Garlic crabs with parsley and lemon

Serves 2-4 Starters and mains

Advertisement

Method

Preheat the oven to 230C/210C F/Gas 8. On a chopping board, combine the parsley, 6 of the garlic cloves and the lemon zest. Finely chop them together, transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Put the crabs in a large bowl and season with the salt, black pepper, cayenne and hot sauce. Add the bay leaves.

Warm a large cast-iron frying pan or ovenproof sauté pan over a medium-high heat for 3 minutes, then add the oil and the remaining 6 garlic cloves. Cook until the garlic becomes fragrant, then use a slotted spoon to transfer it to
a plate and set aside.

Working in batches to avoid crowding the frying pan, add the crabs to the hot oil and cook for around 3 minutes, until starting to brown on the bottom, then flip and cook for around 3 minutes more, until starting to brown on the second side. Transfer the crabs to a roasting tin and repeat to brown the remaining crabs.

Add 2tbsp of the butter to the frying pan and let it melt. Return the crabs to the frying pan and turn them to coat evenly with the butter. Transfer the crabs and the reserved garlic to the roasting tin and place it in the oven. Roast for around 6 minutes, flipping once after 3 minutes, until the crabs are golden.

Remove the roasting tin from the oven and add the remaining 6tbsp butter and the parsley-garlic mixture to the tin. Toss until the crabs are evenly coated. Season with the lemon juice and serve with crusty bread or rice.

This recipe was taken from the June/July 2020 issue of Food and Travel.

To subscribe today, click here.