Crab meat is a very simple preparation that allows you to extract from crabs the prized part. Once you have obtained the meat, you can use it to make salads, pasta, risottos.
If you like crab, don’t forget to read the recipe
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Rest time: 5 Minutes
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Boiling
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
- Energy 148.79 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 5.62 (g) of which sugars 2.73 (g)
- Proteins 19.09 (g)
- Fat 5.64 (g) of which saturated 0.90 (g)of which unsaturated 0.52 (g)
- Fibers 1.33 (g)
- Sodium 762.72 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 100 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for 2 people
- 1.1 lbs crabs
- 12 cups water
- 7.1 oz tomatoes (or tomato sauce)
- to taste salt
- 1 fresh chili pepper
- 1 clove garlic
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
Tools
- 1 Pot 3 l
- 1 Small pot 2 l
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Nutcracker
Procedure
For delicious and flavorful crab meat, I recommend carefully selecting the raw materials to use because this changes the work you will have to do.
You can use large and fine crabs like king crab, porro crab, or spider crab, which are easier to work with and have a lot of meat (but also more expensive).
Among the smaller crabs, we find the blue crab or green crabs, which are more challenging to work with because they are smaller and have less internal meat.
For good crab meat, you need to cook the crab in plenty of salted water for about 10 minutes. When the crab turns red, you can remove it from the water, open it, and obtain the meat inside.
If you have doubts, read here how to cook and clean the crab perfectly.
If you use fresh cherry tomatoes: cut them in half and cook them in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. To flavor the sauce, I recommend a crushed clove of garlic in its skin and fresh chili pepper.
With tomato sauce, you only need to sauté the chili and garlic over low heat, being careful not to burn them. After 4-5 minutes, add the tomato sauce.
When the cherry tomatoes have started to break down and a thick sauce is forming, add the crab meat you obtained earlier.
Cook over low heat for 10 minutes so the crab flavors the tomato and a tasty sauce forms.
Once cooking is complete, adjust the salt and remove the garlic and chili.
Your crab meat is ready!
Plating Tips:
This is a fine product; handle it as little as possible and leave the meat visible on the final plate. It’s nice to see pieces of fresh crab since it’s not a substitute (like surimi).
Which wine to pair with crab meat:
I recommend a Vernaccia di San Gimignano riserva with a straw-yellow color. The aroma is broad, aristocratic, and very varied. The taste is revealed to be fragrant, fleshy, and structured, enhancing the flavorful crab meat.
