Cancer is not just a zodiac sign. Arthropods are actively consumed as food. This is a great snack to go with beer. They are considered to be the same delicacies as red caviar or salted fish of the salmon family. The product is rich in protein, a number of useful substances, until it deteriorates. Otherwise, it leads to serious poisoning.
Let's consider how long boiled crayfish are stored, what to do with live arthropods, and the dangers of cooking dead creatures. Bonus: Freezing and thawing rules.
Shelf life of boiled crayfish in the refrigerator
It is best to consume the product immediately after preparation, but if this is not possible, it should be stored in the refrigerator (t - 3-5°C). The choice of container is important. Bowls and pans made of aluminum are not suitable for this purpose, since this metal promotes the oxidation of chitin contained in the shell of crayfish.
We recommend glass or ceramic containers, place the crayfish there, fill them completely with broth and put them in the refrigerator. This method allows you to keep the dish fit for consumption for up to five days.
You can also boil the salted broth in which the crayfish were cooked, return them there and simmer for 10 minutes over low heat. Then cool and leave in the refrigerator for no more than 5 days.
You can save the finished product without broth. To do this, the remaining copies should be placed in jars and tightly closed with lids, put in the refrigerator in the lower compartment.
The maximum shelf life of crayfish in the refrigerator is 2 days. But the meat will gradually lose its juiciness.
Useful qualities of crayfish meat
The meat of these amazing inhabitants of the bottom of our reservoirs has been valued at all times. And in our time, this is another one of the most profitable types of business. In addition to protein, it contains the following elements:
- Ca;
- Mg;
- Co;
- P;
- TO;
- vitamins B, C, D, E, K;
- folic acid;
- organic acid.
It also contains a high content of such an important element as iodine, which is a hundred times more when compared with beef!
Doctors recommend eating crayfish in order to normalize the functioning of the following organs:
- liver;
- pancreas;
- thyroid glands;
- strengthening immunity.
If we talk about cholesterol, which is so abundant in other types of meat, there is practically none in crayfish. In addition, it is low in calories, which is important for those who are on diets. 100 grams of product contains only 76 kcal.
However, it is worth knowing that it also contains sulfur, which has the ability to react with dishes made of aluminum. If you store crayfish in aluminum alloy containers, the meat will quickly lose its beneficial characteristics.
Basic rules for storing live crayfish
If the arthropods were caught on their own, it is recommended to leave them in their usual environment: place the freshwater ones in a cage, lower it into a container with water and cover it with a damp cloth. You can let him go to the bathroom. It is recommended to change the water once a day and feed them with plant foods. They must not be allowed to go hungry to avoid eating each other.
This way, crayfish can stay alive for up to five days, but running water contains impurities that are harmful to river inhabitants.
You can organize the storage of crustaceans without water in a cool, damp place. Spray them periodically and provide air access. Shelf life: two days at a temperature not exceeding 3°C.
To keep crustaceans in the refrigerator, clean specimens must be placed in a bag and the temperature set to no lower than 0. This way they can be stored for up to four days.
Live individuals can be frozen. But the decrease in t should not be sharp: the day before freezing it is reduced to zero. Arthropods are frozen in water at -18°C.
Transportation
To deliver delicacies in a condition suitable for long-term storage, it is important to organize transportation correctly. The necessary conditions for preserving the life of crayfish are the presence of a sufficient amount of oxygen in the water and maintaining the temperature. Before storing and transporting crayfish, they are carefully calibrated and selected; weak and sick individuals are removed.
Box
A convenient container for transportation is a standard box, it can be made of wood or plastic. It is important to organize the required number of holes for ventilation inside the selected container. Freshwater delicacies quickly suffocate when there is a lack of oxygen. The height of the box must be at least 20 centimeters, the width can be any, the container must be spacious. It is not recommended to stack freshwater ones in several rows on top of each other.
Wet bag
If the transportation time is no more than 4-5 hours, then a wet canvas bag can be used as a container. At the same time, during transportation, periodically moisten the bag with water from a spray bottle, avoid direct sunlight on the container.
Large bag of water
When using a plastic bag or sack, the transportation time is reduced to two hours, otherwise the freshwater fish are unlikely to arrive alive. The package must be open throughout transportation, avoid overheating the water.
Thermal containers
A modern common method of transporting crustaceans. These containers are made of polystyrene and have special holes in the lid for ventilation. A moistened natural fabric is placed on the bottom, on which the crayfish are laid out in one layer and covered with another layer of wet fabric. The thermal container should be placed in a cool place, away from direct sunlight and exposure to other heating elements.
What is the shelf life of live crayfish?
Buying boiled freshwater is dangerous, because... it is unknown how long they spent on the shelf. Therefore, we recommend buying them alive and boiling them yourself. It is necessary to rinse them, place them in a clean plastic bag or other capacious container and fill them with water. If there is a need for short-term storage before heat treatment, there are several options:
- in water (for example, in a bath), where they can remain alive for about 5 days;
- dry, but in a damp room (cellar, basement). The safe storage period is no more than 2 days;
- in a refrigerator (but not in a freezer). Shelf life: no more than 4 days.
