Black Bean Blue Crabs With Lotus Crab And Avocado Parfait Recipes

WHOLE BLUE CRABS NEW ORLEANS-STYLE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add bouquet garni, crab boil, lemons, halved garlic, corn, and sausage. Add blue crabs and cover. Cook for 10 minutes or until crab is cooked through.
• In a small saute pan over medium heat, melt butter with the 3 peeled garlic cloves. Simmer the butter for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and discard the garlic cloves.
• Remove the crabs, corn, and sausage from the crab boil and serve on newspaper, with butter sauce over top.

TAGLIOLINI WITH CRAB RAGU

Steps:

• In a saute pan, add olive oil and garlic and saute for 1 minute, until golden brown. Add crabs, oregano, red pepper, salt, and pepper, and continue to saute for 5 minutes. Add crab stock to mixture and continue to saute for 4 minutes. Crab stock should be prepared ahead of time with mirepoix of vegetables and crab shells. Add tomatoes with juice. Stir and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer. Continue to stir until sauce has been brought to a simmer. Cover and cook for 45 minutes. Add basil and remove from the heat. Add frozen peas and stir.
• Boil pasta in water for 8 to 10 minutes until al dente, and strain. For a more velvety sauce, add butter to the pasta before adding the sauce. Make sure the butter has been incorporated well into the pasta before adding the sauce. Season, to taste. Before adding finished sauce to pasta, remove crabs from saucepot and keep warm.
• To serve, add pasta to soup bowl. Top with sauce and lump crabmeat and place 1 or 2 crab bodies on top.

CRAB PARFAIT

Steps:

• To make the dressing, whisk together mayonnaise, ketchup, cayenne, dry mustard, shallot, lemon juice, and parsley. Season the dressing with salt and pepper. Fold in the crabmeat and capers, turn to coat. Using a clear parfait glass or champagne glass, scoop a heaping tablespoon of the diced mangoes on the bottom of the glass. Press down slightly with a spoon. Add a layer of crabmeat on top, pressing down again, followed by a layer of chopped mixed greens. Repeat the layers. After the last layer of greens, spoon a final mound of crab salad on top. Repeat with remaining 3 glasses. Serve with toasted baguette slices.

BLACK BEAN AND GINGER DUNGENESS CRAB

Steps:

• In a large wok, bring peanut oil to high temperature. Dust the crab pieces with cornstarch and a little salt. Shallow fry the crab for only 1 to 2 minutes until the crab shells turn red. Drain on paper towels. Do the same with the 2 shells. Reserve oil and wipe wok clean. Add 2 tablespoons oil back to the wok on high heat. Stir-fry the beans, ginger, garlic and scallions for 1 minute until soft. Add back the crab and deglaze with shaoxing and add soy and stock. Check for seasoning and bring to a boil. Thicken with the slurry and cook 30 more seconds. Serve immediately with the cooked shells.
• PLATING On a large oval, place the 2 shells down near both ends. Fill with hot rice. Mound the crab between the shells. Enjoy with your fingers. Can also serve with lemon finger bowls.
• Wine suggestion: Marsanne, Bois du Renard, Languedoc 1998

CRAB AND BLACK BEANS

Steps:

• Heat oil in nonstick skillet and saute onion, garlic and jalapeno until onion softens.
• Stir in the cumin, coriander and hot pepper and stir for 20 seconds.
• Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, vinegar, oregano and salt, and cook about 5 minutes, until tomatoes soften.
• Add the black beans and crabmeat and cook to heat through. To serve, sprinkle with cilantro and serve with corn bread.