I grew up in Portland, OR which is about an hour from the Pacific Ocean.  Every summer my family would spend a couple of days at the coast (no one calls it the shore out there) and we’d go crabbing.  I got used to interacting with crabs and learned to keep my fingers well away from their powerful claws.  One year we managed to catch more than 30 crabs and had an enormous feast with a collection of friends and family.

But for all the crab I had in my life back then, I never encountered soft shell crab until I moved to the east coast (I’m not even sure if soft shell crab is available out west, anyone know?).  In the last five years, I’ve made up for lost time, eating it fried on top of salad or wrapped up in a sushi roll.  However, I’ve never tried preparing it at home, but seeing these little guys at the market has given me the inclination to try.

Does anyone out there have any tips or recipes they’d like to share for success with soft shell crabs?  I’d love to hear them.