Linguine with Crab - Nigella Lawson

By contessawannabe

Ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 scant tablespoon Maldon salt
• 1 large red chilli
• 1.25 kg undressed crab, to give you 200g white meat and 100g brown meat
• 125 ml extra virgin olive oil
• juice and zest of 1 lemon
• 500 g linguine
• Handful fresh parsley, chopped
• Handful watercress leaves, roughly torn

Preparation

Step 1

Put a large pan of water on to boil for the pasta.
2. In a large pestle and mortar pulverise the peeled garlic cloves with the salt, so that it makes a smooth paste. Then add the chopped and seeded chilli and crush again until you have a gloriously red-tinged mixture. Tip in the crab meat, breaking it up gently with a fork, and pour in the oil. Zest the lemon into the mortar and then add the juice.
3. Using a fork, beat well to mix, and then you are ready to cook your pasta. So do so, and then drain the pasta and tip into a warmed serving bowl. Immediately pour over the crab sauce and toss the pasta about in it, then throw in the parsley and watercress and toss again.