Well, to be honest, that's how they look like once they have been cooked, and this is how you should go about it: grab a large pot and fill it halfway with water, adding enough salt so that it tastes like sea water. This means a lot of salt. The pot should be large enough to hold the crabs, and I do not recommend cooking more that two medium-sized crabs at a time. Bring the water to a boil with an onion studded with a few cloves, and add also a glass of white wine. Once it's boiling, put the live crabs inside. There's no other way, sorry. As soon as the water comes back to a boil, time 20 minutes. Skim the water now and then. After the 20 minutes, turn off the heat and remove the crabs from the pot, run them under cold water, and let them cool. Once they are cold enough, put them in the fridge for half an hour or so. That's when you start disassembling them: remove that belly bit that is missing in this picture:
After that, remove the legs with a swift circular motion. This is what you want to obtain:
Then, you must separate the carapace from what's left of the crab. It's not easy to explain how to do this, fiddle around a bit and you'll get it. Once you've done it, there are a few things you should throw away, others you must keep. The juices are precious, do all this above a plate that catches the juices. Anything that looks edible is edible, that's my best explanation. In particular, the innards are the best part. Collect all these bits in a bowl, breaking them into bite-sized morsels. Add the collected juices, one finely chopped hard-boiled egg, some mustard, a splash of whiskey, maybe some mayo. You want to create a yummy paste that you'll spread over crusty bread. Some people like to put this paste back into the carapace, once it's scrubbed and clean. I prefer to serve in a bowl. Chill everything, and serve the legs and the paste with a dry white wine. It may not look perfect, but I can assure you it tasted divinely!
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