Singapore-Style Chili Crabs

Submitted by Stephanie Y.

"Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence and posted for the Zaar World Tour III"

 

• Ready In: 17mins
• Ingredients: 12
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 2 whole cooked dungeness crabs
• 59.14 ml tomato ketchup
• 29.58 ml hot chili paste
• 29.58 ml oyster sauce or 29.58 ml indonesian soy sauce
• 29.58 ml dark soy sauce or 29.58 ml regular soy sauce
• 14.79 ml tamarind paste
• 44.37 ml peanut oil
• 4 scallions, sliced thin
• 1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 serrano chili, chopped
• 29.58 ml chopped fresh cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish

directions

1. Pull the main shell off the crab and discard it. Remove the gray gills and the soft insides. Cut the body in half and then cut between each leg. Crack the legs and claws with the back of the knife or a hammer and set aside.
2. In a bowl mix the ketchup, chili paste, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and tamarind paste; thin it with 1/4 cup water and set aside. Pour the oil into a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add the scallion, ginger, garlic, 1/2 the chile, and cilantro and cook for 1 minute. Add the crab and stir-fry for another minute. Pour in the sauce and continue cooking, stirring often, until the crab has absorbed the sauce and the sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes.
3. Put onto a platter and garnish with the rest of the chile and cilantro. Serve with plenty of napkins!

Reviews

[emcquaid]

This wasn't bad but was not very close to the chili crab I've had in Singapore. This sauce was a bit too heavy/salty/tamarind-y and the ginger was overpowering too. I even cut the ginger by 1/3 and it was still too much.