Soft Shell Crabs With Tomato Buttermilk Sauce Food

CRUNCHY SOFT-SHELL CRABS

Steps:

• Soak crabs in a bowl of buttermilk.
• In a deep fryer or saucepan, heat 4 inches of oil to 375 degrees.
• Whisk together cornmeal and flour, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Remove crabs from buttermilk, letting excess drip back into bowl. Coat crabs evenly in the cornmeal mixture. Working in batches, fry until golden brown and crisp all over, turning if needed, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels. While warm, season with salt. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

CORNMEAL-CRUSTED SOFT-SHELLED CRABS WITH CILANTRO-LIME TARTAR SAUCE

Steps:

• Whisk together buttermilk, eggs, salt, and pepper and pour into a 3-quart shallow dish. Add crabs and soak, covered and chilled, 1 hour.
• Heat enough oil to measure 2 inches deep in a wide 4-quart heavy pot (about 4 inches deep) to 375°F.
• Whisk together flour and cornmeal and transfer to a large sealable plastic bag. Lift 1 crab out of buttermilk, letting excess drip off, and shake in bag to coat with flour. Knock off excess flour and transfer to a tray. Repeat with remaining crabs, arranging them in 1 layer as coated.
• Deep-fry crabs, 2 at a time, turning over halfway through frying (watch out for popping), until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Return oil to 375°F between batches. Drain crabs on paper towels and serve with tartar sauce.

SOFT-SHELL CRABS WITH TOMATO-BUTTERMILK SAUCE

Steps:

• Mince garlic.
• Over high heat, heat nonstick saute pan large enough to hold the crabs. Spray lightly with pan spray. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds over medium heat.
• Remove from heat, and stir in cumin, red pepper and sugar. Add the tomatoes, crushing them between your fingers before adding to the pan. Simmer for a few minutes.
• Mix 1 teaspoon of flour with a little of the buttermilk to make a paste; then, add the paste to the remaining buttermilk, and stir it into the tomato mixture. Cook over low heat until mixture thickens. Remove from saute pan, and set aside.
• Wash crabs and dip into remaining flour, coating both sides.
• Return pan to medium-high heat, and add oil. When pan is hot, add the crabs, and brown on both sides, allowing 2 to 3 minutes a side, depending on the size of the crabs.
• Spoon the reserved tomato sauce over the crabs, and cook just to heat sauce through.

SOFT-SHELL CRAB BASKET

Steps:

• Start by cleaning the soft-shell crabs, removing the gills and the skirt flap. Refrigerate until ready to cook. On the stove, over medium heat slowly bring the vegetable oil to 325 degrees. Then lower the heat to hold the temperature. While the oil is heating prepare the buttermilk by mixing the grated lemon zest and season with salt and pepper. Combine Flour with Old Bay Seasoning. The correct way to batter using flour is a method known as dry-wet-dry, so start by coating the crabs with the flour seasoned with Old Bay then dredging them into the buttermilk and then back into the flour. Carefully using tongs drop the crabs into the oil and fry until crisp, when golden brown, remove from oil and drain on a paper towel. Serve the crabs in a basket with french-fries, coleslaw, grilled corn, tartar sauce, and lemon. Another delicious serving suggestion is a simple soft-shell sandwich. To make the sandwich place the fried crab in between 2 slices of lightly toasted white bread with lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise;

SOFT-SHELL CRABS WITH LIME SAUCE

Steps:

• Season the flour with 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Coat the crabs with flour and shake off excess. Heat butter and oil in a large skillet. When hot, add the crabs, shell side down first and saute for about 3 to 4 minutes a side (stand back a bit from skillet as crab will pop and splatter as you saute them.)
• Remove the crabs and keep them warm. Add lime zest, juice and water to the pan. Deglaze the pan by scraping up all the browned particles with a wooden spoon and incorporating them into the lime juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Boil the juices down until syrupy. Set crabs on warmed dinner plates and pour pan juices over them. For fancier occasions, garnish the plate with lemon rounds and sprinkle toasted almonds over the crabs.

SAUTEED SOFT-SHELL CRABS WITH GARLIC AND BUTTER

Steps:

• Season crabs with salt and pepper and dredge in the flour, shaking off excess. Set aside.
• In a large skillet over medium high heat, add the oil and saute the crabs until soft, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove the crabs and set aside. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Then add the capers and white wine. Cook until wine has reduced to about 1/2. Swirl in the butter and the chopped chives. Season with salt and pepper.
• Transfer crabs to a plate, spoon sauce over the crabs and garnish with Essence.
• Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.
• Recipe from "New New Orleans Cooking", by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch. Published by William and Morrow, 1993.

