Cà Mau crabs, a delicacy from the southern land

BOUNTY FROM THE SEAS: Cà Mau, the picturesque southernmost province of Việt Nam has bountiful shrimps, crabs, fish and lots of other seafood to tempt visitors. Photo courtesy of http://camau.gov.vn

by Thanh Hà

The land of Cà Mau, the southernmost province of Việt Nam, is not only rich in alluvial soil, but also the fields on land and sea. Its rice paddies reach as far as the eye can see, its aquaproducts are both bountiful, plump and of great quality.

One of Cà Mau's most notable marshland delicacies is the crabs. The season lasts from the end of sixth lunar month until the end of the seventh lunar month, which crabs are sold at very low prices in Cà Mau. You can see Cà Mau people having crabs as if they are eating rice, it is so common.

A striking image to anyone with an 'eating soul' is when Cà Mau residents share on social media, a bowl of instant noodles with a big fat red crab on top as a topping!

Starting in the eight lunar month until Tết, or Lunar New Year, the crab prices will rise, so if you love the taste of crab meat, now it the best time to travel to Cà Mau and feast while producing mouth-watering video clips or reels.

BIG TASTE TOO: Hard to beat, big rich and delicious Cà Mau crabs live in the marshland where the mangrove forests grow. Photo courtesy of http://camau.gov.vn

Male crabs have big claws and they are bigger, too, weighing up to one kilo each. Having big claws dipped in sour salt and pepper can please even the most picky palate, but be sure you're not sensitive to crab or allergic to seafood.

True crab fans are said to be those who love the crab roes. In Cà Mau, sometimes when you have the roes, you can barely see the white meat. Red roes are more popular, but if you have stumbled upon a golden roe crab, you're very lucky as they are usually pricier.

DELICIOUS: Only female crabs have great roe, which is both nutritious and delicious. Photo courtesy of cuasong.com

Average crabs with roes weigh about half a kilo each and just two crabs can be a meal for four as the roes are so nutritious.

The best dishes to cook Cà Mau crabs with?

With arguably the tastiest crabs in the whole country, Cà Mau aunties suggest at least 14 ways to cook crabs.

The easiest and fastest way is to steam them for ten minutes, half the time with strong heat and the rest on medium heat.

Next you can stir fry the crabs with either salt, tamarind or onions and pork fat. If you cook them this way, the crab juice won't get lost during the cooking and the meat and roe will taste very good.

Other dishes include making a crab noodle soup with shelled crab meat and roe, bánh canh cua. Or crab paste by making dumplings with crab meat and roes with minced pork, seasoning with pepper and salt, chopped shallots, then rolled into small cakes for deep frying or putting back into the crab shell to steam. These dumplings go well with daily meal with rice, or as a special dish for Tết.

LIKE BUTTER: Golden Roe crabs are quite rare and with a buttery taste which leaves diners with unforgettable impression until, maybe next season. Photo courtesy of cuasong.com

Other dishes include a salad from shelled crab meat, crab curry and pork stuffed crabs, deep fried, then sauteed with tomato sauce.

You can also make crab meat soup, Vietnamese style, as starter in big banquet or a crab hotpot with a gourd can be the reunion hot dish for all family to enjoy. As the crab roes can be quite nutritious and one needs to consume them with moderation, a full pot to share is both healthy for the party yet not too painful for one's wallet.

Last, but not least, crab meat can be major ingredient in the signature spring rolls of Việt Nam that everyone loves. With the Cà Mau crab meat and roe, wrapped in rice paper from Hà Tĩnh, make square dumplings in the Hải Phòng style and you will have a beautiful spring rolls with all the best from three regions of Việt Nam.

While the crabs are in season and prices are not too high, treat yourself. As people of Cà Mau have a saying: "Come to Cà Mau, our shrimps and crabs shall never let you down!"

If you cannot come to Cà Mau for the seafood, they can come to you via crab dealers, just look them up with key words of course being: Cua Cà Mau. VNS