Remember that you must boil the crayfish alive, otherwise the dish may be spoiled and even dangerous.
During the heat treatment process, the following is added to the pan:
- salt (1 tbsp/1 l of water);
- dill seeds and dried herbs;
- coriander;
- Bay leaf;
- pepper.
Regular consumption of delicacy meat is a good prevention of thyroid diseases and supports a weakened body after surgery and illness. In addition, it is very tasty and tender in consistency.
How to choose
You need to buy only live individuals. Then there will be no doubt about their freshness. Already cooked ones can pose a danger, since they have a very short shelf life. And the date of preparation in this case is unknown. Therefore, it is better to refuse to buy a ready-made dish if the crayfish were not cooked in front of you.
Freshly cooked crayfish should have a bright red color and their tail should be curled. Straight limbs indicate that they were boiled already dead. This means that such a product can no longer be used.
The color of living crustaceans can be very different. It depends on their species and habitat. But the main thing is that they are painted evenly.
In clean water, the temperature of which is between +15°C and +25°C, healthy individuals actively move their limbs and move along the bottom of the container. The fastest ones crawl quickly with their tails tucked and can pinch painfully with their claws. Therefore, you need to pick them up carefully, by the back.
As the crayfish goes to sleep, its limbs relax and its tail straightens. An individual that has been kept in captivity for a long time becomes inactive and “lethargic.” You cannot buy such a product. With this behavior, bacteria are already multiplying in the crustaceans’ stomach, which will soon lead to its general rotting. Consuming such a product is very dangerous for human health.
It is important that the water in which the crayfish are located is clear. If it is changed frequently, it is more saturated with oxygen molecules, which allows arthropods to breathe normally.
The shelf life of boiled crayfish when refrigerated is a maximum of 4 days.
Recommendations for boiling crayfish
It is important to know that cooking dead crayfish is unacceptable. This is fraught with severe poisoning of the body. Before cooking, you should check each one individually.
A straightened tail is a sure sign that the individual has died. Freshly cooked crayfish should be bright orange with curled tails.
If you have any doubts about the freshness of the delicacy, we recommend throwing it away.
Arthropods should only be frozen as a last resort, because negative temperatures negatively affect the composition, taste and consistency of nutritious pulp.
Are dead crayfish dangerous or not, is it possible to cook, boil and eat something from them?
Dead crayfish can be very dangerous and harm the human body! Therefore, they are cooked only when they are still alive! This is an important rule that all lovers of these delicious crustaceans must adhere to. Let's take a closer look at why you can't cook dead crayfish
Firstly, it is unhygienic and sometimes even dangerous to health
Let's take a closer look at why you can't cook dead crayfish. Firstly, it is unhygienic and sometimes even dangerous to health.
What happens if you eat dead crayfish?
Hidden in the lifestyle of representatives of these crustaceans is the answer to the question that worries almost everyone, whether it is possible to boil dead crayfish.
Of course, if they were cooked alive, then they are very tasty and even healthy. But the dead ones are not only not so tasty, but can even pose a certain threat to human health.
The main reason is their diet. Since crayfish do not disdain carrion, many different, including quite harmful, microbes accumulate in their organs, some of which are extremely dangerous. After death, crayfish carcasses quickly decompose and become rotten. This can be determined by an unpleasant specific smell. But if you cook and eat a dead crayfish, you may, at best, get poisoned. In the worst case, the consequences can be much more severe.
Improper storage of crayfish will lead to the death of many individuals.
Many people, when boiling dead crayfish, add salt and various spices in the hope of eliminating the unpleasant smell. But this is also dangerous, because even if you can cope with the smell, you will not be able to improve the quality of the meat and kill harmful microorganisms. As a result, do not regret wasted time and effort, but simply throw away your catch and do not put your health in danger.
We hope that, as a result, you should not cook dead crayfish, you understand. Don't try to experiment! The price of such experiments is your health or the health of those you will treat. It’s better to work hard and catch more crayfish, or just spend more money and buy it.
Buy crayfish only at specialized points and only alive. those. they must move. This will be a 100 percent guarantee that you will receive not only pleasure, but also health benefits.
Bon appetit, eat only quality foods!
This video explains how dangerous crayfish can be if they were caught in a polluted water body and how to cook them so as not to become infected.
Damaged product
It is not recommended to store the cooked product longer than the permissible storage period. The dish not only loses its beneficial properties, but becomes dangerous to eat . The chemical composition changes, toxic substances are formed, which, when they enter the human body, cause severe poisoning.
Obvious signs that the product is unsuitable for consumption are that crayfish meat smells of sulfur, spreads when pressed, and acquires a grayish, unattractive tint. Products with signs of spoilage must be disposed of .
