ANSWERED!
food for thought.
Q Why shouldn’t you eat raw crab, although it’s fine to eat raw scallops and other fish?
A We do eat raw scallops, oysters and even occasionally mussels if they’re very fresh, though it always involves some degree of risk. I asked John Wright, author of River Cottage Handbook: Edible Seashore (Bloomsbury ￡14.99), and enthusiastic eater of unusual things, if he ever ate raw crab: “White crabmeat is probably edible raw, but I wouldn’t fancy eating any of the several organs that make up the brown meat – too close to the digestive tract. Many creatures contain parasites beyond bacteria and viruses. I also suspect that none of it would taste too good.” Of the many fishmongers and chefs I asked, they all were in agreement that removing enough raw meat from the shell to make it worth the trouble would be a pain – why bother when it’s so entirely wonderful when lightly cooked?