The wait is over ... Chinese hairy crab back on the menu in Hong Kong, but only from 10 vendors

Contamination scare kept the delicacy out of Hong Kong restaurants for a year

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A shop in Causeway Bay sells hairy crabs on Friday. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Published: 6:39pm, 3 Nov 2017Updated: 10:32pm, 3 Nov 2017

Hairy crab fans can finally get ready to tuck in after the season’s first batch went on sale in Hong Kong on Friday following a year-long ban due to contaminated crustaceans failing government safety tests.

Restaurants were planning to get the delicacy back on their menus after a delivery of hairy crabs to the city passed quality controls sooner than expected.

The supply, from Datong Lake in Hunan province, weighing 500kg, entered Hong Kong last Friday after a block on imports of the Chinese mitten crabs, popularly known as hairy crabs.

But local authorities last Friday asked vendors to hold onto the crabs for up to 14 days until the release of safety test results for the batch, which included a test for the cancer-causing chemicals dioxins.

The absence of the delicacy from Hong Kong restaurants made for crabby diners. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Now proved safe for consumption, the hairy crabs were made available by about 10 sellers on Friday.

One of those, Tommy Chan Tiu-ming, the owner of Shanghai New Sam Yung Market, said a hairy crab weighing about 189 grams would be sold for between HK$130 and HK$150.

The wait is over ... Chinese hairy crab back on the menu in Hong Kong, but only from 10 vendors

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Contamination scare kept the delicacy out of Hong Kong restaurants for a year

Contamination scare kept the delicacy out of Hong Kong restaurants for a year