Hangzhou cooks came up with the recipe because they wanted to find a graceful way of dining on crab. When the dish is served, the orange, with its top cut off, is placed in a glass cup or a bowl. The sliced white crab meat and the golden crab roe are inside the orange and mixed with the fruit’s flesh and other seasonings.

The crabmeat absorbs the fragrance of the orange. Juice from the orange also cuts the crab roe grease and adds an appetizing flavor. It is eaten with a spoon and diners are advised to take their time to savor the flavor. The recipe has been adapted by generations of chefs. Now the stuffing may contain crab, pork, chufa and egg. Chufa, also known as tiger nut, earth chestnut or earth almond, produces a tuber with a slight almond taste. The seasonings often include ginger, pepper, salt, vinegar and alcohol. When the tender crab meat is steamed with the creamy roe and orange flesh, the flavor is delicate and complex — sweet at first, then a bit sour before turning sweet again.