Smoked Dungeness Crab? Cold or hot smoke? What wood flavor?

[cmayna]

As I am outside pulling weeds out of my yard, my wife is out on the ocean hauling in a bunch of Dungeness Crab.  Thinking what can we do differently to this batch of pinchers.  Then it hit!  why not smoke some Dungey?   It will be already cooked so I'm first thinking cold smoke.   Then I found this thread:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/52965/smoked-dungeness-crab

Looks like the OP of the above thread might have hot smoked it for 20 minutes using Hickory.   I'm thinking a couple hours cold smoke using apple?  I do have hickory though.

Update: Here's a  comment from another thread found on a Bradley Smoker forum:

"Okay; here's my opinion on smoking crab. I took out some king crab Sunday to have with our rib eyes. I saved half for the traditional wrap in foil with Old Bay and reheat in the oven. The other half I tossed in the smoker and gave it two pucks of alder. After a quick taste I promply walked it over to the trash can. I guess some things you just don't mess with in the smoker. Six out of six did not like it at all. They all asked why you want to hide the natural flavor of the crab anyhow? Just my observation on it. I'll stick with reheating and dipping in butter. Now oysters and scallops are a whole different thing.

"

So, maybe there are some things not best to be smoked?

Craig

 

[chef jimmyj]

Somethings are just too delicate in flavor to add smoke or if you do, go very light. Smoke does not make Everything taste better. Just like Garlic, Black Pepper, Cloves, Cinnamon or Vanilla is not put in everything. They all taste great but not in everything. A local restaurant will add Bacon to any dish for $1. TOTALLY changed the taste or their Philly Cheese Steak and was just not good! But hey to each his own...JJ

 

[bauchjw]

I wonder if you steamed in smoker you'd get a slight smoke kiss that wouldn't be nasty? A Cajun buddy of mine swears crawfish boil over wood fire changes the flavor for the better compared to on a gas stove.... I guess it's a different crustacean all together though?

 

[cmayna]

Yeah, the more I'm thinking about it, if I do it I might cold smoke for 30-60 minutes and do a small test quantity.

Meanwhille, here's the wife and friends as they came back to dock today

image.jpeg

• cmayna
• Mar 20, 2016

 

[dirtsailor2003]

We've steamed them in a pit on the beach. They get a very slight smoke flavor to them but not much. A light smoke is good. I'd use alder. Cold smoke and probably no more than 45min-1hour.

When it comes to Dungeness I'm a purist. I typically don't even use butter. Boil in seawater and that's it!

If the weather holds I'll be fishing next weekend!

 

[bauchjw]

Yeah, the more I'm thinking about it, if I do it I might cold smoke for 30-60 minutes and do a small test quantity.

Meanwhille, here's the wife and friends as they came back to dock today

image.jpeg

• cmayna
• Mar 20, 2016

There is no emoticon for a surfer stuck in the desert looking at that!