The Lobster (Homarus americanus).—The lobster is a crustacean which occurs along the northern Atlantic coast. Formerly it was so very abundant that it was almost a drug on the market. In the last quarter of a century the increase in the consumption of the lobster has been more rapid than the increased growth, so that the price has become higher and higher; and this, to a certain extent, is limiting the consumption. The coast of Maine is especially the fishing grounds for the American lobster, though it is found much further south and also in great abundance further north. The lobster varies greatly in size. The law, at the present time, prevents very young lobsters from being sent into commerce. They are usually from 10.5 to 15 inches in length, though occasionally examples of enormous size are taken. The edible portion of the lobster is the liquid and the flesh of the body, claws, and tail. Only about one-half the weight of the lobster, including the liquid, therefore, is edible. The rest is refuse. In a lobster weighing a thousand grams (2.2 pounds), five hundred grams (1.1 pound) will be the average edible portion, and the other half the refuse and loss. The average lobster of the present day, perhaps, weighs scarcely two pounds, though in former times the weight was very much greater because the younger and smaller lobsters were not sent to the market. The color of the lobster as it comes from the water is dark green, almost black at times. Heat changes the color of the shell, so that after boiling or baking the lobster becomes red. The flesh of the lobster is decidedly sweet, owing to the large quantity of glycogen which it contains. There is only one kind of meat that is eaten which approaches the lobster in its content of glycogen, and that is horse meat.
Composition of the Lobster.—Edible portion:
Fresh. Dry.
Water, 84.30 percent
Protein, 11.63 " 74.06 percent
Fat, 1.82 " 11.62 "
Ash, 1.63 " 10.38 "
Glycogen, .62 " 3.94 "
Crabs.—The crab is a shellfish very highly prized along the whole of the Atlantic coast. Numerous species of crabs are used for food. These are used in two forms—as hard-shelled or soft-shelled crabs. The species most valued is Callinectes hastatus. It is very abundant on the middle and south Atlantic coast. Crabs are quite abundant on the Pacific coast also. About 44 percent of the total weight of the crab is edible and 56 percent shell and refuse. In the edible portion about 77 percent is water and 23 percent solid matter.
Composition of the Water-free Substance of the Crab.—
Protein, 72.56 percent
Fat, 8.55 "
Ash, 13.64 "
