Caribbean Coconut Crab Recipes

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop crabs in and cook until shells turn bright red, 8 to 10 minutes. Plunge crabs into ice water to stop the cooking process. Drain and set aside.
• Heat a large wok over medium-high heat and add garlic oil. Stir in garlic and cook until lightly toasted and golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add onion and ginger and saute until onion is translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add scallion whites. Season with a few pinches of salt and pepper.
• Add fish sauce and let infuse for 1 minute. Stir in shrimp paste and toast for about 3 minutes. Add Thai chiles; saute for 1 minute more. Pour in coconut milk and water. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until sauce is thickened, about 10 minutes, adding more water if too dry.
• Meanwhile, break open the crab. Add to the sauce along with any accumulated juices. Simmer until flavors meld, 8 to 10 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper. Toss in spinach and let wilt. Garnish with scallion greens.

Steps:

• Season crab meat with garlic and herbs, cover and marinade in fridge for at least 1/2 hour.
• Add the remaining ingredients put in a pot over low heat and cook until half the liquid has evaporated.

Steps:

• Place the crab in the freezer for 2 hours or until it stops moving. Remove the legs and crack them with a rolling pin. Remove the top of the shell and clean out the insides with your fingers. Chop the crab and top shells in half.
• Heat a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the coriander seeds, cumin seeds and peppercorns and stir constantly until the seeds become toasted and fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Cool completely.
• To make the paste, grind the coriander seeds, cumin seeds and peppercorns with a pinch of salt using a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder. Transfer the spice mixture to a food processor and add the vinegar, coconut, ginger, garlic, chile and onions and blend to form a paste.
• Heat the oil in a heavy, large, wide pot over low heat. Add the paste and saute until fragrant and some of the juices evaporate, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the tomato, curry leaves, turmeric, chili powder and a pinch of salt and cook until the tomato pieces are tender and melting into the sauce, 5 minutes. Add the crab and 4 1/2 ounces water, increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer or until the crab pieces are cooked through, 10 minutes. Mix in the coconut milk and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes to allow the flavors to blend.
• Divide the crab pieces and sauce among shallow wide soup plates and serve immediately.

Steps:

• Lime Dipping Sauce, recipe follows
• Put the crabmeat in a large bowl and add the mayonnaise, scallions, bell pepper, ginger, salt, and pepper and gently combine using a rubber spatula. Add the 1/2 cup coconut and 1/2 cup panko and gently fold in. Divide the mixture into 8 mounds and form into patties about 3-inches in diameter and 3/4-inch thick. Put the patties on a large plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 30 minutes or longer.
• When you are ready to fry the crab cakes, combine the 1 cup of coconut and 1 cup of panko in a shallow container. Lightly dredge the patties in the crumbs, shaking off any excess. Put 2 large nonstick skillets with over medium high heat. Add about 3 tablespoons of oil to each pan. When the pans are hot, place 4 patties in each pan. Turn the heat down to medium and fry the cakes until golden and heated through, turning once with a spatula to brown both sides, about 4 minutes per side.
• Transfer the crab cakes to plates, serving 2 to each person, accompanied by ramekins of sweet chili sauce and lime wedges.
• Whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl.

Steps:

• Cut the crabs in small pieces and use the lime juice for washing them. Use the ginger, minced chive, garlic, thyme to season the crabs. Pour the oil into a preheated pot.
• Make a paste by mixing the curry, salt and the pepper and add it to the hot oil. Next add the crab meat along with the coconut milk when the mixture thickens.
• Next allow the curry crabs to simmer for about 25 minute covered. When the curry crabs are done serve them with cassava dumplings.

Steps:

• Lift top hard shell from crabs and use fingers to scrape insides. Wash, then split in half.
• Heat the oil in a large wok over high heat then stir-fry the crab pieces in batches until they turn pinky red. Remove and set aside.
• In the same wok, stir fry garlic, ginger and chili for 1 minute.
• Add the juice, waer, sauces and paste and simmer for 2 minutes.
• Blend in the coconut cream.
• Bring to the boil then return the crab to the wok.
• Simmer covered, for 4-5 minutes, adding a little water if the sauce reduces too much.
• Stir in the coriander and onions, then serve at once over steamed rice.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Butter a 8 cup souffle dish.
• Toast coconut in a non-stick skillet over low heat.
• In a medium skillet, melt butter over low heat and add the celery, garlic, curry powder, thyme, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper - cook for 3 minutes. Stir in flour until smooth for about 1 minute. Pour in milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Set aside and cool slightly. Whisk the egg yolks one at a time into the sauce. Stir in coconut and crab meat.
• In medium bowl, beat egg whites and lemon juice with a mixer until stiff, but not dry. Stir 1/4 of the whites into crab mixture. Quickly and gently fold in the remaining whites. Do not deflate the volume. Transfer mixture to the souffle dish and place it on a rack at the bottom of the oven.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until golden, puffed and still moist inside.

Steps:

• Clean the taro leaves by removing the skin from the stalks, and removing the tip from the center rib. Rinse, and cut into bite size pieces.
• Place the taro leaves, okra, onion, thyme, garlic, salted pig's tail, pumpkin, water, habanero pepper (whole), and coconut milk into a large pot. Cover, and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes.
• Add the crab to the pot. Be careful not to puncture the habanero pepper. Cover, and continue to simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the habanero, and season with salt to taste. Puree the soup using an immersion blender until smooth. You could also puree in small batches using a blender. Serve over rice.