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Crabs?

4K views 42 replies 15 participants last post by  pepper grind 
#1 ·
Frozen king are cheap right now, and I'd like to evolve beyond melted dipping butter w/ garlic roast mashed potatoes for a change.

I was considering some sort of pasta in a creamy sauce. What do you think? Is it too rich?

Last time I used crab was in a croquette and I felt like I could've accomplished the same result with cheap canned tuna. It was still good, but everything else overwhelmed the flavor of the fish.

Do you have a favorite crab recipe?
 
#4 · (Edited)
Frozen king are cheap right now, and I'd like to evolve beyond melted dipping butter w/ garlic roast mashed potatoes for a change.

I was considering some sort of pasta in a creamy sauce. What do you think? Is it too rich?

Last time I used crab was in a croquette and I felt like I could've accomplished the same result with cheap canned tuna. It was still good, but everything else overwhelmed the flavor of the fish.

Do you have a favorite crab recipe?
I like crab cakes, but the delicate flavor of the seafood can get lost in all the crumbs/breading. (Bought some lobster cakes at the market and served them with asparagus, but the cakes had little to no seafood & way too much breading. Inedible for me.)

Some suggestions/ideas:

Crab salad nicoise

Avocado stuffed with crab salad

Crab/shrimp louis

Quiche, egg foo young or asian seafood pancake

Seafood/Low country boil

Seafood crepes or enchiladas

Seafood lasagna

Lobster rolls using crab instead

Top a slice of watermelon with a seafood salad

Crab/avocado cocktail

Cioppino or crab bisque

I like the combo of seafood and pasta (angel hair, crab, olive oil, garlic, white wine, lemon juice/zest & Gremolata). You might add some artichoke hearts. Here's an idea to play around with

http://www.foodiecrush.com/2014/03/crab-spaghetti/
 
#5 ·
Well here in Texas, chefs seem to fry everything. I have to admit. Yesterday I was at the opening of our State Fair (biggest in US) working on future plans and I was one of the people who plopped down $30. bucs for Chicken fried lobster. I got to tell you, it was pretty darn good. I know the fella and he had predicted a couple of hundred a day for a few days, and he was sold out of it all quickly. Could be done with crab, no?

http://www.guidelive.com/food-and-d...texas-fried-lobster-alligator-bacon-margarita
 
#6 ·
Nothing beats steamed crab with drawn butter... why do they call it drawn by the way? It's just melted butter. But for a twist you could do flavored butter like garlic or chive or saffron.

You could do a crab salad with fresh fennel, roasted red peppers and aioli.

For pasta I've made cannelloni stuffed with crab and baked covered with bechamel.
 
#7 · (Edited)
@Koukouvagia,

actually drawn butter is melted butter that has separated. There are the milk solids on the bottom and in the middle is the clarified butter and some whey on top. You skim off the whey and then draw out the clarified part leaving the milk solids on the bottom. That clear butter is known as drawn. Melted is just that, it has the whey and milk solids.

for what it's worth
 
#8 · (Edited)
I like crab cakes, but the delicate flavor of the seafood can get lost in all the crumbs/breading. (Bought some lobster cakes at the market and served them with asparagus, but the cakes had little to no seafood & way too much breading. Inedible for me.)

Some suggestions/ideas:

Crab salad nicoise
Avocado stuffed with crab salad
Crab/shrimp louis
Quiche, egg foo young or asian seafood pancake
Seafood/Low country boil
Seafood crepes or enchiladas
Seafood lasagna
Lobster rolls using crab instead
Top a slice of watermelon with a seafood salad
Crab/avocado cocktail
Cioppino or crab bisque

I like the combo of seafood and pasta (angel hair, crab, olive oil, garlic, white wine, lemon juice/zest & Gremolata). You might add some artichoke hearts. Here's an idea to play around with

http://www.foodiecrush.com/2014/03/crab-spaghetti/
A have at least 3 options open here, being as I live alone and we are talking about a pound and a half of legs for $18. Can you believe it?
Here you can't even get a pound for under $25.

