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It’s Season Of Yangcheng Lake Mitten Crab

iWalk 19 October 2008 20 Comments

September and October in the traditional Chinese calendar are the harvest times for Chinese Mitten Crabs(大闸蟹). That also called the crab season in China.
My brother-in-law specially drove faraway to Yangcheng Lake(阳澄湖), the most famous area for the Chinese mitten crabs, And brought us a lot of fresh plump Chinese Mitten Crabs.
Yes, They are considered as the best yummies of the Southern Yangtze River.

Chinese Mitten Crabs are a kind of catadromous species. They spend most of their life in fresh water, but they must return to the sea to breed. They migrate from fresh water lake towards the Yangtze delta for mating in September and October of traditional Chinese calendar.

Yangchen Lake is one of the nearest lakes of the Yangtze delta, And its clear wide water, abundant insects and grasses provide an excellent environment for the crabs. So Yangcheng Lake become the most famous area for the Chinese mitten crabs.

Female Chinese Mitten Crabs become plump in September of traditional Chinese calendar, Males following in October. So that’s the best season of enjoy this kind of the best yummies of the Southern Yangtze River.

The history of Chinese eating crabs dates back to the Western Zhou Dynasty. The history already lasts 2700 years. Yangcheng Lake Mitten Crab can be cooked in various ways, My favorite is steaming and wine preserving.

The real Yangcheng Lake Mitten Crab is very expensive now, It can cost over 600 yuan each in many restaurants. But that can’t stop people’s endearment. Yangcheng Lake Mitten Crab also form a kind of food culture in China. Li Bai(李白), The famous poet of the Tang Dynasty, once wrote in his poetry about enjoy crabs with good wine as:

蟹螯即金液，
糟丘是蓬莱，
且须饮美酒，
乘月醉高台。

Photo: Tiny

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Tags: China Travel, Chinese Tradition, food, Food Guide, Mitten Crab, Southern Yangtze River, Yangcheng Lake

20 Comments »

wolf said:

Yangcheng Lake Mitten Crab!
One of my favorite yummy! watering~~~~~~~~~~~~

# 19 October 2008 at 5:29 pm

bluecrystaldude said:

Wow.. I need to look the topmost picture couple of minutes before I really believe it is a picture of CRABS! Nicely taken!

# 20 October 2008 at 1:35 am

Preston said:

I love crabs and they look so yummy!

# 20 October 2008 at 6:06 am

Quickroute said:

Mouth watering pics – i am hungry!

# 20 October 2008 at 11:34 am

iWalk (author) said:

I had seen somebody tasted Yangcheng Lake Mitten Crab like this way: They never damaged the carapace, so when they finished eating, they could also put the carapace together to form a whole Mitten Crab.

# 20 October 2008 at 11:44 am

My Bug Life said:

I love crabs..esp the ones cooked with salted egg, a local favourite here

iWalk reply on October 20th, 2008 11:24 pm:

Cooked with salted egg? I never try this!

But I know if you cook the vitellus of salted eggs in a special way, They can taste a little like the eggs of crab.

# 20 October 2008 at 12:23 pm

JH said:

One of the best Chinese cuisines !

I think I missed out on this dish when I visited Shanghai in Jan 2007.

JH
http://www.photojournalist-tgh.tv

iWalk reply on October 20th, 2008 11:25 pm:

You really missed them. They were sleeping under the water then.

# 20 October 2008 at 5:03 pm

Chris said:

Looks really tasty…I miss crab, especially lobster.

Hope you enjoyed them =D.

iWalk reply on October 21st, 2008 12:27 pm:

Yeah, I love lobster noodle too.

# 20 October 2008 at 10:31 pm

fortuitous faery said:

ohmygod…they look scrumptious!

iWalk reply on October 23rd, 2008 11:45 am:

Haha, Not only look, taste scrumptious too.

# 23 October 2008 at 7:41 am

online supermarket said:

Absolutely… mouthwatering. Haha!

# 28 October 2008 at 10:21 pm

Florida Horse Farm Gal said:

Wow! Those look amazing! Crab is one of my favorite dishes. I’ve never tried Mitten crab though. Any special ways of fixing them that are particularly good?

iWalk reply on October 30th, 2008 8:50 am:

I think that’s only a trick of some food tasters. Not a special way to get better taste.

# 30 October 2008 at 8:15 am

Net Age | Web Marketing said:

Hmmmm. My favourite Chinese Restaurant serves the most delicious crab, and I now know the history behind it. Waiter, more crab please!

# 16 February 2010 at 4:08 am

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# 19 November 2010 at 9:25 pm

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# 19 November 2010 at 11:28 pm

san antonio clubs said:

I must be in the minority, im a seafood fanatic but I hate crabs

# 11 February 2011 at 10:19 pm

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