These soy-marinated crabs can set you back $60, per crab, at Seoul’s finer restaurants, but they’re relatively easy to make at home. What you don’t pay in money or labor, however, you will pay for in time. Then there’s the matter of killing the sea critters. Drowning them in tap water works, as does freezing them, but neither method is as humane as simply flipping over each crab and slicing through its heart. Too squeamish? Ask your fishmonger to do the deed for you. Some Korean grocery stores, such as H Mart, sell fresh blue crabs, already killed and cleaned specifically for this dish.
Big thanks to Greg and Matt Cain of the Crab Place (thecrabplace.com) in Crisfield, Maryland, for kindly overnighting us half a bushel of feisty female Maryland blue crabs, in time to test and photograph Eric Kim’s family recipe for Ganjang Gejang.
Note: Extra marinade may be strained, boiled, and chilled for use in another batch of crabs.