Harvesting From Home: How Soft-Shell Crab Became an Alabama Delicacy. Can you raise King Crab in a salt water aquarium? However, if you don't have the right bait, it will be all for nothing. Maryland is well known for its blue crabs. According to researchers, crab lovers have no cause for concern as pond-raised crabs look and taste just like their ocean-raised relatives. Sonny Schindler, captain of … If Coastal fisherman could raise the blue crabs in ponds on their own land, the supply would be more plentiful and the cost might go down. The crab has a blue shell by nature, however, after it is cooked it turns bright red. It's all well and good having a fantastic crab trap. Blue crabs are best enjoyed fresh, immediately upon harvest. Juvenile king crabs on the artificial substrate, a key component to raising the crabs. The Blue Crabs can help your organization raise money, awareness, and create an event that will bring you memories for years to come! Blue crabs are crustaceans found near the eastern parts of the United States, especially concentrated in Chesapeake Bay, in addition to several locations throughout the Pacific coast of Central America. There is a commerical stock facility in Hokkaido Japan where 5-8 pound females Red King Crabs with eggs are kept in large pens until their eggs hatch and then they are released. But up until four decades ago, 99 percent of those soft-shell Blue Crabs came from the Chesapeake Bay areas of Maryland and Virginia. Scientists from North Carolina and Mississippi will work together in a three-year venture to raise blue crabs and harvest them for the lucrative soft-shell market. Eight to 10 minutes in a steamer with lots of Old Bay seasoning is a classic blue crab preparation. Program was formed to research red and blue king crab restoration possibilities. The peeler harvest catches smaller crabs, starting at 3.5 inches, reducing crabs available for other sectors of the blue crab fishery “We don’t think that we will ever be able to raise blue crab hard shells and compete with the Bay on an economic basis,” said Allen Place, a blue crab geneticist at COMB. Sure, we served it here. Premium crabs and seafood delivered fresh from our docks to your door. And when it comes to cooking crabs, nothing is as easy or delicious as a simple steam or boil. Many years ago, soft-shell crab wasn’t really an Alabama Gulf Seafood dish. There are added benefits for groups who raise the most funds, such as the opportunity to throw out a first pitch, utilize a concourse marketing table, and receive public address announcements for your group. Catching blue crabs is a difficult challenge when you don't have the proper bait. Research at North Carolina State University is leading to a new kind of crab harvest - blue crabs grown and harvested from freshwater ponds, instead of from the sea.