Sautéed Soft Shell Crabs with Hazelnuts
Sauteed soft shell crabs are served with tarragon-dressed green beans and a mixture of tomato, hazelnuts, coriander, and lime. Chive stems and blossoms provide a pretty garnish.
Ingredients
- Mustard Sauce
- Mayonnaise - 1/4 cup, preferably homemade
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Dijon mustard - 1 tablespoon
- Dry Mustard - 1/2 tablespoon
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Crabs
- Soft shell crabs - 4, cleaned and dressed
- Seasoned flour - For dredging
- Clarified Butter - 1/2 cup
- Brown Butter - 2 tablespoons (beurre noisette)
- Tomatoe - 1, peeled, seeded, and diced
- Hazelnuts - 1/3 cup, toasted slivers
- Coriander - 1 tablespoon, chopped
- Lime Juice - Juice of 1 lime
- Garnish
- Haricots Verts - 8 oz (alt. Blue Lake green beans), blanched
- Vinaigrette dressing - 1 tablespoon
- Tarragon - 1 leaf, minced
- Lime - 8 segments
- Coriander - 2 leaves, cut into narrow strips
- Chives - 1 tablespoon, snipped (8 to 12 chive blossoms)
Instructions
To prepare the sauce: Mix the mayonnaise, lemon juice, and mustards into a smooth sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside. To prepare the crabs: Preheat the oven to 400 F. Dredge the crabs in the seasoned flour and shake off the excess. Heat the butter in an ovenproof saute pan or skillet over medium-high heat and add the crabs, top-side down. The butter should be hot enough to blister the crabs. Saute until golden brown, 1-1/2 to 2 minutes, then turn and saute on the other side until browned, another 1-1/2 minutes. Turn the crabs back over, drain the liquid, and add the brown butter, tomato, hazelnuts, and coriander. Place in the oven and cook 2 minutes. Remove from the oven and drizzle with lime juice. To serve: Dress the beans with vinaigrette and tarragon and arrange them in a radial design on the plates, Place a crab on the green beans on each plate. Garnish the plates with the tomato, hazelnuts, lime, and coriander. Drizzle with mustard sauce and sprinkle with snipped chives and chive blossoms.
