Black Pepper Crab

 

Black Pepper Crab - a dish I have not eaten anywhere else but Singapore until now. I always thought it was a very complicated dish to prepare and stayed away for a very long time. Thanks to these lockdowns I was getting these urges and memories of those yummy dishes I garnered strength to try it out. It turns out that it's not super complicated to prepare. They say it can be prepared using any type of crab but to get the real impact it has to be a mud crab. Thankfully the seafood shop nearby had this and they also cut and cleaned it for me as well. Which otherwise is a story by itself. 

Ingredients

1. Mud crab - 1 for 2 people (I got 2) cut in quarters
2. Black Pepper - 50 gms
3. Garlic - 1 whole garlic (minced)
4. Ginger - 1 inch (grated)
5. Red onion - 1 (thinly sliced)
6. Butter - 50 gms
7. Chicken stock - 1 cup
8. Oyster sauce - 3-4 table spoons
9. Kecap Manis (Sweet soya sauce) - 3-4 table spoons
10. Dark Soya sauce - 1-2 table spoons
11. Sugar - 1 tea spoon
12. Corn flour - 2 tea spoons
13. Curry leaves - a handful

Method

1. Crush the black pepper into a coarse powder (not smooth)
2. Dry roast the crushed pepper in a wok for about 10-15 seconds (until you can smell the pepper).  Preferably use the same wok you will use for further steps and keep aside.
3. Deep fry the crab pieces until they turn red using any vegetable oil and set aside.
4. Transfer the oil and whatever remains to a container.
5. Melt the butter and add the minced garlic, ginger and onions and saute them for about a minute.
6. Add the chicken stock, oyster sauce, kecap manis, dark soya sauce, sugar and the crushed pepper.
7. Keep stirring until this mixture comes to a boil.
8. Add the curry leaves and toss it up.
9. Add the corn flour mixed in water and stir for a few minutes until the sauce thickens.
10. Add the deep fried crabs and saute for about 2 to 3 minutes.

Serve hot as an entre.

Prawn Scampi Pasta

Pasta as you probably know comes in different shapes and forms and sauces. I hear I had shared a spicy and creamy version roughly about 8 years ago. This version is not as complicated in terms of ingredients or the process. Of course a more traditional version involves a few more ingredients but I customized this to my preference (in other words what I had in my pantry). A great dish for what they call as a week day dinner fix. Simple, quick and tasty. A more traditional recipe will involve a few more ingredients such as white wine, parsley, Italian herbs etc.,  which I have not used. So without much further ado...

Ingredients

1. Pasta (500 gms). I used spaghetti but you can use pretty much any type of pasta. Preferably the noodle type ones (spaghetti, linguini, angel hair etc).
2. Prawns (or Shrimp for in the United States) - 200 gms
3. Garlic - 10 cloves (finely minced)
4. Butter - 100 gms
5. Olive Oil - 2-3 table spoons
6. Red chilli flakes - to taste
7. Lemon juice - 2-3 table spoons
8. Coriander - chopped for garnish (better if you use parsley)

The Method

1. Cook and drain the pasta as per the package instructions with a teaspoon of salt. Ensure it is not too soft and mushy.
2. Heat a large wok and melt the butter. Add the olive oil once the butter is melted.
3. Add the garlic and saute for about a minute without letting it burn. Turn down the heat if needed.
4. Add the prawns and red chilli flakes and saute until the prawns turn pink. Add salt to taste.
5. Add the lemon juice and toss it up for about a minute.
6. Add the cooked pasta and toss it in until the sauce is evenly mixed.
7. Garnish with chopped coriander (or parsley) leaves and serve.

Happy Cooking!!

C

Prawn Malabar

Usually I start researching on a recipe of a dish that I liked before I try it out in the kitchen. However this time it was the other way round. I prepared the dish with whatever ingredients I had and then researched for a good name for it and ended up with Prawn Malabar - thanks to the addition of coconut milk. Prawns or Shrimp as the Yankees would call it is one of the most versatile seafood that can be cooked quickly and in many different ways. Yesterday was a situation when a curry was needed in a short period of time especially when the refrigerator was not stocked up. Good old frozen prawns came to the rescue - once again. 

