Live Crab Guide

Mud crab is one of the most popular crabs we sell, and for good reason.

It has firm, sweet meat, substantial claws and holds up particularly well in strongly flavoured sauces. It is the crab many customers think of when making restaurant-style dishes at home.

Male mud crabs generally develop larger claws and are often chosen by customers wanting more claw meat. Female mud crabs are especially popular with customers who enjoy crab roe. When roe is present, it adds a rich, creamy flavour and is considered one of the most prized parts of the crab by many customers. This makes female mud crabs particularly popular for steaming or simpler cooking styles where the natural flavour of the crab and roe can be enjoyed.

The amount of roe can vary between individual crabs and throughout the year, so it is not something that can always be guaranteed.

If you are buying crab for a specific dish, tell us what you are cooking rather than simply asking for the “best” crab.

A crab suitable for a large family-style ginger and shallot dish may not be the same choice as one you want to steam and eat simply.

Spanner Crab sits nicely between Crystal Crab and Blue Swimmer Crab.

It has sweet, clean-tasting meat, but with a slightly more substantial, meaty texture than Blue Swimmer Crab. At the same time, it is still lighter and more delicate than Mud Crab.

That makes Spanner Crab one of the most versatile crabs to cook with.

It works well for customers who want plenty of crab flavour without needing a very rich or heavy dish.

Spanner Crab suits both simple and more flavourful preparations: Steamed, Ginger and shallot, Garlic sauce, Crab noodles, Congee, Hot pot, Stir-fried dishes

Its sweetness is still noticeable with simple cooking, but the meat also holds up well enough to work with sauces.

If you want something sweeter and more delicate than Mud Crab, but meatier and more versatile than Blue Swimmer Crab, Spanner Crab is a very good middle ground.

It is an especially good choice for family-style dishes because it works well with many different cooking methods.

Crystal Crab is a premium deep-water crab from Western Australia, prized for its sweet, delicate white meat.

Living in the cool, deep waters off Western Australia contributes to the crab’s distinctive eating quality, with a clean flavour and delicate texture that sets it apart from many other crab species.

One of its most distinctive features is also its colour after cooking.

Most crustaceans develop a bright red or orange shell when cooked. Crystal Crab is different - its shell remains pale to white even after cooking, giving it its characteristic “crystal” appearance.

The combination of its sweet white meat, delicate texture and unusual appearance makes Crystal Crab quite different from the Mud Crabs and Blue Swimmer Crabs that many customers are more familiar with.

Because the meat is naturally sweet and delicate, we recommend keeping the cooking relatively simple so the flavour of the crab remains the focus: Steamed, Ginger and shallot, Light garlic sauce, With noodles, Served simply with a dipping sauce

Blue Swimmer Crab has delicate, sweet meat and is much lighter than the dense, meaty texture of mud crab.

It is particularly popular when customers want the flavour of the crab itself to be the main focus rather than covering it in a heavy sauce.

Good choices include: Steaming, Ginger and shallot, Crab congee, Noodle dishes, Hot pot

Because they are smaller than mud crabs, customers will often buy several rather than one large crab.

Giant King Crab is very different from the other crabs in our tanks.

It is large, impressive and has thick legs containing substantial pieces of meat.

For this reason, customers often choose it for celebrations, large family meals or when they want something particularly memorable on the table.

King crab meat already has plenty of flavour.

Rather than using a very heavy sauce, simple cooking methods can work particularly well.

Steam it, gently warm the meat, or serve it with a light garlic, butter or Asian-style sauce.