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Blue swimmer crab cakes with hot pink mayonnaise
Makes 24 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 1 egg
- 70g panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
- 500-750ml rapeseed or groundnut oil
For the crab cake filling
- 250g blue swimmer or other fresh crabmeat
- 1 long red chilli, deseeded, finely sliced
- 2 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
- finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 2 eggs, hard-boiled, then finely chopped
- 70g panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
- 55g baby gherkins, finely chopped
- 1tbsp salted capers, rinsed and finely chopped
- small handful coriander leaves, finely chopped
- small handful flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
- 1 egg, beaten
For the hot pink mayonnaise
- 150g mayonnaise
- 1tbsp tomato ketchup
- 1tbsp tomato purée
- ½tsp cayenne pepper
- juice of ½ lime
Method
To make the crab cake filling, place all the ingredients, plus sea salt and black pepper, in a large bowl and mix well to combine. Take a teaspoon of the filling and form into a ball about the size of a small walnut. Transfer to a large baking tray and lightly press to flatten a little. Continue until all the filling is used up, reserving a small amount (about ¼tsp) to drop into the cooking oil later to test it – you should get 24 crab cakes in all.
Beat the egg in a small bowl and place the breadcrumbs in another small bowl. Dip each crab cake first into the egg, then the breadcrumbs, rolling it around a few times to coat thoroughly, then return it to the tray. Pour the oil into a medium-sized saucepan and heat over a medium heat. Drop in the reserved piece of filling — the oil is hot enough when this floats to the top and turns golden quickly. Working in batches of 2-3 crab cakes at a time, fry the crab cakes for around 1 minute or until golden brown, then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside to drain on kitchen paper. Once the crab cakes have cooled slightly, insert a cocktail stick or serving stick into each one (if using).
To make the mayonnaise, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl. Serve the crab cakes on a large baking-paperlined platter with the hot pink mayonnaise alongside.
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