my hand, and I break it instead of trying 

 to cut it." The other side is done the 

 same way. 



Right-handed people would hold 

 the crab in their left hands. "The mouth 

 is always toward you," Miss Lue ad- 

 vises. 



Look for a "bridge" or ligament in 

 the top right quadrant as the crab faces 

 you. "I don't know if that's the right 

 name for it; that is the name I use." 



Cut through the bridge and bring 

 the knife deep into the crab toward you. 

 Turn that piece over and peel off the 

 meat from a piece of cartilage not much 

 bigger than a thumbnail. 



"We call that the fan," Miss Lue 

 says. Then carefully cut off the fan 

 without taking meat. "You try to sliver 

 that off." 



Gently, but quickly, pick the flakes 

 of meat by sliding the knife tip from the 

 open end and lifting out each piece, 

 much like taking sections of grapefruit. 



"You have to go underneath, but 

 not hit the bone." Miss Lue repeats this 

 process on the other side by spinning the 

 crab slightly in her left hand. 



Now go for the jumbo lump, the 

 most expensive piece of meat in the 

 crab, by sliding the knife into the top of 

 the right quadrant and lifting out the 

 lump using your thumb as a guide. 



A beginner will break the lump; a 

 pro will keep it in one piece. "You have 

 to learn that," Miss Lue says. 



A full lump goes into a separate 

 tub, for it fetches a higher price on the 

 wholesale market. In some crab houses, 

 pickers earn more per pound for the 

 jumbo lump. 



Once the lump is taken, the remain- 

 ing meat is removed from both sides, 

 and the other parts of the crab are 

 discarded. 



The claws offer a darker meat, 

 which is considered sweeter and gener- 

 ally more flavorful than the lump or 

 backfin. Claw meat is often used in 

 deviled crab or crab cakes. 



Claws are picked with a different, 

 heavier knife because the claws must be 

 broken open for the meat to be removed. 

 A single quick strike should be enough 

 to break the claw shell. 



Loose wrists are helpful, and Miss 

 Lue says power is a key, "like you are 

 mad at someone." 



Hold the claw, with the orange-red 

 side up, on the brass cylinder that holds 

 the claw in place for the cracking. Start 

 with the side that was attached to the 

 body and strike close to the joint. 



Pull the shell away from the joint 

 and remove the meat. Spin the claw so 

 that the pincer is pointing to the right. 



Strike closer to the pincer, and 



again pull the shell away from the meat. 



Either pull the meat off the carti- 

 lage, or strike the moveable part of the 

 pincer and retain the stable piece as the 

 handle for a cocktail claw that can be 

 easily dipped in sauce as an hors 

 d'oeuvre. 



The number of crabs that it takes 

 for each pound of meat varies by the 

 size and quality of the crab. 



State officials estimate that 12 to 15 

 pounds of whole crab yield 1 pound of 



10 JULY/AUGUST 1994 