SOFT SHELL CRAB BASKET

Steps:

• Start by cleaning the soft-shell crabs, removing the gills and the skirt flap. Refrigerate until ready to cook. On the stove, over medium heat slowly bring the vegetable oil to 325 degrees. Then lower the heat to hold the temperature. While the oil is heating prepare the buttermilk by mixing in the grated lemon zest and season with salt and pepper. In a shallow pie tin combine the flour and the Old Bay seasoning. The correct way to batter using flour is a method known as dry-wet-dry, so start by coating the crabs with the seasoned flour then dredging them into the buttermilk and then back into the flour. Carefully using tongs drop the crabs into the oil and fry until crisp, when golden brown, remove from oil and drain on a paper towel. Serve the crabs in a basket with French fries, coleslaw, grilled corn, tartar sauce, and lemon. Another delicious serving method is to eat on white toasted bread with lettuce & tomato and mayonnaise.

SOFT-SHELL CRAB BLTS

Steps:

• Stir together the mayonnaise, mustard, horseradish, lemon juice, hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce in a small bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat, turning, until browned and crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate and break the slices in half.
• Whisk the flour and 1 tablespoon Old Bay in a shallow bowl. Season the crabs with salt and pepper, then dip the crabs in the seasoned flour to coat on both sides.
• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat until foamy. Immediately add the crabs and cook, turning, until browned and cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate and sprinkle with more Old Bay.
• Assemble the sandwiches: Spread some of the mayonnaise mixture on 4 slices of toast. Top each with lettuce, tomato, some bacon and a crab. Spread the remaining mayonnaise mixture on the 4 other slices of toast and place on top of the sandwiches. Gently press down on each sandwich and cut in half. Serve with pickles.

SAUTEED SOFT-SHELL CRABS WITH TOMATOES

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in saute pan and add shallot and garlic. Cook gently for about two minutes or until the shallot has softened. Add tomatoes and basil and stir until juices are released.
• Turn up heat and cook until tomatoes are somewhat dry. Remove from heat, swirl in the butter and season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
• Rinse capers, dry them and sprinkle them with flour. Heat peanut oil and fry capers until light golden brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels. Discard oil.
• Prepare crabs. Dip crabs in milk, then in flour, season with salt and pepper. Heat three tablespoons peanut oil in large skillet and saute the crabs, starting with the shell side, the crab's top side, down first, for a few minutes. Turn over and saute for one and a half to two minutes on underside. Drain on paper towels.
• Serve crabs on heated individual plates. Divide the tomatoes among four plates and place crabs on top. Sprinkle with the fried capers and garnish with parsley or basil leaves and lemon wedges.

SOFT-SHELL CRABS WITH WILTED SPINACH AND WARM TOMATO-BASIL VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Make soft-shelled crabs:
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Dip each crab in milk and them lightly coat both sides with flour. Heat butter and oil together in a large, oven proof (no plastic handles) pan over medium heat. Add crabs and sauté until crispy and golden, about 4 minutes. Place pan in preheated oven and cook 3 more minutes. Transfer crabs to paper toweling to absorb oil. Set aside and keep warm.
• Make warm herb vinaigrette:
• In a large bowl, combine shallots, basil, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar and lemon juice. After these ingredients are incorporated, add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Mix well, cover with plastic and refrigerate until ready to serve.
• When ready to prepare dish, warm the vinaigrette in a sauce pan over high heat, removing from stove when it begins to simmer.
• Make wilted spinach:
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add spinach and sauté 4 minutes, until wilted. Drain liquid.
• Serve:
• Place wilted spinach on one side of four individual dinner plates. Arrange two soft-shell crabs over each mound of spinach, overlapping one over the other. Spoon tomato vinaigrette over crabs and around the sides of the plate.
• To properly clean a soft-shelled crab:
• Peel back the pointed part of the shell and scrape away the gills from each side. Using sharp scissors, cut off the head and carefully squeeze out the green bubble behind the eyes. Next, bend back the "apron," the thin piece that folds under the crab. Twist the apron until it breaks off, removing the intestinal vein at the same time.