Average Cost.—1s. 6d. to 2s. Sufficient for 4 or 5 persons. Seasonable from April to October.
449.—CRAB, SCALLOPED. (Fr.—Crabe en Coquille.)
Ingredients.—1 or 2 crabs, cream, vinegar, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper, mustard.
Method.—Remove the meat from the claws and body, taking care to leave the unwholesome part near the head. Add about ½ its bulk in fine breadcrumbs, season to taste with salt, pepper and mustard, and stir in a few drops of vinegar. Add cream until the right consistency is obtained, then turn into buttered scallop shells, and sprinkle the surface lightly with breadcrumbs. Place small pieces of butter on the top, and bake in a moderate oven until nicely browned.
Time.—To bake, about 20 minutes. Average Cost, 2s. to 3s. Sufficient, 2 crabs for 8 or 9 scallops. Seasonable from April to October.
The Crab (Fr. crabe).—The popular name for many genera of the Crustacea, constituting the sub-order Brachyura, "short-tailed," which includes the true crabs, order Decapoda, "ten-limbed," and distinguished from the lobster by the shortness of the tail, which is folded under the broadened-out body, the latter being covered with a strong carapace or shell. The gills are placed in the sides of the body, and are popularly known as "dead men's fingers." The liver is composed of a soft rich yellow substance, called the "fat." The mouth has several pairs of powerful jaws, and the stomach is furnished with hard projections by means of which the crab grinds its food, consisting chiefly of vegetable matter and molluscae. The front pair of legs form nipping claws, which are renewed when injured or lost. The eyes are compound and movable. The majority of crabs live in the sea, but there are some fresh-water species, and others which live on land, but go to the sea to spawn. After hatching, the young of the crab passes through two stages. In the first, it is free-swimming and possesses a tail; in the second stage, it is also tailed, but after moulting it loses its tail and becomes the perfect crab. A remarkable feature in the life-history of the crab is the changing of its shell, to permit its growth, and the reproduction, as noticed above, of injured claws. Annually, usually during the winter, the crab retires to a cavity in the rocks or beneath a great stone, and conceals itself until the new shell, which at first is very soft, becomes hardened. The Hermit Crab derives its name from its habit of taking possession of the deserted shell of some mollusc, the hermit crab having no shell of its own. The crab is much esteemed, and forms an important fishery on the British coasts.
450.—CRAB, TO DRESS. (Fr.—Crabe or Écrevisse de Mer.)
Ingredients.—1 medium sized crab, 1 hard-boiled egg, 2 tablespoonfuls of vinegar, 2 tablespoonfuls of salad-oil, salt and pepper, cayenne.
Method.—Empty the shells, mix the meat with the vinegar and oil, and season well. Clean the large shell, put in the mixture and garnish with slices of lemon, parsley, and egg, the yolk rubbed through a wire sieve and the white coarsely-chopped.
Average Cost.—10d. to 1s. 6d. Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons. Seasonable from April to October.
To Choose Crabs.—Crabs of medium size are the best, and like lobsters, should be judged by their weight.
451.—CRAB, DRESSED. (Another Method.)
Ingredients.—1 medium-sized crab, 3 tablespoonfuls of salad-oil, 2
