Maryland Real Crab Meat

[Rogerv]

G & M crabcakes are horrible ! Went there one time last year after hearing so much about them and never again !

I agree I also went there a while back and I was not impressed I enjoy Seaside in GlenBurney their cream of crab soup is to die for!!

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G & M crabcakes are horrible ! Went there one time last year after hearing so much about them and never again !

I agree I also went there a while back and I was not impressed I enjoy Seaside in GlenBurney their cream of crab soup is to die for!!

[eshoremd]

ill stick to my little river lump in the black can for $17lb.

[Johnfishes]

Never had any from Maryland but have had crabs from VA. Doesn't both come from the Chesapeake bay and is it a difference between the two. I keep hearing Maryland Crabs and was just wondering if it was a difference?

Funny thing about crabmeat, there are so many variables that determine the flavor of it that it will vary greatly from area to area. I think that salinity levels probably are the biggest factor but second is the forage that the crabs are feeding on. Also crabs can vary in flavor from creek to creek in the same river. The majority of MD processed crabmeat comes from the mid to lower bay region. Those areas typically are at the higher end of the salinity range. Back in the days when their were numerous picking houses on the Choptank and the Eastern Bay region you couldn't find a better fresh pack of picked crabmeat.
My concern with the latest marketing that the state is promoting is what percentage of "MD" crabmeat they require these businesses to adhere to. Its voluntary and knowing the restauraunt business as I do its doubtful that most will comply. I know of one on the list that has a great backfin cake but its not 100% MD meat. Granted the supply of MD crabmeat isn't enough to put a dent in the demand.

[fishduck]

I've got a question. Is there even a picking house left in Maryland? I can't think of one north of the Va. line that is still operating. So where is all this Maryland crab meat coming from?

Fishduck

[coomes]

Fishduck,
There are still some left in Dorchester county, JM Clayton in cambridge, Lindy's, WT Ruark, and prob a half dozen others. Most have gone to imported workers instead of locals as pickers, hell, Clayton tried to hire inmates from the detention center a couple of years go when it looked like the law was going to change and he wasn't going to get any pickers from Mexico. The question I have about this is who is going to prove that the crabs picked are from MD, I have been in the seafood business for 22 yrs and know for a fact that a lot of the MD meat is picked from seaside VA females and NC crabs especially in the early season. The packaging even says "MD Quality, picked and packed in MD" not "picked from MD crabs". Just seems a little shady to me. I have no prob with the way the market works just with a MD crabmeat guarantee.

Pat