Ingredients

1. Prawns - devined and cleaned - 500 gms (I used frozen)
2. Red Onions (diced) - 2 medium sized
3. Tomatoes (diced) - 2
4. Green chillies (slit) - 5 or 6
5. Ginger garlic paste - 2 tablespoons
6. Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
7. Garam Masala powder - 50 gms (I used Sakthi Chicken masala)
8. Coconut Milk - 1/2 cup
9. Vegetable oil
10. Mustard seeds - 2 teaspoons
11. Curry leaves

Method

1. If you are using frozen prawns - thaw and clean them first under running water for a few minutes and let them drain.
2. In a large sauce pan / wok heat the oil and season it with mustard seeds until it splatters.
3. Saute the ginger garlic paste for about 30 seconds
4. Saute the green chillies, onions and tomatoes. This will take about 10 to 15 minutes - the longest process in this recipe until the onions and tomatoes are all mushed up and comes to an almost paste like consistency.
5. Add the garam masala, turmeric powder and salt to taste and saute for a few minutes.
6. Add the coconut milk and let the mixture come to a boil.
7. Add water as much as needed without making the curry too watery.
8. Add the prawns and cook them for a few minutes - until they curl up and turn red. For those who have not cooked prawns before - if you overcook it would become very tough and rubbery.
9. Add the curry leaves and stir the mixture until the curry leaf flavour blends in.
10. Serve hot with steamed white rice.

Happy Cooking!!

C

Kerala Njandu (Crab) Curry

My first exposure to crab was from Velu Military mess I think in Chennai. Remember fiddling around with it without knowing really what to eat or what to expect. However this one - Kerala Njandu Curry is dedicated to THE (G) Gang at Kings Court, Beaverton @Friday Club. Those were the bachelor days of many people's first long term onsite assignment. A lot can happen when you have those 25+ aged guys around living around in close proximity. Amongst few other things that were "developed", one of them was an affinity to Njandu (Crab) Curry.
Thanks to Mr. Ajay Suresh Babu - who was our Mallu (or Konkani?) chef - who introduced this simple but amazing crab curry. I must admit that it took nearly 12 years for me to attempt this on my own. The outcome was not too bad I suppose. One key ingredient that was missing was the 10 member Uno game that goes along with this. ;-) Here's my version of Kerala Njandu (to be pronounced with a twist of your nose) Curry.

Ingredients

1) Crab
2) Ginger & Garlic Paste
3) Coconut Milk
4) Salt
5) Turmeric powder
6) Red chilly powder
7) Garam masala
8) Cumin powder
9) Coriander powder
10) Vegetable Oil

The Method


(-1)  You can start with cleaning the crab. However I would recommend getting it cleaned professionally at the fish market. If in case you dare to clean it yourself you can read here to get an idea.

(0) Ginger - Garlic paste - preferably you make it yourself, or a store bought would do just fine.

1) Heat a large saucepan and add a few table spoons of oil. Less for the health conscious - more for those who look for a restaurant feel.
2) Once the oil is hot (maybe a minute or so) add the ginger garlic paste and saute it for about 5 minutes.
3) Once you see the oil separate add 3/4th s of the coconut milk and mix it up for a few minutes.
4) Add the crab and all the dry items (all the powders - a  tea spoon each except turmeric which should be a pinch or 2).
5) Stir it well and let it to boil for about 15 - 20 minutes with a closed lid until the crabs turn red. You may add some water in case you have more guests to feed.
6) Add the remaining coconut milk and leave it to simmer for a few minutes before serving.

Quite Simble eh!! Enjoy!! (Best served with steamed rice)

Happy Cooking

C

Singapore Chilli Crab

Hello,

Am back again after a short break. This is one of those dishes that I cooked without tasting ever. I still haven't brought myself to buy a dish that costs $85. Yes, that is what it costs at Sambal for their signature dish. It was on my "To Cook" for a while and it happened over the long weekend. Thanks to the Queen.

What goes in:

• Crab
• Onion, Ginger, Garlic paste
• Chilli powder (can replace this with Thai red chilli added to the paste above)
• Tomato paste
• Sambal paste
• Palm sugar (or normal sugar would do as well)
• Vinegar
• Soy sauce
• Tomato Sauce

Crab Cleaning

The very first time we attempted to cook crab was in Phoenix and it was a major disaster. So did a little more research this time.

1) If the crabs are still alive you should give a tap on its head just near the eyes to "knock them off". The one we had was already dead. 

2) Take a nice big knife and split the crab right in the middle.

3) Once split, you can easily open up the top shell and clean all the slimy stuff out. You can run it under cold water. There will also be some gray fibery substance on the top - get that out as well.

4) Chop up the claws or sections as some people call it.

Now to the curry

1. Heat up a wide sauce pan and pour a few tablespoons of oil.
2. Saute the onion-ginger-garlic paste until the oil separates a bit.
3. Add the tomato paste and the sambal paste and saute it for a few minutes.
4. Add vinegar, tomato sauce, soy sauce and palm sugar and saute until the sugar is dissolved completely.
5. Toss in the crab and saute for about 10 minutes. The crab shells will turn red by then.

The result:

One needs to have a taste for seafood and the fishy smell else don't bother to try this. :-)

Happy Cooking

C