Our friends at Fresh Direct hooked us up with Maryland Blue Crab Kits to throw a Crab Party. According to the website:

Maryland Blue Crab Party Pack is everything you need for a traditional crab feast with none of the prep work. Caught in the Chesapeake Bay and brought to the docks daily, we receive these crabs live every day, inspect them to ensure premium quality, dust them with zesty Old Bay seasoning, and steam them immediately. Your user-friendly kit includes mallets, bibs, brown paper, and most importantly, a dozen delicious steamed Maryland blue crabs. All you have to do is add cold beer or lemonade to get the party started.

The crab kits came to us on a refrigerated truck in a cardboard box. The label on the box not only tells you what is inside, but also includes cooking instructions. You don’t really have to cook these crabs because they come pre-seasoned and pre-cooked, however it’s not a bad idea to reheat them. BTW – they are not live. 🙂

Inside, the kit contains:

• 2 bags of Maryland blue crabs (a total of 12 crabs) that are steamed in Old Bay seasoning
• 4 ears of corn (not typically included in the kit, but perfect to serve with these crabs!)
• 4 crab bibs
• 2 wooden Fresh Direct mallets
• crab paper
• a whimsical paper bag to discard of the shells

They also included instructions on a postcard that tell you how to heat them and eat them which is really handy if you’re not used to eating blue crabs.

How to Heat Maryland Blue Crab

Since Fresh Direct’s Maryland blue crabs are already cooked, you can eat them as is. However if you want, you can reheat them. There’s a stove top method or a mircowave method. We recommend steaming them on the stove-top with beer.

Steam on the Stove Top: Fill a large pot with 2 inches of water. Place a wire rack or steamer basket in the bottom. For more flavor, add 1 cup of vinegar or beer. Place crabs in pot, bring to a boil, and reheat no more than 8 minutes.

Microwave: Place crabs in microwave with damp paper towel over them to keep moist. Reheat on high for 1 to 2 minutes.

How to Eat Maryland Blue Crab

• Lay out brown paper and put on your bib. Have a small knife and mallet ready.
• Turn crab belly-up. Using the point of the knife, pry off the pointed center flap and discard.
• Pry off remaining shell using your thumbs and discard.
• Remove the gills and discard. (Don’t eat ’em.)
• Break the crab into two hales down the center exposing the backfin meat.
• Use your Fresh Direct mallet to crack the legs and claws (they’re the sweetest parts!)

Since the crabs come pre-seasoned with Old Bay, it’s pretty much perfect right out of the shell.

We recommend pairing the Maryland blue crabs with the following beers:

• Anchor Steam Beer
• Harpoon Summer Beer
• Evolution Craft Brewing Summer Session Ale
• Casco Bay Summer Ale
• Victory Brewing Summer Love

We highly recommend ordering these Maryland Blue Crab Party Packs. It’s fool-proof and perfect for any outdoor gathering this summer.

Go ahead, Get Whackin’! Let us know all about it!