Softshell Crab Season Has Arrived From Georgia!
The season's first catch of Wild Georgia Softshell Crab has arrived! They're making their West Coast debut at Water Grill.
THE START OF THE SEASON
Spring is a wonderful time. For starters, we get more daylight (and eventually recoup the hour of sleep lost at the start of Daylight Savings Time).
That means little to Mother Nature though: the world continues to turn, and tilt on its axis, bringing warmer weather to the Northern Hemisphere. It’s here, in the Mid-Atlantic, where we begin to reap those rewards. Watermen take to their boats off the coast of Georgia and the Chesapeake Bay and prepare their traps for the blue crab harvest.
As water temperatures rise, these blue crabs begin to molt and shed their shells. It’s at this moment when the live crabs are harvested – at the peak of tenderness.
Learn more about their journey – from blue shell to softshell, and from the country’s largest estuary to one of our favorite seasonal offerings – here.
ABOUT BLUE CRABS
Who says Latin is dead? The language tells us a lot. Exhibit A: the scientific name for blue crab is Callinectes sapidus, meaning beautiful savory swimmer.
These crabs propel themselves through the water using their back fins, or swimmerets. You’ll find this species all along the Atlantic Coast, down through the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, and even to some northern parts of South America.
HARVESTING
Blue Crabs live anywhere from three to four years and reach maturity around one year to 18 months. Growth is very dependent on temperature. Mating occurs from fall through the spring and, interestingly, females can only mate once during their life but can spawn multiple times.
Females, especially those carrying eggs, prefer higher salinity areas and often migrate towards the mouth of nearby rivers to spawn. Males prefer lower salinity waters and can often be found closer to river mouths and estuaries.
Most of the season’s harvesting will happen in late Spring as water temperatures warm and crabs prepare for their summer growth. This is often marked by the first full moon in May. In some cases, like what we’re seeing out of Georgia, the water warms as early as the beginning of April.
A COMING OF AGE
Softshell crabs are blue crabs. They’re harvested throughout the East Coast by commercial crabbers when the hardshell blue crabs are deemed to be peelers, or crabs that are ready to molt.
Watermen will look for signs, such as white, pink and red colors on the shells, to tell which crabs will molt, and when. In fact, a red outline, called a “red sign”, on the swimming fin indicates that a crab will molt in less than two days.
These crabs are then transferred to shedding tanks where they are monitored until they molt. The tanks are shallow, and the water temperature is carefully regulated to emulate the crab’s natural molting habitat.
Once a crab molts, it is removed from the shedding tank as soon as possible before the shell begins to harden (which can take as little as a few hours). It’s at this moment when a blue crab becomes a softshell crab. They’re then carefully packed and arrive to us daily – directly from pristine coastline of Georgia, straight to our restaurants.
this moment when a blue crab becomes a softshell crab. They’re then carefully packed and arrive to us daily – directly from the Chesapeake to our restaurants.
FLAVOR
Iconic, sweet and earthy, softshell crab delivers a crunchy, delicate bite with olive-like notes imparted from the shell.
At Water Grill, our Wild Georgia Softshell Crab is prepared tempura-fried, served with pickled plums, Belgian endive and our house XO sauce
All this softshell talk got you hungry for more? Check out our menus and make a reservation!
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The King Has Returned: Wild Columbia River King Salmon Season Is Here!
With Wild Columbia River King Salmon, it's not about the destination; it's about the journey: a 1,243-mile trek, that is.
The Columbia River runs over 1,200 miles, from Canada through Washington, Oregon and to the Pacific Ocean. It's from here that the Wild Columbia River King Salmon makes its trek - returning from the salt water to the fresh waters of its birth.
Wild Columbia River King Salmon, also known as “Chinook” Salmon, is admired for its marbling, which comes from the fat reserves it builds as the fish travels up one of the longest rivers in North America. The Columbia River starts in the freshwaters of the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, and carves its way through Washington and the northern part of Oregon before making it to the Pacific Ocean.
Since this river passes through multiple states, it creates a unique collaboration when it comes to fishery management. Both Washington and Oregon have a seat at the table when it comes to determining quotas and fishery openings, with the season typically running from May to October.
This isn’t your average river fish. King Salmon are anadromous – meaning they’re born in freshwater before making a migration to the saltwater oceans, where they spend their lives until it's time to spawn again. That’s when they return to the freshwaters of their birth, journeying back up the Columbia River.
King Salmon is the largest of the Pacific Salmon, averaging 15 to 20 pounds. Those fat reserves lead to a rounder mid-section and the highest fat content of all Pacific Salmon.
At Water Grill, we serve Wild Columbia River King Salmon grilled with heirloom carrots and vadouvan curry butter. Hungry for more? Check out our daily menus and grab a reservation.
