Would it be dangerous to eat a hermit crab? How would one cook it? How long would one cook it?

And please, "cruelty to animals blahblah" is not an answer to this question. I'm genuinely curious as to the taste of a hermit crab, but wanted to see if anyone else had tried it.

Children's Books

omphale27 — Fri, 31 Dec 2004 11:20:15 -0800

AnotherLostChildren'sBookFilter

I am looking for two children's books by the same author. One is about a carved wooden indian in a canoe that makes an amazing journey. The other is about a hermit crab as it makes its way through various new shells. My 3rd grade teacher read them to us, and I loved them, but I can't remember anything useful like author or title. Thanks!

Cancer the Crab

Jimbob — Tue, 12 Oct 2004 23:47:42 -0800

Crawly linguistics: What is the association between crabs (the crustaceans) and cancer? We all know the zodiac sign of the crab is called "Cancer", Cancer is also the genus of some crabs, and I've just discovered that other crabs are of the genus Carcinus, which sounds very close to "carcinogen". What's the reasoning and history behind this?