A couple days ago I restocked my supply of pasteurized crabmeat for the upcoming tailgate and holiday season. I do it every year around this time, and, I was down to my last can, so, I bought three more. Like most folks, I love to eat crabmeat, and, while fresh crab is indeed a delicacy, for my purposes pasteurized crab is my first choice. Like fresh crabmeat, it must be stored in the refrigeratory, but unlike fresh crab it has a very long shelf life -- up to 18 months. What's not to love about that. Because it's pasteurized, it's fully-cooked and ready-to-use as-is in hot or cold dishes. How convenient is that. Lastly, while it isn't cheap, it's less expensive than fresh crabmeat. Prices range from $30 to $50 per one-pound can, and the price depends on what's packed in the can -- to know that, you need to familiarize yourself with the label.
Colossal-, Jumbo- and Lump- crabmeat all come from the two largest muscles connecting the swimming legs of the crab. Colossal and Jumbo are whole, unbroken pieces with the latter being smaller. Lump consists of broken pieces of jumbo lump. Backfin crabmeat consists of flakes of white meat from Lump and Special (meat from the body cavity). Claw is pink in color and the meat from the swimming fins and Claw Fingers are the pink meat tips of the pinchers.
In terms of processing, after the crabmeat is extricated from the shells, the meat is carefully sorted into pieces of various sizes and textures: claws, legs, body meats, swimming fins, etc. This initial "sorting" is the most important step, since pasteurized canned crab is categorized into grades from colossal, to jumbo, to lump, to claws and flaked meat. The price varies from category to category, with colossal and jumbo (there are only two lumps per crab) being the most expensive. It's sold in 8- or 16-ounce cans or plastic tubs. That said, the pasteurization process is not the same heat process for other canned products, so, even though it has a long shelf life, it must be stored in the refrigerator, and once opened, must be eaten within three days.
Try my ~ Old English Cheese Spread & Crabmeat Canapés ~:
And, my ~ Cold & Creamy Crab Rangoon Dip w/Wonton Cups ~:
Or, my ~ Crab Rangoon w/More Crab than Cream Cheese ~:
Or, my ~ Slightly-Spicy Creamy Cajun-Creole Hot Crab Dip:
Or, my ~ Crunchy Crabmeat Crostini w/Secret Seafood Sauce ~:
Or, my ~ Holiday Appetizers 101 -- Make Lots of Crab Balls ~:
Or, my ~ Exquisite Crabmeat Stuffed Omelette a la Benedict ~:
Plus, my ~ Maryland Crabcake, Tomato & Mayo Sandwich ~:
"We are all in this food world together." ~ Melanie Preschutti
(Recipe, Commentary and Photos courtesy of Melanie's Kitchen/Copyright 2022)
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