She-crab soup

I bought a can of she-crab soup on my last visit to Delmarva. It was pretty good for canned soup. My question is, what's the "she-" part and how is it different (in taste as well as "identity") from he-crab or we-crab??

He crab soup wouldn't have roe.

But isn't it illegal to harvest sponge crabs (sookies w/eggs)
I know it is illegal in New Jersey.

Beats me.

I've slurped a whole lot of she crab soups over the years in a lot of different restaurants up and down the east coast, but I'm yet to detect anything that seems like crab roe. Yep, it's the roe that makes it called she crab and not just crab, but it's still very good (usually)without that elusive roe.
 
Cheers, John  

ChrisOC


But isn't it illegal to harvest sponge crabs (sookies w/eggs)

 
Is that something similar to
 

 
 
??????

It's a Lowcountry favorite, originating in Charleston I think.    Females were used because the roe gave the soup color, and/or flavor.  I believe the law now is, that if the crab eggs are visible on the crab when caught, it has to be thrown back.  Makes sense, that you want the egg laying females returned.  Here, we have crab bisque that's very popular, and I think very similar. 

The one I had was something like a Manhattan Clam Chowder, but of course crab instead of clam, and a little creamier. But they can said to add milk, which I did, to get the creamy texture. No roe that I saw. They did suggest (like turtle soup, another mid-atlantic specialty) to add sherry. Don't know if there's sherry in crab bisque, but sounds good....

If there is anything close to the terrapin soups of the 19th century available today I'd like to have a go at it.
 
Cheers, John 

I've never heard of adding sherry to crab bisque, though it would probably be good.  Some restaurants hollow out a small bread (boule?) and serve it in that.  It's rich, full of cream, sometimes with a little corn in it, makes me hungry just talking about it.
 
 

Yeah, I think sherry is some sort of Pennsylvania German thing. At least my PA German grandmother us to add it to almost everything. (of course, maybe she had a "issue?")

I am not  German  ,  nor do  I have  "issues"  but  sherry  is a  great thing  in any  creamy  seafood  soup,  chowder  or  bisque.

NYNM


Yeah, I think sherry is some sort of Pennsylvania German thing. At least my PA German grandmother us to add it to almost everything. (of course, maybe she had a "issue?")

 
Couldn't tell you about Penn Dutch- But in Charleston SC Sherry goes with she crab soup the same way peanut butter goes with jelly.

geez-everyone I know adds sherry to a good soup to finish it off-I am Irish and German...

When in CHS we always drive over the bridge to Mt. Pleasant, turning right just off the bridge then past Patriots Point to Shem Creek. RB's is on the right and on the creek. Their She Crab soup is a tradition for us along with their coconut cake...
 
Everything on their menu is great...
 
She Crab soup can be found at all the good eating places in the area and most of them get it right.... 
 
When in CHS don't miss the Shrimp and Grits at Hominy Grill, another tradition of ours...

Heck, I just drink the Sherry and throw the soup away!

the roe comes from cooked crabs when they pick the meat out they save the eggs which are pink or reddish . you get it in 1 pound
tubs like the meat comes in it used to be away to add richness and flavor cheap and use a byproduct up. but no crab products are cheap any more.20$ a pound for lump crab  roe is around 6$a pound cakes made with roe are amazing but you have to make them at home as the only restraunt place to get them is in the staff meal.
sherry is  used in most all seafood bisque recipes some times its infused with a little hot peppers for a little kick

Just by coincidence, I ate out last week and had a fantastic tomato-crab bisque - rich, creamy, and full of lump crabmeat.  I've had fun googling recipes to try duplicating the dish.  I was surprised with as many recipes I found(I didn't stop with a  crab bisque recipe, also looked up lobster, shrimp, seafood etc.),  most of them call for adding either cognac or sherrry during the cooking process.
 
 

 Monday I was stuck at home in the bad weather, so decided to get creative at lunchtime. I added a combo of half and half and water to a can of tomato bisque, let it simmer a bit, threw in some crabmeat on a whim, topped with a sprinkle of freshly ground black pepper and it was good to go.  Tuna salad on saltines plus a glass of wine made a passable meal for a snowy day.

I am not a expert in she crab soup but I have had it several times.  The best I ever had was at Basnight's Lone Cedar Cafe in Nags head, NC.  It is a beautiful facility located on the water.  The soup was chunked full of crab and in my opinion, it was outstanding.
 
The facility has been there for several years but a few years ago it burned to the group.  The owner was not sure he could afford to rebuild but it was so loved by the community, they helped with the rebuilding.
 
http://lonecedarcafe.com/index.html
 
Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

The roe is now-a-days frequently replaced with a sprinkle of boiled egg yolk. Sherry is traditional in crab bisque and she crab soup, but the best I ever had was done with a splash of scotch. You don't taste the scotch, but it brightens up the whole taste. 

You can substitute for the sherry in these ways:

2 tablespoons sherry, substitute the following:

1 to 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 2 tablespoons
orange or pineapple juice.

To substitute sherry in a marinade: for 1/2 cup sherry use 1/4 cup vinegar + 1 tablespoon sugar + 1/4 water OR
1 tablespoon vinegar, plus chicken stock or water to make 1/2 cup.
 
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