Japanese-Style Mini Crab Cakes or Crab Balls - Nigella Lawson

Entered for ZWT. Frpm Nigella Lawson's "Feast." Disclaimer: this is NOT a Maryland crab cake. I would not make regular crab cakes per this recipe, but if I only had "Asian Blue Swimming Crab" crab meat, I might try this wasabi/Japanese version. These sound like crab balls instead of crab cakes.

• Ready In: 23 mins
• Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 4  spring onions, chopped
• 1  garlic clove, quartered
• 500  g  white  crabmeat (picked through, 1 lb. 2 oz.)
• 3  teaspoons  japanese wasabi
• 2  teaspoons rice vinegar
• 2  teaspoons tamari soy sauce or 2  teaspoons Japanese soy sauce
• 100  g  brown rice flour (4 oz.)
•  peanut oil or   peanut oil or   vegetable oil, for frying
•  lime, sliced into wedges, to garnish

Directions

1. Place the garlic and the spring onions into the bowl of a food processor and blend until they become finely chopped.
2. Add the crabmeat, wasabi, rice vinegar, tamari or soy sauce and the rice flour to the bowl. Blend the mixture again until it has combined to form a rough paste.
3. In a large frying pan, add enough oil to fill the pan to a depth of 0.5cm/1/4 inches Heat the oil until a breadcrumb sizzles and turns golden-brown when added (CAUTION: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended).
4. Roll teaspoonfuls of crab mixture into balls with your hands. Flatten the balls slightly and carefully place them into the hot oil. Fry the crabcakes until they turn golden-brown on both sides and are cooked through (only cook 8-10 crab cakes in the pan at one time so that they can be turned quickly and the oil temperature doesn't drop too much). Drain the crabcakes on paper towels.
5. To serve place the crabcakes on a clean plate and place the lime segments around the plate.