Zucchini with Crabmeat

4 zucchinis about 15cm long

1 tbsp. onion, grated

1 tbsp. butter or oil

½ green pepper, chopped

1 large tomato, chopped and skinned

½ tsp. basil

Salt and pepper

1 tbsp. flour

1 cup (250ml) dry white wine

Soy sauce

Parsley

2 cups cooked crabmeat, fresh or frozen

Juice of 1 lemon

Grated rind of 1 lemon

• Cut the zucchinis lengthwise and scoop out the seeds leaving about 1cm of flesh.

• Cook zucchinis in a saucepan covering them with boiling water for 2 minutes.

• Sauté onion in butter until soft, add green pepper, tomato, basil and seasoning and simmer 5 minutes.

• Add the crabmeat and lemon juice and rind and heat through.

• Put the mixtures into the zucchinis and pop under a griller to brown.

• Serves 4.

Avocado Pear and Crabmeat

1 avocado pear

125gr cooked crabmeat

3 shallots, finely chopped

1 dessertspoon mayonnaise

1 tsp. olive oil

½ tsp. nutmeg

Salt and pepper

Paprika

• flesh of avocado and add the crabmeat, shallots, mayonnaise, oil and nutmeg together in a bowl.

• Mix well.

• Serve in a chilled cocktail glass over ice and sprinkle with paprika.

• Serves 2.

Sweet Chilli Mud Crabs

4 cooked mud crabs

1 tsp. sesame oil

2 tbsp. oil

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tsp. finely chopped fresh ginger

1 small fresh red chilli, finely chopped

¼ cup oyster sauce

¼ cup hoisin sauce

2 tbsp. sweet ground bean sauce

1 cup water

2 tsp. corn flour

¼ cup water, extra

• Remove shell from crab and remove feathers and quickly rinse away any muck.

• Cut crabs in half and crack nippers with nut cracker or mallet.

• Heat oils in large frying pan or wok, add garlic, ginger and chilli, stir-fry until garlic is lightly brown.

• Add crab in 2 batches, stir-fry for 3 minutes; drain.

• Return all the crabs to pan, add combined sauce and water; mix well.

• Cover, cook for 3 minutes.

• Blend corn flour with extra water, add to pan, stir constantly over high heat until mixture boils and thickens.

• Serves 4.

Southern Style Crab

1 ¼ cups (300ml) mayonnaise

2 tbsp. (40ml) tomato sauce

Worcestershire sauce

Tabasco sauce

3 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. wine vinegar

2 tbsp. grated onion

2 tbsp. chopped parsley

1 tbsp. lemon rind, grated

1 tbsp. lemon juice

6 tbsp. sour cream

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp. chopped olives

500gr cooked crabmeat, flaked

6 large tomatoes

Lettuce and sliced hard boiled eggs

• together the mayonnaise, tomato sauce, Worcestershire and Tabasco sauce, oil vinegar, onion, parsley, lemon juice, lemon rind and whipped sour cream.

• Season to taste.

• Stir in the chopped olives and chill for at least 2 hours.

• Just before serving add flaked crabmeat and slice the tomatoes in half, place on salad plates and pile the crab salad on the tomatoes.

• Garnish with lettuce and sliced hard boiled eggs.

• Serves 4-6.

Crabmeat Burgers

1 cup cooked flaked crabmeat

1 small beaten egg

1 tbsp. grated onion

1 tbsp. lemon juice

Salt and pepper

½ tsp. nutmeg

Cream

1 cup hot mashed boiled potatoes

• Lightly mix all the ingredients, adding enough cream to make the mixture smooth, yet thick enough to form into cakes.

• Sprinkle with bread crumbs and chill.

• Fry until golden brown in either oil or butter.

• Serves 4-6.

