Have a Crab Feast!

It’s a well-known fact that San Francisco is famous for it’s Dungeness Crab. Each year, between mid-November and June, you will find countless amounts of fresh crabs at the Wharf and in the best of restaurants in town. Now, the past couple of years have been really tough, but the 2010/2011 season is looking pretty epic! You can find crabs at local markets for as cheap at $3.99/pound. Awesome! Every year, I get invited over to my friend’s house for a crab feast. It’s tradition and her dad, Nick, has been steaming crabs for a long, long time! Here’s a sneak peek at all the fun we had and check out the full recipe below.

Allow yourself the ability to maximize the crab-eating experience by using all of your senses and making your own crab dinner! Invite a few friends over and follow the delicious and simple recipe below for a night of good conversation, messy eating and the freshest crab around.

Nick’s Famous Steamed Dungeness Crab Recipe

Go to the market (Asian markets are great for crab) and buy 8 live 1-2 pound Dungeness Crabs (serves 4-6 people). It is crucial that the crabs are live and active when you buy them. Add 3-inches of water to a seafood steam pot (16-quart used in this recipe), 6 ounces of vinegar, 10 dried chiles crushed by hand (or Mexican hot sauce), and 4 ounces of Old Bay Spice or Susan’s Seafood Seasoning.

Instructions

1. Bring to a steaming boil and then put half of crabs into the pot. Cover with lid. Do not remove lid for 5 minutes.

2. After 5 minutes of boiling, remove lid and sprinkle 6 more ounces of seasoning on top of each crab

3. Continue steaming for 25 minutes with lid on pot

4. Set the table ‘a la casual’ with newspaper and tons of napkins

5. Roll up your sleeves, pair with a beautiful wine, and enjoy the conversation

Special thanks to Nick Mamczak!

Nick Mamczak is a fantastic cook, classically trained at the Culinary Institute of America. This recipe was inspired by his love of seafood.