SPANNER CRAB WITH TOMATO & CUCUMBER SALAD

SERVES 4

Any seafood can be substituted for the crab in this versatile salad – try cubes of raw fish, marinated for 5 minutes in lime juice, or chunks of hot smoked trout or eel. I also like this salad with pieces of roast chicken or duck instead of the crab. For a wonderful crunch, add croutons. Fry torn stale bread in extra virgin olive oil until golden brown, then toss through the salad.

80 ml (2½ fl oz/¹/₃ cup) extra virgin olive oil

2 lemons

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 baby cos (romaine) lettuce, leaves separated and torn

16 cherry tomatoes, halved (see note)

2 Lebanese (short) cucumbers, peeled, halved lengthways, seeded and cut into 1 cm (½ inch) half moons

2 large fresh jalapeño chillies, halved lengthways, seeded and chopped

½ small red onion, finely chopped

2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) cooked spanner crab meat, picked over to remove any shell or cartilage

To make the dressing, place the oil, the juice of 2 lemons, the zest of 1 lemon, salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl, and mix well.

In a separate bowl, place the cos leaves and one-third of the dressing, season with pepper, toss gently and divide among four serving plates.

Place the remaining ingredients, except for the crab, in the bowl and dress with half the remaining dressing. Place the salad on top of the leaves (try to keep it together, but don’t fret if it slides off).

Place the crab and the last bit of dressing in the bowl and mix to coat the crab. Place a mound of crab on each salad. Finish with a good grind of pepper and a sprinkle of sea salt.

NOTE: Use any beautiful tomatoes you can find – cherry, Kumato or vine-ripened.