by Jeanie Blanton

This is a good true crabby story that happened on the Bay in the wonderful state of Florida. Have you ever gathered crabs in the Bay close to you? It is quite an experience. All you need is a crab net, a big bucket and a lot of patience, or you can buy some chicken necks, and attach them to some fishing line. Throw the chicken necks into the water and wait for a pull. The pull lets you know that a crab has attached itself to the chicken neck (any part of the chicken will work). Slowly pull the crab toward you, and have someone near by with a net. Net the crab and put it into your bucket. It’s fun to have a party of people that are all pulling the crabs in, and in no time, you will have enough for your Crab Shala.

Now in order to make a good Crab Shala, you have to have some crabs right? So this recipe for Crab Shelou starts with a trip to the Bay to catch some good fresh crabs. Now of course if you can’t make it to the Bay you can always go to your fish market; just make sure the crabs are really fresh, actually swimming in the water will be the best; fresh- fresh- fresh is what I’m talking about.

In order to be successful in gathering your crabs, be sure the tide is low and that it is a nice sunny day. The crabs love hot sunny weather, and it’s best if the water is calm with not much wind. Summer days are the best days for crabbing. We got these crabs in the month of September, but you can start in June. Get a tide chart and some information on when the crabs are running in your area. After you have spent about 4 hours chasing the crabs all around, (have fun) you should have your bucket fairly full of crabs. Make sure the bucket is filled with salt water from the Bay to keep them alive and fresh until you get home, or have an ice-chest full of ice and ice them down. Now, on the way home, stop at the food market and pick up 2 -16 oz cans of tomatoes, 1- 6 oz can of tomato paste, 1- 16 oz can of tomato sauce along with some onion, green pepper and garlic. Also a large pack of shells, no not seashells, but the kind you boil and eat. However, if you have all these ingredients at home, you can skip the stop at the market. I keep these ingredients in my pantry, and I would suggest it’s best to have them already on hand and skip the market.

When you get home with all your goodies you will first have to clean your crabs, (go here http://www.bluecrab.info/cbyc.html )
to find out how to clean them, <a then you are ready to assemble all your ingredients for your Crab Shala. You are going to need a large pot for boiling the crabs and a large pot to make your Shala. Also you will need a large pot for cooking your Shells.

Fill your large pot with water and salt the water. When the water comes to a rolling boil, add the crabs and boil for about 15 minutes on high. Drain, cover and set aside. In your other large pot, start your Shala. Cut up 2 large onions and 1 large green pepper in small pieces and sauté both in a little olive oil for about 5 minutes, stirring like a stir-fry. Add all at once, the 2 cans of tomatoes, 1 can of tomato paste and the can of tomato sauce, stirring after each can is put into the pot. Add to the mixture 16 oz of water along with 2 teaspoon of sugar and 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. Boil hard for a few minutes and then turn down to simmer. You want this to simmer for about an hour. The sauce should be thin, but thick enough to use as a sauce for your shells. After the sauce cooks for a while, check the consistency, if it is thick, add some more water. After the sauce has simmered for about an hour, add the crabs. Mix them really well in the sauce. Make sure the sauce is simmering, and cook for about another ½ hour. Cook your shells according to the directions on the package about 15 minutes before the crab shala is done. You are now ready for your delicious meal. This is a messy meal, so have plenty of napkins on hand and enjoy. I like to add some green peas to this menu as they always compliment a red sauce. You can use canned green peas or frozen, and cook them and serve as a side dish. Wow! is this good! Enjoy, as this is going to be an experience you are going to want to do over again and again!