Fatty Crab's Chili Crab
Updated June 5, 2024
Ben Stechschulte for The New York Times
- Total Time
- About 20 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
2 tablespoons chili sauce, like sriracha
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
3 tablespoons rice-wine vinegar
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 cup chopped shallots (about 8 ounces)
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon peanut oil
8 blue crabs, cleaned and split, large claws slightly cracked
1 egg yolk, beaten
½ cup chopped scallions for garnishing
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
22 grams carbs; 69 milligrams cholesterol; 184 calories; 3 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 6 grams fat; 3 grams fiber; 1078 milligrams sodium; 12 grams protein; 10 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a large bowl, whisk the chili sauce, soy sauce, sugar, rice-wine vinegar, tomato paste and sesame oil with 1 ¼ cups water and reserve.
- Step 2
Place the shallots, garlic, ginger and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the mixture becomes a smooth paste. In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons water.
- Step 3
Heat the peanut oil in a wok over high heat, and when it shimmers, add the shallot paste and fry for 30 seconds until very fragrant. Add the crabs and ⅓ of the chili sauce, and when the liquid simmers, continue to cook for 2 minutes, shaking the pan to cover the crabs with the sauce.
- Step 4
Add the remaining chili sauce to the pan, and when it reaches a simmer, turn the heat to medium-low, cover the pan and continue to simmer vigorously about 8 minutes. Stir in the cornstarch paste, and when the liquid in the pan thickens, turn off the heat. Add the egg yolk and stir again to combine. Divide the crabs and sauce among 4 plates, sprinkle with the chopped scallions and serve immediately, with crab picks and many napkins.
Private Notes
Comments
What exactly does "...crabs, cleaned and split" mean? This is accomplished with live crabs?
This is great. Used 4 soft-shell crabs instead. Did not use rice wine, water worked well. No left overs.
Just used a third of the cornstarch slurry. Otherwise, great dish! Been awhile since I was in Singapore, but this definitely brought back the memory of a wonderful dish. Great New Year's Eve dish!
This was delicious! I had to replace the shallots with the white part of scallions because that’s what I had on hand, but otherwise I followed the recipe. I unknowingly bought all female crabs, and the roe was a wonderful addition to the chili sauce. FYI, regarding crab prep: I interpreted the instructions to mean removing the apron, cutting the crabs in half, pulling off the shell, and removing the lungs.
Crabs cleaned and split means that they are already long dead, maybe even frozen . The shelves have been leveraged off, the insides are cleaned out and the the crabs are snapped in two .
What a waste of good crab! Steam them in a cup of vinegar and a cup of beer with some old bay sprinkled on the crabs in the pot. Put a trivet in the bottom of the pot so them do not boil.