Love, love, LOVE the idea of a crepe! I haven't had much success with making them as good as my pops, but what a delicious combination idea.

Your pasta suggestion sounds easy enough, and I'm a huge fan of the texture of angel hair (it only goes by the name of spaghettini here in BC.)

Would a little cream cheese addition or some dill be too distracting? I don't want to overdue it but one time I had this weird dish that was half a crab shell stuffed with the meat and then baked with cream cheese. No idea what it was called, but.it was sooo good!

I just don't want to go overboard.
 
#9 ·
Well here in Texas, chefs seem to fry everything. I have to admit. Yesterday I was at the opening of our State Fair (biggest in US) working on future plans and I was one of the people who plopped down $30. bucs for Chicken fried lobster. I got to tell you, it was pretty darn good. I know the fella and he had predicted a couple of hundred a day for a few days, and he was sold out of it all quickly. Could be done with crab, no?

http://www.guidelive.com/food-and-d...texas-fried-lobster-alligator-bacon-margarita
I'm a little too clumsy to deep fry anything, but must admit it sounds like something worth traveling to Texas for.
Did you try the margarita?
 
#10 ·
Nothing beats steamed crab with drawn butter... why do they call it drawn by the way? It's just melted butter. But for a twist you could do flavored butter like garlic or chive or saffron.

You could do a crab salad with fresh fennel, roasted red peppers and aioli.

For pasta I've made cannelloni stuffed with crab and baked covered with bechamel.
I do love my garlic butter dipper, but it has become too comfortable. That cannelloni sounds very tempting though... Instead of stuffing those shells, what if I put the crab inside some ravioli? I have a pretty decent pasta maker...
 
#11 ·
@Koukouvagia
,
actually drawn butter is melted butter that has separated. There are the milk solids on the bottom and in the middle is the clarified butter and some whey on top. You skim off the whey and then draw out the clarified part leaving the milk solids on the bottom. That clear butter is known as drawn. Melted is just that, it has the whey and milk solids.
for what it's worth
I had no idea! Haha!! I also thought it was just melted butter with some garlic so that's how I do it. Never noticed a difference between mine and the restaurants, but now that you mention it, maybe my texture is off.
 
#12 · (Edited)
A have at least 3 options open here, being as I live alone and we are talking about a pound and a half of legs for $18. Can you believe it?
Here you can't even get a pound for under $25.

Love, love, LOVE the idea of a crepe! I haven't had much success with making them as good as my pops, but what a delicious combination idea.

Your pasta suggestion sounds easy enough, and I'm a huge fan of the texture of angel hair (it only goes by the name of spaghettini here in BC.)

Would a little cream cheese addition or some dill be too distracting? I don't want to overdue it but one time I had this weird dish that was half a crab shell stuffed with the meat and then baked with cream cheese. No idea what it was called, but.it was sooo good!

I just don't want to go overboard.
There used to be a restaurant here called The Magic Pan. They made the best seafood, creamy chicken, dessert crepes etc. The sauce reminded me of this Mornay sauce:

http://townandcountrymarkets.com/blog/seafood_crepes_with_mornay_sauce/

My local market carried prepared crepes in the Produce section next to the strawberries. Play with the idea, and adjust it to your taste.

An oldie(?), but goodie was

Crabby Melts. Spread crab salad (mayo, celery, Paprika - or whatever you like) on toasted open-faced English Muffins. Top with shredded cheese (i.e. Swiss, or whatever you like). Place under broiler until cheese is melted. Serve with asparagus or chips on the side. Easy quick bite..
 
#14 ·
I had some rice vermicelli with garlic and crab, wrapped in betel leaves and steamed. . The menu said that it was betel leaves, but the flavor was not as intense. I am guessing here, but maybe it was a mistranslation and this were wild pepper leaves(Bai Cha Plu) and not betel leaves(Bai Plu, cousins). They served it with drawn butter. It was a revelation. Seriously good.  
 
