Mention the word crab in any food circle and immediately names of popular crab eating-places will be thrown at you.

We all you see have our own special spot where in total relaxed mode, we are able to suck through the claws to gain access to the sweet meat.

Those with more than a passing acquaintance of crab will mention the name Lorraine Fung and crabs in the same sentence. Lorraine Fung dubbed the crab queen by her peers is who Thursday Life tags along with Tuesday as she heads to Hellshire to collect her crab catch from fishermen David Evans, Rupert Brown and Roy Wright.

It’s a crab journey that officially started in 1984 and unofficially when she would go crab hunting with her four brothers (she was the only girl). “We used to head out to Hellshire with our crocus bags and hunt crab until the bags were full. We would then head home and start the cooking.

Friends and neighbours would then join us for a wonderful crab feast”.

What has kept Fung’s crab crown firmly on her head is she believes “the perfect blend of oriental spices and sauces that I use along with escallion and Scotch bonnet pepper”

Fung picks her way through some 800 lbs of crab meat each week. Reminding Thursday Food “that for every 100lbs the yield is a mere 25lbs.” “Now” she continues “you can perhaps fully understand why crab backs are so expensive”.

That’s the gourmet side of crab. Crab feasts call for the chest and claws” continues Fung as she takes us deeper into the world of crabs “the chest is very soft because it’s the blue crab or sea crab. This one turns pink when boiled”.

How does one eat crab?

“Slightly crack” explains Fung “on the shell which is very soft. Use your tongue to feel out the meat. The claws are also soft so crack these with your teeth or a nutcracker and remove the meat using the same technique. Enjoy with garlic bread.

Crab meat is a very versatile meat think crab cakes, casseroles, crab and sweet corn soup and of course every jazz lovers favourite blues dish Crab Louis.

The Hellshire crab crew

Crab spokesperson David Evans has been using fish wire to make fish pots since 1980. His baits are set overnight using chicken back, sprats and other crab tempters. The pots (the group owns some 70 odd) are drawn the following morning and the yield can be as much as 100lbs.

Crabs are available on a daily basis but says Evans,”May, June and July -are the best months for crab”.