Crabs in Ginger Sauce

2 live mud crabs

3 tbsp. oil

10cm piece green ginger

1 small red pepper

8 shallots

½ cup water

2 tbsp. dry sherry

½ tsp. sesame oil

2 tsp. soy sauce

1 chicken stock cube

1 tsp. sugar

2 tsp. corn flour

¼ cup water, extra

• Place mud crabs in freezer for half to ¾ hour; this will make the crabs go to sleep, so you can work with them without been bitten.

• Gently pull away round hard shell of the crabs.

• With small sharp knife, gently cut away the grey fibrous tissue.

• Rinse to clean crab.

• Chop off legs and nippers.

• Crack these lightly with back of a cleaver to break through the hard shell. (This makes it easier to get to and eat the meat).

• Chop down the center of crab to separate the body into 2 halves.

• Then chop across each half, 3 times; this gives six body sections of each crab.

• Remove seeds from red pepper, cut into very thin strips.

• Chop shallots into 2.5cm lengths.

• Peel ginger, cut into very thin slices, then cut each slice of ginger into very thin strips.

• Heat oil and sesame oil in wok or pan, add prepared ginger, sauté very gently for 2 minutes, add prepared crab, toss 1 minute.

• Add red pepper, water, sherry, soy sauce, crumbled stock cube and sugar, bring to the boil, reduce heat, simmer covered for 4 minutes, remove lid.

• Add combined extra water and corn flour; toss for 2 minutes or until sauce is boiling and coats crab well.

• Add shallots, toss for 1 minute.

• Serves 6.

Mushrooms with Crabmeat

315gr raw crabmeat fresh or frozen

2 tbsp. butter

2 tbsp. shallots, chopped

1 ¼ cups thick cream sauce (recipe follows)

1 tsp. lemon juice

Nutmeg

Salt and pepper

24 mushroom cups

• Preheat the oven to 180 C.

• Remove any pieces of cartilage from the crab meat and flake with a fork.

• Melt the butter and cook the shallots until soft but not brown, stir in the crab and toss it with the shallots for 20 seconds.

• Transfer mixture to a large bowl.

• Stir the Thick Cream Sauce into the crab mixture and season to taste with the lemon juice and nutmeg.

• Place the mushrooms caps on a greased tray and sprinkle them with salt, spoon in the crab filling.

• Bake in the top part of the oven for 15 minutes or until mushrooms are tender.

• Serves 4.

Thick Cream Sauce

2 tbsp. butter

4 tbsp. flour

1 cup cream

Salt and pepper

• Melt butter in a saucepan and mix in the flour until a smooth paste.

• Cook over low heat for 2 minutes.

• Take off from heat and gradually add the cream until smooth.

• Heat slowly and cook until very thick and smooth.

Crab Meat Mornay

2 cups raw flaked crab meat

2 tbsp. butter

½ white wine

2 tbsp. grated onion

2/3 cup Thick Cream Sauce (see recipe above)

½ tsp. nutmeg

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 cup sliced mushrooms, sautéed

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

• Place the flaked crabmeat in a pan with the butter, wine and onions and heat for 2 minutes.

• Combine the cream sauce with the mushrooms and the crabmeat, lemon juice and nutmeg.

• Put into individual dishes or 1 large dish and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

• Cook until hot and place under the griller to brown.

• Serves 6-8.

Hot Crab Puffs

500gr cooked Queensland Mud crab meat

4 bacon rashers, rind removed

Salt and pepper

4 finely chopped shallots

½ cup sour cream

1 tsp. dry mustard

1 tsp. mild chilli sauce

1 egg, beaten

• Place crabmeat in a bowl.

• Grill bacon until crisp, cut into small pieces and add to bowl with salt, pepper and shallots.

• Toss to combine and divide into buttered ramekins.

• Combine remaining ingredients and spoon over crab.

• Place in a preheated oven (200 C) for 15 minutes or until crab is heated through and topping is puffy and golden.

500gr cooked Queensland mud crab meat

1 large paw-paw or rock melon

4 hard boiled eggs

2 tbsp. finely chopped shallots

Lettuce leaves

• Wash and dry lettuce leaves and shred finely.

