It's been all crab, all the time at home. My mother recently hosted a dinner and had a pile of King Crab legs. I focused solely on the crab (and admonished everyone at the table for not doing the same), saying, "We have to eat these now. Tonight. Remember Christmas? They weren't as good re-heated. Put down the steak! Drop the garlic bread! For the love of- FINE. I'll try to eat them all myself." Didn't happen. I only got through two.
After the dinner was over, I grabbed the largest one to-go and it sat in my fridge while I contemplated what to do with it. Then it hit me: Crab Cakes. I wrestled with the crab arm for half an hour, trying to figure out how to get to the meat without a cracker. Lots of smashing and cursing later, I had just over a cup of shredded meat. Then I made the following:
Crab Cakes1 cup shredded crab meat
1-2 green onions, sliced thin
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 egg
1 1/2 cup panko flakes
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
Salt & Pepper
Breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons Vegetable oil
- Add mayonnaise and egg to bowl. Wisk until smooth. Add crab meat, green onions, mustard powder, Old Bay seasoning, salt, pepper and 1 cup of panko flakes. Smoosh everything together with hand. If mixture is very wet, add remaining panko flakes.
- Form into patties (3 - 4 inches across, 1/2 - 3/4 inch thick). Coat both sides with breadcrumbs. Fry in non-stick pan, in vegetable oil, over medium-high heat, until browned on both sides, about 10 minutes. Makes 4 cakes.
My cakes were on the thick side, so getting the inside to heat through took a little longer. If you're worried about eating raw egg, make your patties a mere 1/2 inch thick. Crab cakes tend to be salty, so serve 2 as main course along side a garden salad.
I liked these but Dollar thought they tasted like horseradish. I would omit the mustard power (but not the Old Bay) if this concerns you.
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I made a crab and green onion quiche for brunch this past Sunday. I got a 1lb pound can of crab claws and used half for:
Crab and Green Onion Quiche1 pre-made pie shell (I'm lazy)
2 eggs
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup half & half
Salt & Pepper
3 slices swiss cheese
1 cup crab meat
2 green onions, sliced
- Preheat oven to 350
- Put the pie shell in a pie dish. Layer swiss cheese on bottom. Sprinkle crab meat and green onions over cheese.
- Wisk together mayonnaise, eggs, half & half, salt and pepper. Pour evenly over crab and green onions. Bake for 40 - 50 minutes.
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With the remaining 8oz of crab, I decided to make crab and corn chowder last night:
Crab and Corn ChowderOne SUPER LARGE russet potato (or 2-3 regular ones)
1 stick celery
1/2 onion
2 garlic cloves
1 small can creamed corn
1 small can corn kernels (drained)
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup milk
1 cup crab meat
Salt & Pepper
- Peel and dice potato. Put into heavy-bottomed, medium-sized pot.
- In a food processor (or blender), chop celery, onion and garlic together until very fine. The idea here is to make a very wet paste/puree. Pour over potatoes, pour some water into food processor/blender to loosen remaining ingredients, pour over potatoes. Repeat until potatoes are barely covered with water.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer for 20 minutes until potatoes are tender.
- Add creamed corn, corn kernels, milk, crab and butter. Heat through, add salt and pepper to taste, serve hot. Makes 3 - 4 servings.
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