Premium Alaskan (Bairdi) Snow Crab

Doug Nevins (206) 849-8428   crab@cafeaura.com

$50 per 5 lb. box (boxes average over 6lbs but will be no less than 5lbs.)

There are several different species of crab which are marketed and sold as snow crab throughout the world. In the United States, the snow crab legs that you usually see at a restaurant or in the super market are almost certainly Opilio crab. This crab is Bairdi.

Bairdi crab has a sweeter, succulent flavor, and is less “fishy” than Opilio, and is the preferred crab of the Alaskan fishermen recently popularized by the hit T.V. show “Deadliest Catch”. It is also approximately twice the size of Opilio crab, giving it a very high meat to shell ratio, which means more crab for your money.

Nearly all Bairdi crab is sold to the Japanese market and is not widely available in the U.S.. Searching online I was able to find a couple of mail-order seafood companies offering Bairdi as “Giant Alaskan Snow Crab” for $15.95 lb. plus shipping, but it still does not compare to the size and quality of this crab.

The crab I am offering is the best Snow Crab that money can buy!!!

Storing

Frozen crab can be kept in a freezer for several months due to it's protective glaze.

Do not refreeze thawed crab!

Left-over crab should be kept under refrigeration and used within a couple of days.

Thawing

This crab is fully cooked and ready to eat when thawed. Eating it thawed, without additional cooking is the best way to fully enjoy the quality of this crab and it’s sweet natural flavor. To thaw snow crab, Rinse briefly under cool to luke warm tap water and place it in the refrigerator a day prior to eating, or thaw at room temperature for 2-4 hours or until thawed. Do not thaw in standing water this will leach the flavor out of the crab.

Cooking

DO NOT OVERCOOK!!!! Most recipes I’ve found recommend boiling, steaming, baking, or grilling thawed crab for 6-8 minutes if you want your snow crab served hot. I highly advise against this method of cooking snow crab, especially this snow crab. Steaming, 2-3 minutes if thawed, or 4-6 minutes if frozen, is plenty of time to heat your crab. Overcooking will make crab tough and rubbery as well as altering its flavor significantly, but again I stress minimal cooking time!!!! I would not recommend grilling or baking this crab!!!!    It really is best served cold!