I've Lived In Tampa for Nearly 25 Years-and This Is the 1 Dish Recommend Every Traveler Try

"Sure, Tampa is known for its Cuban sandwich-a tantalizing mash-up of Spanish, Italian, Swiss and German flavors served between two pieces of crusty Cuban bread created in the heyday of Ybor City, the Cigar Capital of the World at the turn of the 20th century-but there's another iconic local dish born of the same era to try when in town: devil crab."

"Unlike Maryland crab cakes and Southern-style deviled crab, in which crabmeat is mixed with breading and spices, Tampa's devil crab mixes fresh crabmeat with sofrito, or a blend of green peppers, onion, garlic, tomatoes (or tomato sauce or paste) and oregano sautéed in olive oil. Rather than pan-frying or baking in crab shells, the devil crab mix is traditionally formed into palm-size"

"Long before food trucks, enterprising business types began selling devil crab on-the-go from their motor scooters and bicycles equipped with insulated carriers. Perhaps the most beloved was the Devil Crab Man, Francisco Miranda, who peddled thousands of his devil crabs from the 1930s until he passed away in 1953. "They'd make them at home and ride around the streets of Ybor, and later the port, and they would sell them to people kind of like a food truck of modern times," said Kite-Powell"

Tampa's devil crab originated during 1920s cigar industry strikes as an inexpensive, portable meal for cigar workers. The dish used readily available blue crabmeat and Cuban bread. Vendors sold devil crabs from scooters and bicycles with insulated carriers, and sellers such as Francisco Miranda peddled thousands from the 1930s to 1953. The recipe mixes fresh crabmeat with sofrito of green peppers, onion, garlic, tomatoes or sauce, and oregano sautéed in olive oil. Unlike Maryland crab cakes and Southern-style deviled crab, the mix is not breaded but traditionally formed into palm-sized portions. Restaurants with side windows offered devil crab as a walk-up item.

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