Nothing worse than planning a feast and ending up with a sad pile of empty shells. Ask your fishmonger what size they’re selling. “Half bushel of jumbos” sounds fancy, but look that guy in the eye and confirm it’s not a mixed bag of scraps.
If you’re buying from a roadside stand, count them right there. I once bought a half bushel that felt light, opened it later, and found a few hermit crabs crashing the party. True story. Don’t be that guy.
Another pro tip: ask if they’re “heavy” or “light” crabs. A heavy crab has just molted and is full of water, not meat. You want a firm, solid shell—that’s the good stuff inside.
The math of the feast: a real-world example
Picture this: you invite four friends over. You buy a half bushel of mediums—say, 38 crabs. Your friend Sarah picks like a surgeon, extracting every flake of meat. Your buddy Mike eats three then falls asleep on the couch. You are relentless, cracking claws like a pro.
How Many Crabs Is A Half Bushel | Detroit Chinatown
By the end, you’ll have exactly zero leftovers. And that’s the perfect outcome. No one walks away hungry, and the only evidence is a mountain of shells and a shared sense of accomplishment.
But if you’re feeding eight hungry adults, half a bushel becomes a tease. They’ll be picking at the last crab like kids fighting over the last slice of pizza. Better to buy two half bushels and call it a proper boil.
