Oh - Thai people do this with the land crabs that are EVERYWHERE in the rainy season - and they can be HUGE. Saw one just yesterday in the driveway that was easily 6 inches across. And yes, they rub them with lime juice too. But they're very much into adding CHILE to spice it up.
Awesome dish. The Thai people tend to serve it over rice, but I think cooking the rice in the juices makes much more sense!
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Oh, boy. It sounds like you have abundant reserves of crabs. In my town people added ají picante (chili peppers) to taste, after the dish was done because not everybody is fan of hot spices. But, yes, it takes the flavor to another level.