Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
through April is less a 'season' than a stone-crab frenzy. Joe Weiss of Miami Beach is
credited with starting it all.
However, some have concerns with this practice. See Stone Crab Claws ( Click here )
Key Lime Pie
Key limes are yellow, and that's the color of an authentic Key lime pie, which is a custard
of Key lime juice, sweetened condensed milk and egg yolks in a cracker crust, then topped
with meringue. Avoid any slice that is green or stands ramrod straight. The combination of
extra-tart Key lime with oversweet milk nicely captures the personality of Key West
Conchs.
STONE CRAB CLAWS
Enormous stone crab claws are a staple of Floridian seafood menus, but some may have
concerns with the way they are harvested. The crabs are legal to harvest from October 15
through May 15, although fishermen must toss back any ovigerous (egg-laying) female
crabs.
The male crabs have a different fate. Their claws are broken off, and the crab, now a
limb down, is tossed back into the water. After roughly three molts (periods when a crab
re-grows its shell), which usually take a year, the claw will have grown back, only for the
process to repeat itself.
Defenders of the harvest say that the act of tossing the crabs back, even with one arm,
makes for a more sustainable fishery considering the alternative is simply keeping the
whole crab. But the Department of Fish and Wildlife estimates some 28% of crabs die
from the amputation; that number climbs to 47% for a double amputation. Those casu-
alty numbers can be significantly reduced if a fisherman knows how to make a clean cut
of the limb.
Conch
Speaking of conchs, the shellfish Keys natives are named for (a 'conch' is a shellfish,
while a capitalized 'Conch' is a Keys native) happen to be delicious, and are difficult to
find outside of South Florida (in the US). Conch meat is pleasantly springy and usually
prepared according to Caribbean recipes: most of the time it's either curried or 'cracked'
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