Mitten crab,Hairy-fisted crab

The Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis; simplified Chinese: 大闸蟹; traditional Chinese: 大閘蟹; pinyin: dàzháxiè, lit. “big sluice crab”), also known as the Shanghai hairy crab (上海毛蟹, p Shànghǎi máoxiè), is a medium-sized burrowing crab that is named for its furry claws, which resemble mittens. It is native to rivers, estuaries and other coastal habitats of East Asia from Korea in the north to Fujian, China in the south.

The crab is an autumn delicacy in Shanghai cuisine and eastern China. It is prized for the female crab roe, which ripen in the ninth lunar month and the males in the tenth. The crab meat is believed by TCM practitioners to have a “cooling” (yin) effect on the body.