• Make mounds of lettuce on 4 plates and pile crab meat on top.

• Peel paw-paw or rock melon and cut into thin crescents and arrange around the crab.

• Separate the whites from the yolks of the boiled eggs.

• Push the yolks through a sieve and sprinkle over the crabmeat.

• Chop the whites and sprinkle over the lettuce.

• Scatter the chopped shallots all over.

• Serve with dressing.

For the Dressing:

½ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup French dressing

1 tbsp tomato sauce

2 tsp. finely chopped gherkins

Salt, pepper and sugar, to taste

Combine all ingredients and season to taste.

Oriental Steamed Crabs

6-8 green sand crabs

50gr fresh ginger, peeled and sliced thinly

1/3 cup oyster sauce

1/3 cup chicken marinade

1 can beer

A slurp olive oil

1 tbsp. corn flour

6 spring onions, sliced on angle

• Clean crabs, remove back, de-knuckle legs and claws, and remove ‘dead man’s fingers’ (gills).

• Lightly wash out and drain upside down on absorbent towel.

• In a heavy base saucepan with lid, heat oil medium to hot, add crabs upside down, replace lid and cook for 1 minute.

• In a separate pan, heat ginger in a touch of oil on medium heat.

• Add oyster and chicken sauce, ‘coral’ from crab shell and corn flour.

• Turn crab over, add beer, replace lid and semi-simmer for 1 minute.

• Then add the ginger mix, toss crabs, add spring onion and replace lid for another minute.

• Serve in white bowls with finger bowls.

Pasta with Crab

75gr tomato tagliatelle or fettuccine

1 small leek, finely sliced

1 zucchini, cut into thin strips

90gr cooked crabmeat, flaked

1 tbsp. sour cream

15gr butter

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 tsp. lime juice

Freshly ground black pepper

• Cook pasta in boiling water in a saucepan following packet instructions. Drain and set aside and keep warm.

• Melt butter in a non-stick fry pan over a medium heat, add leek and garlic, cook for 3-4 minutes or until leek is soft.

• Add zucchini and cook for 2 minutes longer.

• Add pasta, crab meat, lime juice and black pepper to taste and cook for 3-4 minutes or until heated through.

• Remove from heat, stir in sour cream and serve immediately.

• Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese and serve with crusty bread.

Mediterranean Mud Crab

2 live mud crabs (1kg each)

6 large ripe tomatoes, skinned and coarsely chopped

2 large onions

500ml tomato puree

3 cloves garlic

½ bunch fresh parsley

24 black olives

Salt and pepper

1 cup white wine

• Place crabs in freezer for 30 – 45 minutes to put them to sleep.

• Remove top shell of crab carefully (do not crack), wash out, remove gills and wash out and set aside. Crack shell of claws and body, set aside.

For the Sauce:

• Finely chop onions and garlic and fry in olive oil.

• Add dry herbs and tomatoes.

• Add wine and bring to the boil.

• Reduce by half.

• Add 500ml tomato puree.

• Cook for 20 minutes.

• Replace top shell on mud crabs, place in sauce and simmer with lid on pot until crab is cooked (approx 7 minutes).

• When cooked, add coarsely chopped fresh basil and olives.

• Place mud crab on plate and pour sauce over.

• Serve with pasta or polenta.

Crispy Mud Crab Patties

300gr crab meat

½ tsp. chopped preserved lemons

½ tsp. chopped fresh dill and chives

2 egg yolks

2 cups Japanese bread crumbs

30ml dry vermouth

2 tbsp. whipped cream

Salt and pepper, to taste

• Mix all ingredients in a bowl except the bread crumbs and whipped cream.

• Season well.

• Fold whipped cream gently into mixture.

• Form little patties and roll into the bread crumbs.

• Keep refrigerated for at least 2 hours.

• Deep fry until golden brown.