My First Taste of a Shanghai Hairy Crab

Of all of the years I've been in Asia, I've never had hairy crab. It's not because it wasn't available; a lot of restaurants and markets in Singapore carry them when they're in season. It was more because a story in the Wall Street Journal said how there were a lot of counterfeit ones from the wrong lake, and how basically the only way to get the real thing is to go to China (and even then, one can get duped). So I tried to wait until a trip to China during the right season, but I just couldn't get the timing to work out.

Well, tonight I had a chance to try one at home, even if it was from Lake Taihu rather than Yangcheng. There was hardly any crab butter in this little thing, but the few bits that I could get were delicate and rich. There really wasn't much meat to get at in these little things either, although whatever I could get out of the legs went well with the Chinese vinegar. I'd still like to go for the real deal in China one day, even if I doubt I'll be able to taste the difference.