enzymes can also damage the surrounding muscle The dark, sometimes gritty “vein” along the tail muscle is actually the end of the digestive tube Crabs Crabs are tailless Instead they have a massive cephalothorax, whose musculature enables these creatures to live in the deepest sea, burrow on land, and climb trees Most crabs have one or two powerful claws for holding, cutting, and crushing their prey Crab claw meat is flavorful but coarser and harder to get at than the body meat, and generally not as prized Exceptions are the massive and flavorsome single claws of the Florida stone crab and European fiddler crab The legs of the north Pacific king crabs, which can span 4–6 ft/1.2–1.8 m, provide large cylinders of meat that are often sold frozen Most commercial crabs (species of Callinectes, Carcinus, Cancer, and others) are still caught alive in baited traps or dredges They may be sold live, or cooked and whole, or cooked and processed into shell-less meat This meat is then sold fresh, or pasteurized, or frozen for longer keeping In addition to the muscle tissue, the crab’s large digestive gland, its “mustard” or “butter,” is prized for a rich, intense flavor and creamy texture, which it lends to sauces or to crab pastes Crab liver can accumulate the toxins from algae that cause shellfish poisoning (p 186), so state regulators monitor toxin levels and restrict crabbing when they become significant Soft-shell crabs Because freshly molted crustaceans have just spent much of their protein and fat reserves and are absorbing water to fill out their new shell, eaters generally disdain them The major exceptions to this rule are the soft-shell shore crab of Venice, and the soft-shell blue crab of the U.S Atlantic coast, which is fried and eaten whole Animals that are about to molt are ... water to fill out their new shell, eaters generally disdain them The major exceptions to this rule are the soft-shell shore crab of Venice, and the soft-shell blue crab of the U.S Atlantic coast,... so state regulators monitor toxin levels and restrict crabbing when they become significant Soft-shell crabs Because freshly molted crustaceans have just spent much of their protein and fat reserves and are absorbing...or cooked and processed into shell-less meat This meat is then sold fresh, or pasteurized, or frozen for longer keeping In addition to the muscle tissue, the crab’s large digestive gland, its “mustard” or “butter,” is prized for