My nomination for the best home gourmet meal under $5

Some folks are going to be turned off as soon as they see the picture.  Others will flee just after I explain a little.

Those of us in the know will continue to enjoy the exquisite pleasure of fried soft shell crabs.

I recently found that Cap'n Willis Seafood in Emerald Isle, NC usually has live soft shell crabs for sale.

They sell them for $4.50 each.  That is the price cleaned so they are almost ready to stick in the pan when you get home.

I now ask for mine cleaned with the "mustard" taken out.  For a long time I was under the impression that this was just the fat of the crab, this article indicates that "the mustard" is actually the organ that works at "filtering impurities from the crab's blood" so you can get a dose of something you might not like.

All I do to cook my soft shell crabs is flip them around in a flour-cornmeal mixture and drop them in a pan where the hot oil just covers the bottom of the pan.  I season with some Paprika and Parsley flakes and cook about three minutes on each side.

My favorite way to eat a soft shell is to put it in a bun with my favorite seafood condiment like Kelchner's sauce and a slice of home grown tomato.

It is a great home cooked gourmet meal for under five dollars.