Hairy Crab 101
Winnie Yeung and TC Fung wonder why people are obsessed with these little crustaceans. Pictures by Debby Hung
It’s that time of the year again. Every autumn is the season for harvesting hairy crab – the ultimate of all crabs. Every Chinese restaurant is serving it, every Hong Kong person brags about eating lots of it, and it's even served in buffets. But what’s so great about these tiny sea creatures, and why does a single meal often cost hundreds of dollars per person?
What Is It, Really?
These ugly, hairy little creatures, also known as mitten crabs (in Cantonese, dai jap hai, meaning crabs cooked in big fire), are a supreme delicacy in the Shanghainese cuisine. They’re usually caught and served from after the Mid-Autumn Festival till around the end of November – that’s when their meat is the juiciest and roe sweetest. The Chinese are obsessed with hairy crabs because they’re rare and are at the top of the crab hierarchy. “If you want to eat the best, you need to get the hairy crabs,” says Dong Lai Shun head chef Kenny Chan.
The Two Giants
Most of the crabs sold in Hong Kong are grown in Yangcheng and Tai Lakes in Suzhou, the best sources. According to Chef Chan, the ones from Tai Lake are usually bigger (12 tael is the ideal weight) and have more meat, while a Yangcheng crab of around eight tael will have the sweetest roe.
Are They That Expensive?
Traditionally, Yangcheng crabs are more expensive, but this year it’s more or less the same because Tai Lake has some excellent ones, according to 48-year old hairy crab shop New Sam Yung in Kowloon City. A top-quality one costs around $300 (or $420 a catty), while most people opt for the medium-sized crustaceans at $130 each. However, if you’re willing to settle for less, a hairy crab can cost as little as $20 – New Sam Yung’s Mr. Chan says they taste just as good, but are considerably smaller.
Cooking It Yourself
Most shops cook the crabs for around $100, but if you feel like trekking to New Sam Yung and bringing live ones home to cook, note these three signs of a healthy crab: a fat stomach, fat limbs and responsive eyes.
The easiest cooking method is steaming. When buying the crabs, get some dried basil leaves and ginger as well. Cook these in a wok, and, after thoroughly washing the crab, place it stomach-up in the wok and steam for half an hour. Many cooks will tell you 20 minutes will do, but don’t take the risk of eating an undercooked crab – you never know what lurks in that lake. Dip in a sauce made of Zhenjiang vinegar, shredded ginger, red sugar and a drop of soy sauce.
Wining Your Crab
We always find an excuse to get boozed up – and yay, hairy crab is yet another. No hairy crab meal is complete without a fine bottle of Hua diao wine from Shaoxing. The yellow tipple is fermented with glutinous rice and wheat, making it full of flavor – perfect for sipping in between bites of juicy, sweet crab. A good bottle of Chardonnay would be an alternative. But if you’re on the wagon, a good drink is ginger tea, as both hua diao and ginger tea can help null the "chilly" nature of the crab, according to Chinese medicine.
Eat With Caution
Because of its "chilly" nature, it’s not advisable to eat too many hairy crabs in one meal – legendary actress Lydia Sham collapsed just a couple of weeks ago, allegedly from eating two hairy crabs. Symptoms are a stomachache and diarrhea. It’s also a stupid idea to eat the crabs with other chilly food like bitter melon, tomatoes, seaweed, or washing it down with beer.
And crab roe is also high on cholesterol. There’s around 200-466mg of it in 100g of roe - five times more than your average meat – while the recommended daily intake for a person is only 300mg a day. So if you have a heart or cholesterol problem, all you can have is one spoonful and that’s it. Aww, but hey, who says you need to eat a lot to enjoy it?
What are we, savages? Who eats it off the shell?
Well, that’s how all Shanghainese folks eat crab. But chefs in Hong Kong all do us favors – not just cracking the shells open, but creating innovative dishes out of it. Here are our picks.
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Steamed glutinous rice dumplings filled with chicken and crab roe ($118 for four pieces, Dong Lai Shun) | |
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Braised fish balls with crab roe ($128, Dong Lai Shun) | |
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Crab roe wonton ($128, Bay Phoon Town) | |
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Crab roe, scallop and asparagus in an ice-cream cone ($118 for four pieces, Bay Phoon Town) | |
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Braised angel hair noodles with hairy crab roe and crab meat ($88 per person, Shang Palace) | |
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Braised Japanese Kinu beancurd with hairy crab roe and crab meat ($75 per person, Shang Palace) |