|
SPECIES |
Snow crab and red king crab |
|
BINOMIAL NAME |
Pralithodes camtschatius and Chionoecetes opilio |
|
FISHING METHODS |
Traps and pots |
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MSC CERTIFIED |
Nova Scotia, Gulf of St Lawrence and Newfoundland & Labrador (Canada) (for more information on the MSC see here) |
|
TINNED OPTIONS |
Crabmeat in water |
CRABMEAT FROM THE CLAWS IS FLAVOURSOME AND WELL SUITED TO SOUPS AND SAUCES.
PLANTAIN, CRAB AND MANGO CHUTNEY
CRAB SALAD WITH ORANGE AND FENNEL
CRAB WITH APPLE AND CURRY-GINGER SAUCE
THE red king crab is the only crab whose name is proudly used on the labels of tins. This has to do with the limited supply available of this crab. The crab – with its claws like garden shears – hails from Alaskan waters and is the star of the popular Discovery Channel programme Deadliest Catch. American fishermen bring in these sturdy crabs, frequently measuring more than a metre in size, from the freezing Bering Sea. The crab is very profitable, so the fishermen literally cram as many as they can into the hold.
THE red king crab finds its way to the consumer both fresh and frozen, but also in tins and jars. The Russians also catch this crab and most of their meat is destined for the Chatka cannery in Spain. Hunks of red king crabmeat will be an assault on your weekly shopping budget – tinned crab doesn’t get better than this, although this level of quality comes at a price. Several producers specialising in fish are particularly known for supplying tins with crab of this quality.
OTHER countries, however, like Chile, export more competitively priced tinned red king crab. In some areas, you can also buy cheaper tinned crabmeat, commonly known as ‘extra fancy’ or ‘special’, which contains some claw meat. This crab comes from Southeast Asia. Fancy crabmeat is perfectly fine to drain and use in crab cakes, soups, salads and quesadillas.
COUNTRIES where a lot of crab is consumed offer meat of varying quality. Lump, one large piece or several slightly smaller pieces, is the highest quality, then special, which might be of lower quality but is preferable in taste and structure to surimi, imitation crabmeat made from pressed white fish meat. Producers also offer just meat from the claws, which is darker in colour and very flavoursome. This meat is well suited to soups and sauces.
CRAB is also available to the consumer in both MSC-certified and uncertified tins. Crab from certified fisheries in Canada will partly be sold with the blue MSC label.
GOOD-QUALITY snow crab is available from the fishermen of the Canadian Nova Scotia peninsula. The smaller snow crab is also quite expensive. The fishermen catch the crabs in cage traps. Part of the catch won’t leave the island – tourists eat the crabs in restaurants along one the world’s most beautiful coastal roads, the Cabot Trail. The tranquil Nova Scotia has so much to offer, you find yourself wondering why people go out to sea. It must be the fishermen’s hunting instinct.
SNACK/STARTER
SERVES 4
FOR a tasty alternative, use smoked mackerel, smoked mussels or kippers instead of crab.
1 tin of crabmeat (170g/6oz), drained
1 tbsp mayonnaise
1 lime
1 plantain
1 tbsp plain flour, sifted
sunflower oil
1 jar of mango chutney, preferably Sharwood’s
cayenne pepper
a few chives, finely chopped
crispy fried onions, to garnish
• Mix the crab with the mayonnaise and a few drops of lime juice.
• Cut the plantain into 6mm (about ¼in) thick slices.
• Put the flour on a sheet of cling film. Flour both sides of the plantain slices and place them on the cling film. Place another layer of cling film on top. Use a pan to press down lightly on the plantain to make the slices a bit thinner.
• Heat a little oil in a large frying pan and fry the slices until crisp and golden brown. This should take about a minute.
• Use kitchen paper to pat dry and drain excess oil.
• Place a teaspoon of mango chutney on each slice.
• Spoon the crab on top of the mango chutney.
• Sprinkle with cayenne pepper, the chives and the crispy fried onions.
STARTER
SERVES 4
juice of 1 orange
juice of ½ lime
4 tbsp mayonnaise
3 little gems or 1 cos lettuce
2 oranges, peeled and cut in segments
1 baby fennel bulb, cut into thin strips
2 tins of crabmeat (170g/6oz each), drained
1 bunch of basil or Thai basil
sea salt and freshly ground white pepper
• Beat the orange and lime juice, the mayonnaise, salt and pepper together to make a dressing.
• Remove and discard the outer leaves of the lettuce and detach the lettuce leaves from the heart. Arrange on a plate.
• Put the orange segments, the fennel strips and the crab on the lettuce leaves.
• Drizzle the dressing over the salad and garnish with small basil leaves.
STARTER
SERVES 4
1 celery stick
3 sharp eating apples, such as Granny Smith
1 tin of crabmeat (170g/6oz), drained
1 tbsp curry powder
4 tbsp mayonnaise
1 3cm/1¼in piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and grated
cayenne pepper
• With a knife, pull off the tough fibrous strings of the celery stick, then cut the celery into thin crescent shapes.
• Peel an apple and cut into cubes.
• Take the crab legs from the tin and set aside.
• Mix the remaining crabmeat with the curry powder, mayonnaise, apple cubes, grated ginger and part of the celery. Season with cayenne pepper.
• From the top and bottom of the remaining two apples, cut slices about 3mm/⅛ in thick.
• Place the crab salad on the apple slices. Garnish with the crab legs, some cayenne pepper and the remaining celery.
MAIN COURSE
SERVES 4
20 large white mushrooms
juice of 1 lemon
2 tins of crabmeat (170g/6oz each), drained
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp very finely chopped garlic,
2 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
cayenne pepper
100g/3½oz Gruyère cheese, grated
2 tbsp finely chopped chives
sea salt
• Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas 5.
• Cut the stems off the mushroom (use them later for a soup).
• Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil with the lemon juice and a pinch of salt.
• Add the mushroom caps and boil for 2 minutes.
• Remove from the pan and leave the mushrooms to drain on a tea towel.
• Combine the crab, olive oil, garlic, parsley, a pinch of cayenne pepper and, if necessary, a little salt.
• Put the mushrooms, gill-side up, in a baking pan, fill them with the crab mixture and sprinkle the grated Gruyère on top.
• Bake the mushrooms in the oven for about 7 minutes. If necessary, place under the grill to add some colour to the cheese.
• Sprinkle the chives over the mushrooms and serve.
STARTER
SERVES 4
6 oranges
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp Thai fish sauce (nam pla)
2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp soy sauce
1 ripe mango, peeled and thinly sliced
2 ripe avocados, pitted and thinly sliced
2 tins of crabmeat (170g/6oz each), drained
3cm/1¼in piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and grated
cayenne pepper
• Cut some strips of orange zest using a vegetable peeler. Be careful not to peel the white pith as this has a bitter taste.
• Squeeze the oranges and pass the juice through a sieve.
• Put the juice and zest strips in a pan. Bring to the boil, then boil to reduce by half. Make sure the juice doesn’t turn brown (colour in the juice indicates caramelisation of the sugars, which you do not want for in this dish).
• Leave the orange juice to cool, then chill in the fridge.
• Take the juice out of the fridge, remove the zest and add a kick of lime juice.
• With a fork, beat in the fish sauce, sesame oil and soy sauce.
• Pour the dressing into four bowls.
• Place the mango, avocado and crab in each bowl.
• Place a tiny dollop of grated ginger on top and sprinkle with cayenne pepper to serve.
