Tempura Soft Shell Crab Recipes

Steps:

• Pour oil to a depth of 1 inch into a large Dutch oven, and heat to 350°.
• In a medium bowl, combine flour and salt.
• Stir yolk into soda water in a 2-cup measure until blended; pour over flour mixture, and, using a large fork, gently combine (the batter should remain slightly lumpy and should have the consistency of heavy cream).
• Dip 2 crabs into batter, letting excess batter drip back into bowl, and carefully slip into the hot oil, top-side down. Fry 1 1/2 minutes per side, until golden brown and crisp. Drain on paper towels, then transfer to a baking sheet, and keep warm in a 200° oven. Repeat with remaining oil and crabs.
• Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and serve with Asian Slaw and Crab Dipping Sauce.

Steps:

• For Tempura Batter: Whisk together ingredients. Can be used for up to 1 hour. Keep cold!
• For Crabs: Heat 1/4-inch of corn or peanut oil in a heavy skillet until very hot but not smoking. Fry the crabs in batches for about 2 minutes on the first side, then turn and fry for another minute. The crust should be golden. Be prepared the crabs will split when you fry them; a splatter screen will come in handy.
• Drain on paper towels and serve with dipping sauces.
• For Balsamic Syrup: Put all ingredients together and reduce over medium heat, down to 1/4 of its liquid. Strain and discard onion.
• For Red Pepper Syrup: Combine all ingredients in a saucepan. Reduce down to 3/4 of a cup. Thicken with the arrowroot.
• For Wasabi Cream: Dissolve Wasabi in water. Whisk in creme fraiche and lemon juice. Season with salt.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a deep saucepan, heat canola oil to 375 degrees F.
• In a medium bowl, toss cucumbers with rice vinegar, set aside.
• In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine about 1 tablespoon canola oil and the ginger. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add heavy cream and lime juice, boil until reduced by half. Fold in crabmeat, season mixture with salt, set aside.
• Place flour on a plate. Season the rockfish with salt and lightly dredge in flour, shaking off the excess.
• In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat about 1 tablespoon canola oil. Add rockfish, skin side down, just until skin is crisp, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook to brown other side, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove fillets to a cutting board, cut fillets in half horizontally. Top half the pieces with the crab mixture and sandwich back together. Wrap portions individually in waxed or parchment paper.
• Place on a baking sheet and bake until fish is cooked through and crab stuffing is hot, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, dip crabs in Tempura Batter and fry until lightly brown and crispy, about 3 minutes, drain quickly on paper towel and cut in half.
• To serve: On the bottom of the plate, place a few cucumber slices. Drizzle with Yuzu Glaze. Remove rockfish from waxed paper and sprinkle sides with some of the Nori Flakes. Place rockfish over cucumber, plate soft shell crab next to fish. Sprinkle with scallions and chilies. Sprinkle with remaining Nori Flakes and stick a Toasted Nori Triangle in each crab half.
• In a medium stainless steel bowl, whisk together rice flour, cornstarch, salt and ginger. Whisk in club soda. Refrigerate or keep this batter on ice until ready to fry. You may need to whisk in additional flour or water to adjust the batter if it stands.
• In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine ginger, orange juice, yuzu juice, soy sauce and chili garlic paste. Bring to a simmer.
• Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine sugar and the 1 tablespoon water. Cook, without stirring, until the mixture turns a dark amber color, about 5 to 10 minutes, swirling the pan occasionally to prevent burning.
• When the sugar reaches the desired color, carefully whisk in the simmering yuzu mixture. Return to a simmer. Whisk the cornstarch with enough water to form a smooth slurry. Whisk the cornstarch mixture into the yuzu mixture a little at a time, letting it return to a boil between additions, until the mixture has thickened to a glaze. You may not need all of the cornstarch.
• Tear nori into small pieces. Grind to a fine powder in batches in a coffee or spice grinder.
• Using a sharp knife cut to cut nori into 12 small triangles.
• In a medium skillet over medium heat, add sesame oil. Add triangles, cook, turning once, until crisped and shiny on both sides, about 30 seconds to 1 minute per side. Drain on paper towels.

Steps:

• For the tartar sauce slaw: Whisk together the cornichons, mayonnaise, capers, mustard, sugar, lemon juice, onion and some salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add the cabbage and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• For the Old Bay potato chips: Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Spread the potato chips in an even layer on a baking sheet and bake, just to warm, 2 minutes. Put the Old Bay in a small mesh strainer and tap evenly over the chips; toss the chips lightly.
• For the soft-shell crabs: Set a rack in a baking sheet. Heat 3 to 4 inches of oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat until it registers 375 degrees F on a deep-frying thermometer. Whisk together 2 cups of the rice flour and 2 cups water until smooth, then season with salt and pepper and some hot sauce if using.
• Put the remaining 1 cup rice flour in a shallow dish and season with some salt and pepper. Sprinkle the crabs with salt and pepper.
• Dredge 2 crabs in flour and tap off the excess. Dip in the tempura batter, letting any excess run off. Fry until golden brown, crispy and just cooked through, turning occasionally, about 5 minutes. Drain on the rack. Repeat with the remaining 2 crabs.
• For the sandwiches: Put some of the slaw on the bottom of each bun and top with a fried crab. Add a bit more slaw and a tomato slice and top with chips. Close sandwiches with the tops of the buns and serve immediately.

Steps:

• Fill a pot (which will be large enough to submerge all the crab legs) with water, bring to a boil, and add vinegar, coriander, mustard seed, chiles, peppercorns and salt. Cook the crab legs until they turn bright pinkish orange, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove and let cool until easy to handle.
• While the crab is cooling, make the sauce. Combine orange juice, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, rice vinegar, tomato paste, chile, and ginger root in a small saucepan over medium heat and let reduce by half. Remove from heat and whisk in honey.
• Break crab meat from the shell.
• To make tempura, mix flour, cornstarch, and baking powder in a bowl. Dredge the crab pieces in this dry mix, shaking any excess back into the bowl. Then add seltzer to the flour mixture in a stream while whisking constantly to make it into batter. Season with salt and pepper.
• Heat canola oil to 375 degrees F in a deep fryer, or according to the manufacturer's instructions for similar foods. Dip each piece of crab in the batter, and add the to deep-fryer basket. Fry until golden brown. Drain on paper toweling and serve warm.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix flour, chile powder and sesame seeds. Whisk in soda water until a pancake batter consistency is achieved. In one hand, grab one crab, 3 asparagus and 2 onions rings and completely coat in the batter. Lightly drop in 350 degree oil and fry for 4 to 5 minutes until golden brown. Season with salt and drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining crabs, asparagus and onion.
• In a food processor, puree everything together until smooth. Check for seasoning. Toss the salad lightly with the vinaigrette.
• PLATING On a large plate, drizzle some remaining vinaigrette. Place a small mound of salad and top with the tempura crab sliced in half.