Enjoy Healthy Crab Recipes Below:
KAFFIR LIME AND LEMONGRASS BROTH:
1 medium Alaska Grown onion
1 medium Alaska Grown carrot
1 stalk Alaska Grown celery
1 bay leaf
1/2 Tablespoon ground turmeric
3 garlic cloves
1/2 Tablespoon black peppercorn
3 stalks lemongrass (split)
1 package (about .5 oz.) kaffir lime leaves
3 quarts water
Directions: KAFFIR LIME AND LEMONGRASS BROTH:
Place all ingredients in a large pot over high heat; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour. Place a fine-mesh sieve over a large bowl and strain broth, discarding solids. Keep broth warm until ready to serve.
WILTED KALE AND QUINOA SALAD:
2 cups cooked tri-colored quinoa (1/2 cup dry uncooked quinoa)
1 cup torn Alaska Grown kale leaves
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
Directions: WILTED KALE AND QUINOA SALAD:
Remove stems from kale and tear leaves into bite-size pieces. Heat oil in a pan and sauté garlic 1 minute or until golden. Turn off heat and stir in kale and cooked quinoa.
CILANTRO GINGER PESTO:
1 bunch cilantro
1-1/2 Tablespoons fresh grated ginger
1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 oz. toasted almonds (about 3/4 cup slivered)
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Directions: CILANTRO GINGER PESTO:
Place all ingredients in a blender and purée; set aside.
FENNEL ORANGE SALAD:
4 oz. Alaska Grown fennel, sliced thin
1 orange, segmented
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Directions: FENNEL ORANGE SALAD:
Combine fennel and orange in a mixing bowl. Squeeze lime over and season with salt and pepper; set aside.
BUTTER-POACHED ALASKA KING CRAB:
8 oz. clarified butter (see Note)
2 to 3 lb. wild Alaska king crab
Alaska Grown beet sprouts, for garnish
Directions: BUTTER-POACHED ALASKA KING CRAB:
Heat clarified butter in a small saucepan and keep war crabmeat from shell, keeping the meat in one piece, if possible. Dip crab in butter and gently toss to coat just before serving.
To serve: In a shallow serving bowl per person, add 1 or 2 ladles of Kaffir Lime Broth. Toss Wilted Kale and Quinoa Salad with Cilantro Ginger Pesto and divide evenly among bowls. Top with Butter-Poached King Crab and Fennel Orange Salad. Garnish, if desired, with Alaska Grown beet sprouts.
NOTE: To make clarified butter, heat 12 oz. unsalted butter in a heavy-duty saucepan over low heat until melted. Simmer gently until foam rises to top of surface; remove pan from heat and skim froth from the top (discard foam or keep for adding to soups, polenta, bread, oatmeal, etc.). Line a fine-mesh strainer with cheesecloth and place over a bowl. Strain butter, leaving any solids in the pan. Store clarified butter in refrigerator up to several weeks.
Recipe by Chef Shane Moore, South Restaurant, Anchorage, AK & AlaskaSeafood.org, THANK YOU!
AK Crab Growth: Because a crab’s skeleton is its shell (made mostly of calcium), it must molt its shell in order to grow. Juveniles molt many times in their first few years, then less frequently until they reach sexual maturity in four or five years. Adult females must molt in order to mate but males do not. Adult males often skip a molt and keep the same shell for one or two years. Red king crabs can grow very large with the record female and male weighing 10.5 and 24 pounds, respectively. These large crabs were estimated to be 20–30 years old. The male’s leg span was nearly 5 feet across.