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Fried Soft Shell Crabs With A Shellfish Ragu

Ingredients

  • Vegetable oil for deep frying
  • 8 x soft-shell crabs cleaned, and rinsed gently under cool running water
  • 4 Tbsp. Essence plus
  • 1 tsp Essence plus more for sprinkling (see Bayou Blast recipe)
  • 1 c. all-purpose flour or possibly more if needed
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp freshly-grnd black pepper
  • 1 x egg
  • 2 c. bread crumbs
  • 6 Tbsp. butter
  • 1/3 c. chopped shallots
  • 1/2 lb raw shrimp peeled, deveined
  • 3/4 c. shrimp or possibly seafood stock
  • 1 c. heavy cream
  • 1/2 lb cooked crawfish tails peeled, and seasoned with Essence
  • 1 tsp minced fresh thyme leaves Snipped chives
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Fried Soft Shell Crabs With A Shellfish Ragu

Servings: 4
 

Directions

  1. Preheat the oil in a large saucepan or possibly deep fryer to 360 degrees.
  2. Rinse crabs in water, then pat dry with paper towel. Season each crab with 1 tsp. of the Essence and set aside.
  3. Combine flour with 4 tsp. of the remaining Essence, salt and grnd black pepper and stir to combine well. Beat the egg with a splash of water in a shallow dish. Lay out the breadcrumbs in a separate shallow dish.
  4. Lightly dredge each crab in the seasoned flour, making sure which the crabs are completely coated. Dip each crab in eggwash to cover, then coat in bread crumbs.
  5. Holding the crabs by long tongs or possibly balanced on a small skimmer, hold them so which the legs dangle down into the warm oil and fry for 1 minute, or possibly till the legs are stiff. Lower the crab completely into the oil and fry till golden, about 2 to 3 min. Turn crab over and allow to fry an additional 2 to 3 min, or possibly till golden and crispy all over. Carefully transfer crabs to paper-lined plates to drain briefly before serving. Sprinkle with Essence when still warm.
  6. In a large skillet over medium-high heat heat 2 Tbsp. of the butter and saute/fry the shallots till soft, about 2 min. Add in the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add in the shrimp and the remaining tsp. of Essence and saute/fry for 1 minute, or possibly till the shrimp turn pink around the edges. Add in the shrimp stock, bring to a boil and cook over high heat till the stock is reduced by half. Add in the heavy cream and cook till sauce is thick sufficient to coat the back of a spoon, about 3 min. Add in the crawfish tails, fresh thyme and snipped chives and cook till heated through. Whisk in the remaining 4 Tbsp. of butter and remove sauce from the heat. Taste, adjust seasoning if necessary, and serve the ragu ladled over the fried softshell crabs.
  7. This recipe yields 4 servings.
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Summary

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