Dungeness Crab season opened on October 1st in the South East part of Alaska for 200 crabbers and several shrimp fishermen. The season opens on October 15th in The Bering Sea this is the biggest of Alaska’s fisheries and is said to have healthy stocks.
In the Bristol Bay area crab quota’s were reduced this year to 48 million pounds of crab thats an 18% decrease.
The King Crab quota was reduced by 21.4% or 16 million pounds.
The Tanner Crab quota was reduced by 1.3 million pounds.
In Saint Mathew Island the blue king crab fishery was opened up after 10 years as the stocks had replenished themselves.
In the South East the November crabbing season will be closed for red king crab and blue because the harvest is said to be too small. The Department of Fish and Game surveyed 9 locations looking at the adult male red king population and reported it to be at a 16 year low.
Alaska does a great job at monitoring levels of seafood and only opening up well stocked area’s the state prides itself in sustainable seafood. In fact since 1959, the Alaska constitution has mandated that “fish…be utilized, developed and maintained on the sustained yield principle”
Here at Alaska Harvest we will only get our seafood from well stocked area’s so we can enjoy this wonderful food for generations to come.
they vary in size from a tiny pea crab, to up to 4 meters
they communicate with each other by drumming or waving their pinchers or claws
they fight to get the best hiding holes in seaside caves
they are omnivores eating algae, worms, bacteria, fungi and crustaceans
females brood 1000’s of embryos under her tail for up to a year
the larvae settle to the ocean floor and grow into little crabs
in some places of the world they are eaten whole
Alaska has 3 main commercial crab species, blue, red and golden king crab.
the red and king settle on the ocean floor at 90-100 feet and the golden can settle and grow at a whooping 300 feet below sea level
a crabs skeleton is its shell and therefore in order to grow it often sheds it and grows a new one
some king crabs can live as along as 20-30 years
crab is very versatile and can be cooked in soups, curries, simple eaten plain or made into fish cakes.
Because Alaskan crabs have been so heavily fished over the years their is a special project at the University called the King Crab reasearch program.It is trying to grow and hatch larvae and then release them back into the wild to replenish stocks. Be sure to check out the projects website for video clips on the progress.
Humans have been eating crustaceans (lobsters, crab and shrimp) since prehistoric times-in fact the ancient Greeks and Romans were particularly fond of them. Crab cakes were historically made with bread, spices and other seafood as fillers, depending on availability and price of crab.
Maryland is probably the most famous area for crab cakes. It often uses Old Bay seasoning, an American tradition. The Spice company was started in 1939 by a German Immigrant by the name of Gustav Brunn, and the name came from a steamship line that traveled the Chesapeake bay. Today some 50 million ounces are sold annually.
The Alaskan King crab is highly sought after due to its meaty claws and legs, and along with Dungeness crab, make great crab cakes.
Ingredients:
One pack of Old Bay Crab Cake seasoning
3 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 lb of crab meat
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
fresh lemon juice
Method:
Mix Crab meat with all the above ingredients
Make patties and lightly saute in olive oil for about 7 min on each side.
This is such a simple dish, its great with salad, rice and seasoned vegetables, or also in a sandwich. The leftovers are a great addition to macaroni and cheese.
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