Crab Market Season and a List of Varieties You Should Not Eat

In a few days, crabs will hit the market in large quantities, and that will be the time to buy some and bring them home to treat relatives and friends. But since eating crab mainly means eating the roe and the meat, you need to get the timing right. So roughly when do crabs come onto the market? Which varieties should not be eaten?

1. Introduction to Crabs:

1. When are crabs at their plumpest?

Crabs are generally at their plumpest when eaten in late autumn and early winter. There is a saying about eating crab: females in the ninth month, males in the tenth month, which means that in the ninth month of the lunar calendar you should eat female crabs, as female crabs are plumper and tastier than males at this time, while in the tenth month you should eat male crabs, which are full of crab paste and have firm, plump, delicious meat. The ninth and tenth months of the lunar calendar, that is, late autumn and early winter, are the best time to enjoy wine and crab.

2. Can dead crabs still be eaten?

It is best not to eat crabs once they are dead. Crabs live in shallow water and feed on microorganisms and animal carcasses in the water. While a crab is alive, the bacteria in its body are expelled through its immune system and digestive organs, but when a crab dies, these bacteria multiply in large numbers and can even penetrate into the meat. Eating a dead crab at this point can easily cause diarrhea, vomiting, nausea and other uncomfortable symptoms.

2. Roughly when do crabs come onto the market?

Crabs generally come onto the market from June to November, but because there are so many varieties, the timing differs slightly. For example, yellow crabs usually come onto the market in June; as the saying goes: however busy you are, do not forget the sixth-month yellow. This shows that Yangcheng Lake sixth-month yellow crabs are still worth a taste. Mid-September to December is the mature season for Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs, during which female crabs in the ninth lunar month have protruding shells full of roe and delicate meat; male crabs in the tenth month have thick, rich paste and abundant, flavorful meat, making it the best period for eating crab. The true season for savoring Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs is November; Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs come later than hairy crabs produced in other lakes, but the deliciousness of Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs is far beyond that of crabs produced in ordinary lakes.

3. Which varieties should not be eaten?

1. Dead crabs

Even if it has just died, it is best not to eat it. The crab is an omnivorous animal, especially fond of feeding on the decaying carcasses of animals and plants, so it inevitably carries a large number of bacteria and viruses. Because of its own metabolism, a live crab can contend with microorganisms and inhibit their reproduction. But after a crab dies, these microorganisms can use its rich nutrients to multiply rapidly, causing the crab to spoil and deteriorate and produce various toxins. After a person eats it, symptoms of food poisoning such as fever, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhea may occur. In addition, crab meat is rich in histidine. After a crab dies, some bacteria containing histidine decarboxylase can, under suitable conditions, decarboxylate the free histidine in the crab meat to form large amounts of histamine. Histamine is an allergenic substance that can dilate small veins and capillaries and promote increased secretion from mucous membranes and glands, which can lead to allergic symptoms and, in severe cases, can also cause circulatory failure.

2. Drunken crab

Drunken crab should not be eaten either. Experts believe that the crabs used for drunken crab are generally crab species living in streams, stony shoals and lake bottoms, and their living environment creates good conditions for the parasitism of lung flukes, while the alcohol contained in baijiu is not enough to kill them. Once drunken crab is eaten, the lung fluke metacercariae it contains enter the human body, grow and develop into adults and lay eggs, and in severe cases can even parasitize the brain, skin, liver and other organs.

3. Crabs processed with “crab washing powder”

Not long ago, some unscrupulous traders were found on the market who, tempted by economic gain, abandoned professional ethics and used “crab washing powder” to “clean” ordinary rice-field crabs and pass them off as high-grade Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs to reap huge profits. “Crab washing powder” is an industrial oxalic acid solution with a strong corrosive effect, generally used in industry as a rust remover. Eating crabs treated with it may cause damage to the digestive tract mucosa. At the same time, oxalic acid is also an antagonist of divalent ions such as magnesium, calcium and iron. It not only hinders the body's absorption of these minerals, but can also form insoluble oxalates with them, which deposit in the renal tubules and lead to urinary system crystals.

4. Raw crab

The body surface, gills and gastrointestinal tract of crabs are covered with various bacteria and mud. Crabs often carry lung fluke larvae metacercariae and Vibrio parahaemolyticus. If they are not disinfected at high temperature, the lung flukes can cause lung damage after entering the human body. If Vibrio parahaemolyticus invades the human body in large numbers, it will cause infectious poisoning, showing symptoms such as intestinal inflammation, edema and congestion. Therefore, crabs must be steamed and cooked thoroughly, and raw crabs should not be eaten.