Green Tidal Crab

[River Swimming Crab, Sargassum Crab, Peregrine Crab; Talangka, Shore Crab, Kalampay, Kalang (Philippine); Bodhi (Hindi); Varuna litterata | similar: Asian Shore Crab, Japanese shore crab; Hemigrapsus sanguineus]

The Green Tidal Crab inhabits brackish waters and far up rivers. It is found from the east coast of Africa to the Mid Pacific Islands, ranging from Japan to southern Australia. It is almost identical to the Asian Shore Crab that's now a serious invader along the United States east coast - except this one swims, so has flatter, hairy legs to help paddle upstream. It can grow a little larger, up to 1.8 inches across the carapace. Recipes are the same, and in the Philippens they go under the same name, Talangka.

Buying:

I have found these crabs in the frozen food cases of a large Asian market in Los Angeles (San Gabriel). They were packaged in a foam tray holding 14 ounces of crabs, product of Vietnam. Vietnam is a little to far south for the Asian Shore Crab.

Cooking:

There are plenty of recipes for these crabs.

Crab Sauce / Paste: In Thailand these crabs are often used to make crab sauce similar to that made from Rice Paddy Crabs and Mangrove Crabs. See our instructions Making Rice Crab Pastes / Sauces.
Deep Fried Tiny Crabs: popular in the Philippines and elsewhere in Southeast Asia - sometimes called "Crab Popcorn". See our recipe Tiny Crispy Crabs .
Taba nag Talangka / Aligue This is prepared salted Crab Eggs (Roe) which, for reasons unknown, are called "Crab Fat" in the Philippines. It takes a whole lot of female tiny crabs to make this, but it is now available in jars. For details see our Crab Pastes / Sauces page.
Ginataang Talangka Philippine This is Green Tidal / Asian Shore Crabs cooked in Coconut Milk.

sf_cbgrntdlz 190722 - www.clovegarden.com
©Andrew Grygus - agryg@clovegarden.com - Photos on this page not otherwise credited © cg1 - Linking to and non-commercial use of this page permitted