"A glistening crab?"
Fu Qing frowned and thought for a long time, but couldn't recall ever seeing this kind of crab before.
Fu Wan handed over the basket, gesturing for her to throw the crab, which was baring its claws, into it.
"Yes, crystal crabs. They should also be found on the mudflats near the village when the tide is out. They're a type of stone crab, right?"
The color of the Crystal Crab is actually somewhat similar to that of the Red-armored Crab. Because it has no hair on its head, back, and abdomen, and has obvious granular marks, it is called the Crystal Sturgeon by fishermen.
Although this type of crab is not large, it is just as ferocious as the red-shelled crab. Some male crabs, when they get angry, can easily break a pair of chopsticks.
Image of a glistening crab web (please delete if it infringes on copyright).
Fu Wan had seen the Crystal Crab before. The best part of this crab is its claws, where the meat is very fresh and sweet. In comparison, the meat in other parts is a bit salty and fishy, similar to that of an improperly prepared mud crab.
"Ah Wan, are these crabs valuable?"
Fu Qing reluctantly put the crabs into the basket, and Fu Wan couldn't help but laugh when she saw her like that.
"The price isn't high, about the same as a mud crab."
In comparison, some mud crabs with abundant roe and fat are priced significantly higher than stone crabs and swimming crabs.
Upon hearing this, Fu Qing's reluctance vanished, and without a word, he tossed the crab into the fish basket.
Her mother had said that she could eat fish and crabs that didn't sell for a good price, but even if Awan allowed her to eat expensive ones, she couldn't eat too much of them.
Fu Qing's expression changed so quickly that Fang Min couldn't help but laugh.
The three carried the half-basket of seafood they had selected into the kitchen, while the others were still cleaning and washing the deck.
Unfortunately, when Fu Mancang, Fu Haishun, and the others were on other ships, they didn't need to wash the deck.
Since the ship was almost entirely filled with men, the smell was strong, but they didn't mind it after a while.
Fu Wan didn't want the smell of rotten fish and shrimp to reach the dock before her boat even docked. Besides, they lived on the boat, and a cleaner boat would make things more comfortable for everyone.
Fu Wan always insisted on washing the deck clean after each scoop. Over time, Fu Wan's eldest brother, Fu Ming, got used to it, so Fu Mancang and the others gradually developed the same good habit after they started working on the ship.
"Ah Wan, have all these crabs been steamed?"
Fang Min took the crabs out of the basket one by one and washed them clean. After all, they were crabs caught in the trawl net. Even though they had just been washed with a water gun on the deck, some of the crabs still had a lot of mud on their shells.
Especially on the shell of the crab's abdomen, the mud is so thick that it can't be washed off with just water; you have to scrub it with a loofah to get it clean.
Fu Wan looked at the half-full basket of crabs; there were probably seventy or eighty of them.
"We don't need to steam them all. Although a stainless steel pot can hold them all, they all taste the same, and everyone gets tired of eating them."
"Here's twenty, take them out, clean them and set them aside. I'll chop them in half later and stir-fry them with scallions and ginger!"
"Okay, whatever you say."
Fang Min nodded in agreement; she was now very skilled at handling seafood.
Although Fu Wan told her to put it aside and cut it herself later, Fang Min still did it right away. While washing the crab, she also lifted the shell on the back of the crab, found a pair of scissors and cut off the crab gills, crab heart and crab mouth. After that, she cut it up and put it on a plate.
While Fu Wan went outside to pick some scallions from a basin, she returned to find a large bowl of crabs that had already been prepared.
"Fang Min, you're doing great! Your crab-handling skills are getting better and better!"
Fang Min was a little embarrassed by the praise, but she still straightened her back and smiled.
"I learned from watching you clean the crabs, Awan. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
Fu Wan looked around and saw that Fu Qing had already washed the remaining crabs and mantis shrimp in the basket and arranged them neatly in the stainless steel pot.
"Prepare the mackerel. Once the crabs are done cooking, put them in to steam. That's all. I'll start frying the crabs now."
After Fu Wan finished speaking, she took out the sweet potato starch that Ye Xiaocui had prepared from the bottles and jars next to her.
This starch is made from our own sweet potatoes, but we didn't use good sweet potatoes. They were all picked out by Ye Xiaocui because they were bitten by insects. Since we didn't raise pigs at home and couldn't bear to throw them away, we simply washed them clean and went to town to ask someone to grind them into sweet potato pulp. After filtering and drying, they became sweet potato starch.
Pan-frying crabs is very simple. After coating the cut surfaces of the crabs with starch, put them into the oil pan. Once the crabs have set, add the crab claws and shells that have been cracked with a knife into the pan and continue to stir-fry with a spatula.
In no time, the crabs turned a tempting orange-red color, and at the same time, a strong crab aroma wafted out.
Now it's time to add scallions, ginger, garlic, and chili peppers. Fu Wan added two dried chili peppers, and then prepared to pour in the wine to sauté again.
When Fu Wan went to find the wine, she realized that the yellow wine on the ship was all gone. Fortunately, Fu Ming had added a lot of beer. Fu Wan opened a bottle and poured it around the pot twice.
"Wan, it smells so good! I'm hungry again!"
Fu Qing sniffed hard and couldn't help but touch his rumbling stomach.
Sigh, she ate three steamed buns before boarding the ship, how come she's hungry again after such a short time!
Hmm, it must be because A-Wan's cooking smelled so good that she got hungry!
Fu Qing stared at the pot with shining eyes. Fu Wan didn't mind that she was standing in the way. Seeing how greedy she looked, she thought for a moment and asked Fang Min to go to the deck and bring over half a basin of mantis shrimp.
A while ago, when Fu Ming went to the county town to help out, she asked the purchasing agent to bring back a lot of seasonings, including salt and pepper. She happened to see it while looking for beer, and she thought about making a bowl of salt and pepper mantis shrimp.
Fu Wan prefers salt and pepper mantis shrimp to steamed mantis shrimp. To make the mantis shrimp more flavorful, Fu Wan asked Fang Min to chop the mantis shrimp in half.
After the crabs are cooked, she first heats the oil in the pan, and then adds the mantis shrimp to fry. After the mantis shrimp are fried, she pours the oil back into the enamel basin, then leaves some oil to stir-fry the chili peppers and garlic, and adds some onions.
Finally, pour the mantis shrimp into the pot, sprinkle with salt and pepper, stir-fry briefly, and the salt and pepper mantis shrimp is ready to serve.
Fu Wan was busy working by the pot, and Fang Min wasn't idle either.
After the crabs were steamed, she and Fu Qing found an enamel basin and put all the crabs in it.
Then, put the cleaned and packed croaker into the pot. Seeing this, Fu Wan sprinkled some shredded ginger on the croaker.
Steamed croaker is actually very simple. This fresh croaker does not need to be marinated. Just put it in a pot and steam it over high heat for about five minutes, then let it sit for two minutes until it is cooked.
Once the fish is cooked, take it out and drain the ginger slices and the fishy water from steaming. Then add some light soy sauce, sprinkle with chopped green onions, and finally drizzle with a spoonful of hot oil. Mmm, the aroma of green onions mixed with the fragrance of fish is absolutely irresistible.
Fu Wan and the other two worked quickly, and in less than half an hour, the late-night snack for everyone on the boat was ready.
Fu Wan asked Fu Qing to call everyone for a late-night snack, while she herself took a bowl, divided out a portion, and sent it to the headquarters.
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