Physical
characteristics: The spider-like opilio crab is the
smallest of the four species of "snow" crab. The opilio
crab has four pairs of spindly legs and two claws. The body
of the opilio looks quite small compared to its long legs,
and is covered with a oval-shaped carapace (or back) that
is reddish-orange in color. The legs of the opilio are typically
orange on the top side and creamy white underneath. A live
opilio crab can weigh up to 2 pounds. |
Major
catch areas: Alaska, eastern Canada, Russia. |
Seasonality:
The Alaskan season opens in January and lasts until a pre-described
quota is caught (typically one month). Russian opilio is
caught from September through December on a quota system,
and Canada's seasons in Quebec, New Brunswick and Newfoundland
run from May through August on a quota system. |
Harvest
method: Opilio crab is caught in wire traps called pots.
Pots are typically baited with herring. |
|
Product forms: |
|
Fresh: Product
is rarely sold fresh, but a few niche markets exist for
live opilio, fresh whole-cooks or fresh sections. |
| Frozen:
The most common product form is as sections (halves of cleaned
crab). These sections are either sold as "bulk" (meaning
un-sized), or size graded as under 5 ounce, 5-8 ounce and
8 ounce/+ sizes by quality grades of #1 bright-shell or
#2 dark-shell. Packing styles on bulk are usually large
format (40# to 60# cartons), while size graded opilio sections
are typically packed in 10#, 20# or 25# "retail" cartons.
Most crab used in domestic markets is cooked and brine-frozen,
while export markets in Japan use not only cooked/brine-frozen
opilio but also cooked/air-frozen and raw/air-frozen sections.
|
| Value-added:
The most common forms are "snap-and-eats" (individual legs
that have been scored to allow them to be broken easily
during eating) and "splits" (legs that have be split in
half length-wise exposing the meat). Another popular form
is the cocktail claw (just the claws from a crab, with part
of the shell removed to expose the meat). Cocktail claws
are packed IQF in 3# bags and size graded 9-12 per pound,
12-16 per pound, 16-20 per pound, 21-25 per pound and 26-30
per pound. Canadian processors also sell extracted meat
from opilio crab packed in 5# bricks. This crab meat is
sold as "merus" (or all-leg), "fancy" (or a sandwich-style
mix of leg and body meat), and "salad" (bricks of all-body
meat). |
| Flavor/texture
profile: Taste is sweet and succulent, texture is firm
and slightly fibrous or stringy. Product should be heated
to 400 degrees F. for four minutes prior to serving to minimize
risk of listeria contamination. |
Notes: Opilio crab markets can fluctuate wildly due to
catch quotas and international market prices. In times of good
availability and low prices, opilio clusters are a mainstay in
domestic food service business. When catch is short and international
markets boost up the price, it can all but disappear.
|
|
Nutritional Facts
| Calories |
90 |
|
|
| Fat calories |
11 |
|
|
| Total
fat |
1.2
g |
|
|
| Saturated
fat |
0.1
g |
|
|
| Cholesterol |
55
mg |
|
|
| Sodium |
539
mg |
|
|
| Potassium |
173
mg |
|
|
| Protein |
18.5
g |
|
|
| Iron |
--- |
|
|
| Serving
Size |
100g./3.5oz.
(raw) |
|
|
|
