A funny thing happened this spring while we were in Italy: we met some old friends whom we had heard rumors of having moved to Italy from the Chesapeake region quite recently. It was a shock to see them in this new context, as if they had followed us from our old home to our new one, but there they were nonetheless, crawling in an ice well behind the glass partition of the seafood counter at our local Conad supermarket outside of Penne. Callinectes sapidus, the beautiful swimmers, the ubiquitous symbol of Maryland aquaculture, the blue crab. In recent years, blue crabs have made their way to the Mediterranean Sea and have invaded Italy’s coastal ecosystem. This has prompted an emergency situation for everyone in the Italian seafood supply chain and tourism industry: an invasive species with no natural predator, feasting on the indigenous vongole and other cherished seafood species on which a sea-surrounded peninsula depends for its storied cuisine.
We had seen articles of this invasion in the national American press as well as our local news outlets (since everything crustacean-related is of great import here in Baltimore), and even bore witness to a smattering of social media videos of chefs and cooks confronting - to our horror - an ingredient with which they have no experience: crabs boiled whole, cut in half, lungs mixed with meat. It’s a singular irony that a country that stands as such a culinary powerhouse is largely stumped by the incursion of a new, delicious ingredient. After all, where would the Italians be culinarily were it not for New World ingredients like tomatoes, corn, coffee, or peppers?
So, we figured we’d do our part and help. As Baltimoreans, we are in a unique position to share our knowledge in the spirit of a second Columbian Exchange. We asked the woman working the seafood counter for a few crabs to take home. She tried to pick them up with a pair of scissors, but was too afraid of the large, unrestrained claws snapping at her and her questionable choice of utensils. She would then call the guy working the butcher counter next door to come help. He wasn’t much more courageous, though he did eventually get a few into a paper bag for us. I genuinely believe those were the first blue crabs with which those two had ever come into contact. We bought a few aromatics to steam the crabs at home, and later filmed a quick instructional tutorial in Italian demonstrating how to properly pick a steamed crab.
Within a week of the video’s posting, the food writer for the Baltimore Banner reached out for an article and Rome-based podcast host Ruggero Po asked to have me join for a recorded segment. There seems to be a lot of interest, on both sides of the pond, about this issue, and perhaps an opportunity for Baltimore restaurateurs to help Italians embrace this new bountiful harvest. I made the point on the podcast that this is not dissimilar from America’s current infestation with wild boar, something the Italians have been dealing with for generations, and have in turn developed wild boar sausage, ragu, and cured hams.
This recipe is our contribution to what we hope will be a larger Chesapeake Aid Package to chefs and cooks throughout Italy in order to properly use the blue crab. Featured on Cafe Campli’s summer 2024 menu, this ragu begins with a housemade stock of crab shells and root vegetables, so if you’re picking meat by hand, this will utilize all parts of the crab. We paired this ragu with Sam’s housemade tagliatelle infused with Old Bay seasoning to truly amp-up that summer in Maryland flavor.
INGREDIENTS
1 lb. lump Blue Crab meat
1 large carrot, peeled
3 celery stalks
1 whole red onion
1 qt. crab, shellfish, or fish stock
1 6 lb. can San Marzano Tomatoes, crushed
5 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tbsp. tomato paste
1 ½ cup dry white wine
½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tbsp. Old Bay seasoning
2 bay Leaves
evoo
s + p
RECIPE
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
1 — Make soffritto: finely dice the onion, carrot, and celery. I like to use a food processor to save time (and my hands). Simply peel the carrot and quarter the veggies first, then pulse the carrot alone for a few seconds before adding the celery and onion as the carrot requires a little more power. Be sure not to over-process the veggies as we still want some texture. If you’re using a knife, chop the soffritto ingredients into small cubes no larger than ⅛” thick and halfway through, feel free to reach for your processor.
2 — Add 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil to a pot over medium-high heat, and - when shimmering - pour in the soffritto. Cook the soffritto until the onions turn translucent and the carrots and celery are soft. Add the red pepper flakes, Old Bay seasoning, and the minced garlic, stir to incorporate without scorching the garlic (about a minute or two). Next, add the tomato paste and continue to stir. When the tomato paste begins to stick and the bottom of the pan starts to brown, pour in the white wine to deglaze. Lightly scrape the bottom of the pan to release the caramelized bits, and allow the wine to reduce by 2/3 .
3 — While the wine reduces, add the crab meat and stir. Then, pour in the stock, and allow the ragu to simmer for a few minutes. Add the crushed San Marzanos and continue to stir to evenly incorporate. Toss in the bay leaves, and bring the ragu back to a simmer.
4 — Cover the pot and place it in the preheated oven for roughly 2.5 hours. Once done, check for seasoning and adjust to your taste. You may also take the cover off the pot to reduce to your desired texture.
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