Just wondering what the word is on the Dungeness season further south of Alaska.
Itās a little early. For CA status (i live in zone 4) I start checking this page November 1st. There are usually announcements around that time.
https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Whale-Safe-Fisheries
I also sign up for text alerts from https://www.hhfreshfish.com/
I think the season doesnāt start 'til the 1st week in Nov or so. Iām hoping itās at least decent, because we have a friendās 60th bday weekend planned for the coast, and part of that plan is crab sandwiches & oysters. Possibly more than once.
I havenāt heard news yet, but i canāt remember the last time the commercial season wasnāt delayed, and Christmas wasnāt more realistic than Thanksgiving.
The heralding of the Dungeness crab season might be what I will miss most about Chowhound.
QFC/Kroger (PNW) is advertising previously frozen whole cooked Dungeness this week. $8.99/lb. Doesnāt mean they have it in stock, however.
Local Safeway says they have them at 12.99/lb. But it says theyāre Alaskan.
BTW⦠it says (like many seafoods) āSeafood Counter cooked previously from frozenā. Why do markets do this⦠if it comes in frozen let me buy it that way, instead of sitting around thawed in the seafood case?
cooking/cleaning whole crabs isnāt difficult, but it IS a mild-to-moderate pain in the ass, requires at least a little knowledge/research (which bits CAN I eat? Which bits SHOULD I eat? How do I open the thing without smashing it with a hammer?) Many, even most (?) people are willing to pay extra to not have to worry about these questions.
I agree Iād rather just buy it frozen. Luckily where I shop, theyāll have the āpreviously frozenā stuff behind the counter but also will have the still frozen stuff either in the back or in the regular freezer section.
My guess is - especially with shrimp or prawn - they thaw for the customer who only wants a smaller portion than the original packaged portion size. Or maybe they just need to fill up some space in the counter section.
Ok⦠that is a good point, IF it all comes frozen together. Maybe the swordfish steaks are all in a frozen together block that needs thawing to separate, or perhaps they get larger cuts of fish that require thawing to butcher. But Shrimp or whole Dungeness crabs!? (c;
Maybe folks think it is fresher if it is in the seafood case opposed to selecting it out of the freezer, but up here⦠almost everything in the āfreshā seafood case is from frozen, which is usually why I ask to smell it before purchasing (and there are way too many fails).
Iām not usually negative, and I know Iām fortunate to have a choice, but a post about the crab season, then referencing frozen Dungeness is a crushing disappointment!
Granted itās work, but itās only a few months, and thatās if we are lucky.
Not sure I get what you mean. Where I live now thereās no access to live crab, so cooked, frozen is our only option (other than canned).
I do understand that not many have the option, and I apologize for my āparish-pumpā behavior.
āGranted, itās workā meant, if it is available to you, recognize that at least in my opinion, you should at least try it āfreshā, as it tastes very different, even compared to when cooked hours prior.
Iām sure itās all good, but the fresh is something I wait months for.
Two questions
Do you know if they have it live in tanks in Sacramento?
If itās frozen, what difference does the season make?
They DO have it live in tanks in Sacramento. The main place Iād try is Sunh Fish (1313 Broadway). Iāve gotten them there for a couple of years in a row now. Itād also be worth trying some of the Asian markets in town (99 Ranch, SF Supermarket) that have relatively sizable live sections.
I always feel incredibly guilty not using the ācrab butterā fully. Iāll mop up some of it with some bread, but I KNOW thereās more I should do with it, and the shells. But you have to get that stuff out of the house THAT NIGHT or in the morning your kitchen garbage is gonna require a respirator to deal with.
There are 99 Ranch in Sacramento?
It might help to know some years the ābutterā is not considered safe.
I freeze the shells and fiddly claw pieces the same night (to make stock for gumbo), but yeah; the rest of it; āoff you go!ā
I donāt⦠but even if they do, itās two hours round trip to get it (canāt justify that).
None I suppose.
Understood.
99 Ranch is on Florin road just west of, uh, 99.
I know about the butter not always being safe, but as far as I know, youād have to eat quite a bit of it, or eat it quite often, for even the āunsafeā years to make an otherwise healthy adult sick. But Iām only vaguely recalling info I āheard somewhere onceā, so Iām happy to be pointed to better info.
And yeah, using the shells for stock is the move I WANT to make, but freezing the shells never crossed my mind! Do you just rinse off whatever gets left in the shell bowl, put it in a couple of layers of ziplock and chuck it into the deep freeze?
I might have to do that so I can have crab stock next time I want garlicy shrimp pastaā¦
You are absolutely right! Growing up in Culver City, Redondo Beach, Santa Monica, and Carlsbad, as a certified diver since the age of 13, fresh abalone, clams, mussels, lobster, urchins, and a bunch of other stuff was a given. But for crab (my all time fav Alaskan King), I just went out and ordered it at dozens of places in the 'hood that did it up big time for what was then a reasonable price.
That crab, clams, and the abalone are the things I miss most in modern times. Now-a-days I have come to the realization that everything will be frozen. But if you live in a place where you have the opportunity to buy fresh, ya gotta do it!
Yes, although I smash up the backs a bit ( which I understand donāt add much flavor) so I can fit more, and smash sharp edges so they donāt poke holes in the bag. I think the fiddly claws and picked body pieces make the most difference, and as the season goes on, I pick the crab less and less meticulously.
Melanie Wong on Chowhound had a great thread, about streaming them, among other things.
I remember a recipe where the tomalley is finishd with butter in the backs. Not sure, but thereās this.