#15 ·
I had some rice vermicelli with garlic and crab, wrapped in betel leaves and steamed. . The menu said that it was betel leaves, but the flavor was not as intense. I am guessing here, but maybe it was a mistranslation and this were wild pepper leaves(Bai Cha Plu) and not betel leaves(Bai Plu, cousins). They served it with drawn butter. It was a revelation. Seriously good.
Your post reminded me of rice paper/spring roll wrappers - filled with vermicelli, crab, avocado, greens of choice, etc. Serve with a dipping sauce, peanut or whatever you like or have on hand.
 
#17 ·
I had some rice vermicelli with garlic and crab, wrapped in betel leaves and steamed. . The menu said that it was betel leaves, but the flavor was not as intense. I am guessing here, but maybe it was a mistranslation and this were wild pepper leaves(Bai Cha Plu) and not betel leaves(Bai Plu, cousins). They served it with drawn butter. It was a revelation. Seriously good.
I've never tasted either one, but I bet it would make a wonderful twist on the popular butter leaf lettuce wrap we often enjoy here to serve as you mentioned.
 
#19 ·
I've decided on the lemon gremolata suggestion. My question to all you chefs out there is that I have read chicken broth is passable as a substitute for white wine in most recipes. I don't quite understand this because of the opposing flavors both offer, so has anyone attempted this or come up with an even better concoction to emulate wine?
 
#20 · (Edited)
speaking of crab how you feel about that Imitation crab meat, not the can stuff ones sold in the packs. I bought 3 packs of the stuff in Bjs to use in making crab meat rangoon. I hear it's a kind of flounder that swims in the artic and the red color is added during processing. My sister said if you want crab go to main
 
#21 · (Edited)
speaking of crab how you feel about that Imitation crab meat, not the can stuff ones sold in the packs. I bought 3 packs of the stuff in Bjs to use in making crab meat rangoon. I hear it's a kind of flounder that swims in the artic and the red color is added during processing. My sister said if you want crab go to main
If you are referring to the "Sea Quest" pollock variety of fish that is dyed and seasoned to taste similar, I'm going to be quite honest and say that I love the stuff.

No I don't think it tastes the same, but my experience is that I almost prefer it as a substitute in most dishes. A good example is a browned, gooey, cheesy fettuccine Alfredo or seafood lasagna. When we had a Mongolian grill here it was often the top ingredient in my stirfry.

To me, there is something I dig about the texture and will happily use it in pretty much everything including on its own. I don't care if it doesn't taste exact. I mean, odds are you are throwing a sauce on it anyway.

That is the only kind of crab they put in sushi and on salads here, but they label it under another name on the menus so people think its fancy and will pay stupid amounts for the dish.
 
#23 ·
The ultimate crab experience for me is live Dungeness - West Coast - crabs dropped in boiling water just long enough to calm them down, then cleaned and disassembled. Then the shells are thoroughly cracked and a slurry of softened butter and garlic -- lots of garlic -- is massaged through the broken shells till it surrounds the meat. The crab parts are then finished on a grill - mesquite smoke is a plus - and eaten with MORE garlic butter. (OK, I'm a little warped that way) A touch of hot sauce is up to you..

I grew up in Maryland where the blue crab reigns.They're certainly tasty, but smaller and far less chunky and harder to clean than the

dungeness. By the time you get at the meat in a mess of blues, you might have starved.

Good luck

Mike
 
#25 ·
The ultimate crab experience for me is live Dungeness - West Coast - crabs dropped in boiling water just long enough to calm them down, then cleaned and disassembled. Then the shells are thoroughly cracked and a slurry of softened butter and garlic -- lots of garlic -- is massaged through the broken shells till it surrounds the meat. The crab parts are then finished on a grill - mesquite smoke is a plus - and eaten with MORE garlic butter. (OK, I'm a little warped that way) A touch of hot sauce is up to you..

I grew up in Maryland where the blue crab reigns.They're certainly tasty, but smaller and far less chunky and harder to clean than the

dungeness. By the time you get at the meat in a mess of blues, you might have starved.

Good luck

Mike
I prefer blue crab myself. Heaps of garlic and butter served with boiled new potatoes and corn on the cob.
 
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