Kkotgye-tang — Spicy Blue Crab Stew (꽃게탕)

West and South coastal Korea, particularly Incheon and Taean, where blue crab is harvested; kkotgye-tang is a seasonal autumn and spring dish coinciding with the crab fattening period

Kkotgye-tang (꽃게탕) is one of Korea's great seafood stews: whole live blue crabs (꽃게, Portunus trituberculatus) halved and simmered in a fiercely spiced broth of gochugaru, gochujang, doenjang, garlic, and anchovy-dashima stock until the crab shells turn vivid orange and the broth absorbs the concentrated sweetness of the crab fat (게장). The technique requires starting with live crabs or the freshest possible dead crabs — the fatty crab roe (게란, 내장) inside the body is the flavour engine; stale crabs have lost it and the stew will be thin. Radish and tofu are added to balance the heat and absorb the spiced broth.

• Singaporean chilli crab (whole crab in chilli-tomato sauce); Chinese ma la 麻辣 crab hot pot; all share the logic of cooking whole crab in spiced broth to extract fat into the base

Eaten with steamed rice into which the spiced broth is poured — this broth rice (국밥 style) is the highest form of the dish. The crab meat is picked clean by hand. Cold soju is the traditional pairing.