I think I really got into this crab-eating thing after living in Singapore for a short while. Singaporeans are proud of their chili crabs and black pepper crabs. When I went to seminars few years ago here in the U.S, the guy shared with us that he loved the chili crabs when he had his seminars in Singapore.
The recipe I’m sharing here is black pepper crab. The sauce is made from crushed white and black peppercorns, shallots, garlic, butter and some seasonings. It is spicy. A different kind of spicy from chili. The spiciness hangs around in your throat instead of your tummy. Kinda addicting though, especially if you like this kind of spiciness. It is usually served with a deep-fried/steamed plain Chinese bun.
Dip those buns in the sauce….yeah…you’ll forget about everything else.We were so busy licking the sauce off our fingers. I must warn you though, this is not for the faint of heart. It’s peppery spicy for real!!!
BLACK PEPPER CRAB
Ingredients
- 2 lbs large Dungenous crabs/Sri Lankan crabs (cut into 4 parts with cleaver)
- 7 oz (300 g) shallots (chopped)
- 3.5 oz (100 g) garlic (chopped)
- 3.5 oz (100 g) crushed white peppercorns
- 3.5 oz (100 g) crushed black peppercorns
- 4 Tbsp butter
- 2 stalks of spring onions (finely chopped)
- SEASONINGS:
- 4 Tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- Salt to taste
- ½ cup of corn starch for thickening (mix with about 1/2 cup of water)
Instructions
- In a hot wok or large skillet, place the butter, shallots, garlic and saute for 30 seconds
- Add both peppercorns and continue to fry for 1 minute. Add in the crab and toss well. Deglaze with water and fill it up just enough to almost cover the crabs
- Cover the crabs with a lid and simmer for 2 minutes
- Season with salt, dark soy sauce and sugar. Taste and add more salt if needed. Thicken the crab with corn starch solution, cook and stir until thickened. Turn off the heat. Sprinkle the chopped spring onions on top. Serve immediately
