Pan-fried Soft-shell Crabs with Lobster Slaw and Yellow Tomato Vinaigrette
Crisp-fried soft-shell crabs support a tower of lobster slaw. Yellow Tomato Vinaigrette is used to sauce the plates, adding a piquant herb taste to each mouthful. Soft-shell crabs are very special, available seasonally and hard to find. But even if they are not available, the lobster slaw and Yellow Tomato Vinaigrette are delicious, and the double-battering with buttermilk is a wonderful idea for shrimp as well as crab.
Ingredients
- Yellow Tomato Vinaigrette
- Canola oil - 1 tablespoon
- Clove Garlic - 1, minced
- Onion - 1, roughly chopped
- Celery Stalk - 1, deribbed and chopped
- Shallot - 1, sliced
- Dry white wine - 1/2 cup
- Yellow tomatoes - 4, skinned, seeded, and chopped
- Water - 1/2 cup
- Thyme - 1 teaspoon, chopped
- Basil - 1 tablespoon, chopped
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Champagne vinegar - 1 teaspoon
- Canola oil - 1/2 cup
- Lobster Slaw
- Lobster Meat - 4 ounces, cut in 1/4-inch dice
- Cabbage - 5 cups, finely shredded
- Spinach - 1 cup, stemmed and shredded
- Carrots - 1/4 cup, julienned
- Red Tomatoes - 1, skinned, seeded, and julienned
- Red Onion - 1 small, julienned
- Lime - juice of 1/2 lime
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- Canola oil - 1 tablespoon
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Soft-shell Crabs
- Soft-shell crabs - 8
- All-Purpose Flour - 4 cups
- Salt - 2 tablespoons
- Freshly ground black pepper - 1 tablespoon
- Buttermilk - 3 cups
- Canola oil - for frying
- Chives - 8
Instructions
To make the vinaigrette: Heat the tablespoon of canola oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat and saute the garlic, onion, celery,and shallots until translucent and soft, about 2 minutes. Pour in the wine and stir up the browned bits from the bottom; cook until the liquid is almost gone. Add the tomatoes and water and simmer until the tomatoes are soft, 3 - 4 minutes. Add the thyme, basil, seasonings, and vinegar and put the mixture in a blender. Blend well, then slowly add the canola oil with the motor running until the oil has been emulsified in the mixture.
To make the slaw: Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until ready to use.
To prepare the crabs: Clean the crabs by removing the gills, and tail with the intestines. Cut four of the crabs in half; leave the other four whole. Put the flour and seasonings in a paper bag, hold the top closed, and shake to mix. Add the crabs, one at a time, and shake gently to dredge the crabs in the mixture. One at a time, dip the crabs in the buttermilk, then shake again in the flour mixture.
Heat the oil to 350 F in a deep-fat fryer or deep pan. Add the crabs, a few at a time, and cook until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels. Let the oil return to temperature between batches.
To serve: Pool yellow tomato vinaigrette on four warm plates. Tilt the plates to coat the entire surface. Place the whole soft-shell crabs, belly-side up, in the centers of the plates. Stand the remaining half soft-shell crabs, two per plate, next to the whole crab, with the legs standing up. Divide the lobster slaw among the plates and mound it between the soft-shell crab halves and on top of the whole crab. Garnish each plate with two chives.
