Just like Maine, Maryland has a crustacean of their own that is worthy of high praise, the Chesapeake blue crab. This particular crab is native of the Atlantic Ocean stretching from the Gulf of Mexico all the way up to the coasts of Delaware. Unfortunately, due to climate change and the overfishing of the prized shellfish, annual catches have seen a drastic decline in numbers of blue crabs. Conservation efforts have been established in order to replenish the population of the Chesapeake blue crab, hopefully saving them from becoming yet another endangered marine animal.
With that said, that definitely says a lot about how these bad boys taste. The steamed blue crab is known widely for its sweet white meat and Maryland has perfected the cooking process of the meat by lightly steaming the whole crab and dousing it in generous amounts of piquant spice mixes such as Old Bay. These tasty crabs are usually served atop brown butcher paper with no utensils except for a mallet and cracker so, be prepared to get your hands dirty and fight for the prized crab meat.