Steamed Hairy Crabs

By cookism

Bear Grylls was right when he said, “Adventure should be 80 percent ‘I think this is manageable,’ but it’s good to have that last 20 percent where you’re right outside your comfort zone.” Killing, shelling and cooking crabs is not something that is right up our alley, but we’d like to think we did ourselves (and the crabs) justice in the end. Steamed hairy crabs is a good dish to add to the repertoire of any ambitious home cook—it is delicious, simple and definitely 80 percent manageable.

Ingredients

• For dipping sauce:
• 4 hairy crabs
• 4 perilla leaves
• 1 to 2 tbsp black vinegar
• 1 tbsp ginger, finely julienned

Details

Servings 2
Adapted from cookism.tumblr.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. With the strings intact, clean the crabs by gently scrubbing them with a stiff brush and rinsing them over cold water to remove dirt. We kill the crabs before cooking. Position a crab shell-side down. You will see a pointed flap. Lift up the flap, locate the small hole and pierce a paring knife through it.
2. Place one perilla leaf on the shell and arrange crabs belly-side up on a steaming plate. Steam over high heat for 15 to 20 minutes depending on the size of the crab. Smaller crabs require a shorter cooking time. In the meantime, prepare the dipping sauce by combining ginger and black vinegar in a dipping dish. Set aside for later use.
3. When the crabs are cooked, remove the strings. Transfer them onto a serving plate and serve together with dipping sauce. Do note that the gills are inedible, remove and discard them with a crab shear.