My favorite meal of the year is actually pre-Thanksgiving (though of course I love Thanksgiving and all it entails); it is on Thanksgiving Eve. We sit down to a simple table and devour local, roasted, Dungeness crab. I look forward to it all year long, every year. Of course we prepare other things like homemade pasta with tomato sauce from our summer/fall harvest, fresh green salad and we pick-up a loaf of crusty sourdough bread. A big Sunday jug of Preston or bottles of Dry Creek Valley zinfandels are requisite too.
Crab season can be a nail-biter though; there have been years when crab season did not open in November and years when it barely opened at all. For two of the past three seasons, the opening has been delayed.
This year recreational Dungeness crab season opened Nov. 3 (yeah!) in Sonoma County and commercial crab season is set to open Nov. 15 from Bodega Head south, at the time of this writing. Bodega Head north will soon follow, but the open date is not yet set. The season is regulated by the California Public Department of Health. They test for many things, but the issue in our county and the northern west coast has been the neurotoxin domoic acid — a byproduct of algae blooms formed by rising ocean temperatures.
I met with multigenerational Bodega Bay fisherman Tony Anello. Tony’s grandfather migrated from Sicily and settled in Monterey. The family moved north to San Francisco and then to Sonoma County, and four generations have been in the business.
Tony has been fishing since 1970; he also worked as a firefighter, now retired. He and his son both own fishing boats, and his son will head out to Bodega Head south opening day, while Tony will wait for north. The Anello family owns Spud Point Crab Company in Bodega Bay Harbor, so you may find fresh Dungeness crab there as early as Nov. 17. They also serve delicious clam chowder, sandwiches and other items. Coming off a tough salmon season this year, they are hoping for a strong crab season.
Dungeness is named for the port and fishing village on the Juan de Fuca Strait in Washington state, where fishing for this crab started. Dungeness is a west coast/Pacific Ocean delicacy, typically running from Washington down to our California coast. We’re fortunate Bodega Bay is so close.
My husband Brian grew up in Cohasset, Massachusetts — a lobster town and now a picturesque commuting town into Boston. The Portuguese side of his family was in the business; a lobster pot proudly rests on our deck. Those wooden lobster pots are smaller than crab pots currently used commercially, but not much different, and certainly not mega industrial-sized. When I visited, the pots were stacked high around Bodega Bay’s Marina, and fishing boats were being washed and fueled and checked. There were plenty of smiles as the fishing community prepares for the opening of crab season.
Where to get Dungeness crab? Right in Bodega Bay at places like Spud Point, retailers like Whole Foods Sebastopol get it so fresh, Santa Rosa Seafood of course and so many more. There are also crab feeds throughout Sonoma County and many are hosted and support non-profit organizations; I go each year, often to many. You’ll find them in the calendar listing of this local paper or visit online. Of course many restaurants will feature them in delicious ways. And while you’re devouring them, know they are high in key vitamins and minerals, so you’re doing a good thing on many levels. Now here’s my favorite way to prepare Dungeness crab:
Roasted Dungeness crab, adapted from the San Francisco Chronicle’s Christmas Crab
2 Dungeness crabs — cooked, cleaned and cracked
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil (you know all about this from last month!)
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 lemon sliced for squeezing
Preheat oven to 450 to 500 degrees.
Heat butter and olive oil in a roasting pan for a minute or two until melted and hot.
Add crab and garlic and roast until crab is heated through, about 5-10 minutes, stirring once or twice halfway.
Immediately transfer to a bowl or dish and serve/eat right away. Place lemon wedges on side.
While eating and once crab is done, use that crusty bread to scoop up delicious butter/oil/crab sauce.
Tip: use the smallest claw for scooping out crabmeat in the slender spots, no need for extra utensils.
Next month: root vegetables.
Gayle Okumura Sullivan is co-owner, with husband Brian, of Dry Creek Peach & Produce in Healdsburg.
