Save the broth!
Many foods scream summer time and regardless of cuisine, the weather and humidity invites folks to don the outdoors and put their patio furniture to use. As a Virginia kid, sucking apart steamed blue crabs heavily seasoned with Old Bay was one heck of a fun, culinary treat. Playing with the live crabbers, hosting races and fighting duels (claws vs tongs), was all part of the mystic crab eating experience.
blue crab from ami 8's flickr stream
Steaming blue crabs with lots of Old Bay is the way to go
I don’t want any fights over how to properly prepare and cook Maryland-style blue crabs, the real Maryland way. As long as it is steamed and liberally, and I mean liberally, coated with copious amounts of Old Bay seasoning, I am a happy camper.
In order to create the steam to cook the crabs, one needs a liquid. My mom likes to cook ears of corn in the liquid used for steaming. For this reason, our steaming liquid is simply water (with corn). Some recipes call for adding vinegar, beer, and other goodies.
The liquid used for steaming crabs makes for a great soup base
One element that is forgotten after the crabbing steam, is the actual liquid, which after the steam has transfigured into a delicious crab-infused broth. The juices from the crabs drip from the steaming rack down into the liquid. Droplets of crab goodness full of Old Bay seasoning mix with the water and corn. At the end of the steaming process, the liquid takes on the deep and yet light flavors of crab, Old Bay, sweet corn and such. This makes for a perfect base for a quick soup. Call me half-Asian, but nothing should ever be wasted.
steamed blue crabs from bawlmerbits' flickr stream
Asian inspired crab-infused soup recipe
This crab-infused broth is already fairly salty, so heavy salters are forewarned to taste before adding more salt. I like keeping it Asian. One soup we recently made was with the crab broth base, cubes of honey-baked ham, large chunks of shallots, hand-torn tofu, beaten eggs, and diced scallions. This is an excellent way to start any blue crab feast..and of course, cold beers are a prerequisite.
