Makan World

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Cooling time: 2 hours
Cost: Reasonable
Difficulty: Very easy

Origin
Crab is the Singapore's unofficial "national dish". Like the country itself, this dish had humble beginnings. It was in the 1950s. A great cook - Madam Cher Yam Tian - created a recipe for preparing fresh-from-the- sea crabs. She and her husband, Mr Lim Choon Ngee, set up a food stall selling sea crabs on the seashore, every day from dusk till the wee hours, by the light of a kerosene lamp. This was the first version of the Singapore Chilli Crab.
The twist in the tale? Madam Cher's food stall was located near where the famous East Coast Seafood Centre now stands, with all its restaurants cooking up a storm of Chilli Crab every night, without a thought for Madam Cher the creator!
With a hearty gravy made from fresh red chillies, tomato sauce, fresh eggs and spring onions, Chilli Crabs are best eaten with your fingers. Don't bother to try looking genteel - use your teeth to crack the shells, suck out the succulent meat, and if you have to, hit the extra hard shell on the table top to break it! Let the gravy run down your arm, clean it up with cubes of French bread or Chinese buns (known as mantou), that are served as a side dish. All in a Chilli Crab meal's work!
Chef's tips
This is a delicious Singapore classic. It can be served with steamed white rice, though in Singapore you'll also sometimes find it accompanied by French bread. The bird's eye chillies are very hot, so adapt the amount as desired, or use a different variety of red chilli.
Some cooks also add a couple of spoonfuls of roasted ground peanuts to the crab during the final toss in the wok.
Ingredients for each crab
3-4 large crabs, about 1.5 kg (3 lb.) 180 ml (3/4 cup) boiling water 2 medium onions, chopped 2 1/2 cm / 1" piece fresh ginger, grated 2-3 bird's eye chillies, finely chopped 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped 1 stalk lemon grass (tender inner leaves), chopped 1 tsp. shrimp paste (optional) 3 green onions, chopped 2 tsp. cornstarch 3 tbsp. oil 1 tbsp. sugar 1 tbsp. tomato paste or ketchup
Method
Clean the crabs. Cook them in a large pot of boiling water for about 4 minutes. Drain and cool slightly.
Chop the crabs into 4 to 6 pieces with a large cleaver, leaving the legs attached. Crack the claws with a mallet or pestle.
Mix the cornstarch into a little cold water.
Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet and stir fry the onion, ginger, garlic, lemon grass, shrimp paste (if using) and two-thirds of the chillies for two minutes. Add the crab and boiling water, reduce the heat and cook 3-4 minutes longer. Transfer the crab to a plate.
Add the sugar and tomato paste or ketchup to the wok and combine well. Add the cornstarch solution and continue stirring until the mixture thickens. Return the crab to the wok, stirring until well-coated with the sauce.
Place on a serving platter and garnish with the green onions and remaining chillies. Serve hot.

posted by Francis Lim @ 7:21 AM