YIELD 8 SERVINGS
2 cup flour
1 cup parmesan, grated
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 tsp tabasco
1 cup mayonnaise
1 lemon, juiced
1 zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
1/2 tsp garlic, minced
1/2 tsp thyme
1 tbsp olive oil, extra-virgin
1 cup oil, for frying
8 soft-shell crabs, cleaned
8 rolls, hard, halved
2 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
2 bn arugula, large stems removed
Directions
In a medium bowl, combine 1 cup of the flour with the Parmesan, salt
and pepper. Make a well in the center and add the eggs and 1/4 cup
of water. Beat the eggs and water together and gradually incorporate
the flour mixture to form a smooth batter. Add 1/8 teaspoon of the
Tabasco and set aside to rest for 30 minutes. In another bowl,
combine the mayonnaise, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, thyme, olive
oil and the remaining 1/8 teaspoon Tabasco. Whisk to blend and set
aside for at least 30 minutes. (The recipe can be prepared to this
point up to 1 day ahead. Refrigerate the batter and mayonnaise. If
the batter becomes very thick, thin it out with a little water.)
Preheat the oven to 250F. In a large skillet, heat the peanut oil
over moderately high heat to 350F. Dredge the crabs in the remaining
1 cup flour and shake off the excess. Dip 4 of the crabs in the
batter, let some of the batter drip off, and then fry them in the
skillet, turning once, until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
Drain on paper towels, place on a heatproof platter and keep warm in
the oven. Repeat with the 4 remaining crabs. Scoop out some of the
bread from the center of the rolls to hollow them slightly. Spread 2
heaping teaspoons of the mayonnaise on each half. Assemble the
sandwiches by placing 2 or 3 slices of tomato and 4 or 5 arugula
leaves on the bottom half of each roll. Set the fried crabs on top
and close the sandwiches. Serve immediately. Serves 8. Recipe from
Food & Wine, June, 1991.
Submitted By WARING@IMA.INFOMAIL.COM (SAM WARING) On
4 JUN 1995 073117 ~0600
Servings: 8 servings
Parmesan-Crusted Soft-Shell Crab Sandwiches Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Cheese; Crab; Fish; Sandwich; Seafood
The History of Recipes
It is actually possible to trace the history of written cooking instructions back into the distant past, in truth as far back into recorded history as ancient Egypt, and maybe further still. Having said that, in the main part, these early cook books were just simple hieroglyphic or cunieform recipes for preparing meals.
The truth of the matter is, the most ancient recipe discovered so far, according to experts are some ancient tablets in Sumerian which show the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making people feel `blissful`. Moving on, there are a couple of interesting cookery books which date from the 14th Century : a recipe book titled `Forme of Cury`, and another titled `Curye on Inglish`. Perhaps surprisingly, these have no connection with the spicy food that appears on menues today, but rather recipes for the types of meals cooked for the rich and wealthy people of the time. During the following few centuries, the powerful families of Europe tried to serve the most exotic meals, and because of this the best cooks and their collection of recipes were highly sought after. Nevertheless, it wasn`t until the 19th century the formal cooking and recipe publications really came of age. Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and Fannie Merritt Farmer in the US, dedicated their lives to collating, trying out, and publishing recipes to help cooks of their time. By the advent of the 1900s, recipe publications were increasing in popularity mostly due to higher levels of literacy, people having more spare time and disposable income. The revolution that is television brought us celebrity chefs and the recipe books that accompanied them. Which pretty much brings us up to date and the internet revolution, permitting everyone to access massive numbers of recipes like those on this site. |
We hope you enjoy this Parmesan Crusted Soft Shell Crab Sandwiches recipe.
