A knife is useful for opening the crab and separating the crabmeat from the shell. A tall drink to quench your thirst. Select a Crab Pick a nice heavy crab with large claws. Turn the crab upside down to determine if it is a male or female. Jimmies and Sooks are easy to tell apart by the shape of the apron in the center of the crab s underside.
Jimmies have a long and narrow apron that looks like an upside down T .
Sooks have a semi-circular, bell shaped apron that comes to a point at the top. Snap off the two large claws at the body of the crab and set them aside for later. Remove the crab s smaller legs next. If you pull carefully, some meat may be found at the end of each joint to give you just a teaser of what you will find inside. Open the Crab With your thumb or knife, pull back the tip of the apron on the underside of the crab.