Hairy crab time !

The hairy crab harvest season has started in China with sales peaks expected during Mid-Autumn Festival and National Holidays first week of October. Hairy crab (大闸蟹), also known as Chinese mitten crab (中华绒毛蟹) are fresh water crabs, known for its hairy claws and thriving in river and lakes.

The crab is a special autumn delicacy, craved by many people in China. Hairy crab is renowned for its subtle, sweet taste, and for its cooling effect on the body (yin; 寒性), a concept central to Traditional Chinese Medicine. In recent years, a total pop-up economy of about one month materializes in China around these special crabs.

The most prized and renowned crabs are cultivated in Yangcheng Lake, just outside Suzhou City. The crabs are also very popular as business gifts to customers or relations.

Female crabs are known for the dry orange goo which are its ovaries (often mistaken for roe) while the male crabs have a transparent paste inside which is its accessory sexual gland and its secretion. The softer yellow parts in both female and male are hepatopancreas. These are the most delicious and nutritious parts in hairy crabs.

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