Eat Together, Make Life Delicious...

This year if you are looking for a tailgating recipe that will impress your guests, consider this one. It's super easy and oh so delicious. Make sure to serve with lots of napkins, a lobster fork, and a nut cracker. If you are tailgating on the parking lot, this is portable and can be reheated in its own juices. Create a foil pouch with the legs inside and place it on the grill for 10 minutes. And definitely bring a bib, because you'll need it!

Tomato-Garlic Snow Crab Legs
makes 2 servings

2 tablespoons store bought minced garlic (roasted works really nice, so give that a try too!)
1 cup dry white wine
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
16 ounces diced tomatoes (if you are rushed for time, use canned, otherwise fresh is nice. Just seed and core the tomatoes first)
¼ celery stalk, finely chopped (this is optional)
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 pounds snow crab legs, with slits cut into legs lengthwise so the juices will penetrate the meat
Sliced rustic country bread

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a large Dutch oven, combine the roasted garlic, wine, butter, tomatoes, celery, Worcestershire, and salt. Add the crab legs and mix well so the legs are covered with the mixture. Place the lid on top and place it in to the oven to bake for 10 minutes. Remove the crab legs from the oven and baste them in their own juice. Make sure to pour the juice over the slits in the leg so it gets into the meat. Return the crab legs back to the oven to bake for another 7 minutes or until piping hot. Serve in a deep bowl with bread for dipping. Carefully these legs are hot!

Labels: Comfort Food, seafood, Snow Crab

The legendary restaurant Nobu, in Manhattan’s TriBeCa, serves this, and I think it’s one of the most addictive dishes I’ve ever tasted. My sister Jennifer and I ate two servings each and even ordered one to go. The tobiko—tiny crunchy red roe—gives an incomparable texture to each mouthful. A former sous chef provided the recipe outline, which I’ve tweaked a bit for the home cook. If snow or king crab meat is hard to come up, consider using blue crabmeat. I find it works just as well. Don't use the most expensive, but backfin or even claw meat works great. If you don't want to make homemade mayo, go ahead and use store-bought.

Creamy Spicy Crab
makes 4 servings

2 egg yolks
½ teaspoon sea salt
3 turns of a pepper mill (preferably white pepper, but black pepper works)
1 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce, such as Sriracha
¼ cup tobiko (any seasoned flying fish roe)
1 pound prepared crabmeat (snow crab, king crab, or blue crab)
¼ cup scallions, sliced into 1/8-inch pieces

Make the mayonnaise: Place the egg yolks in a standing mixer and whip at
medium speed until well-mixed. Add the salt and pepper and pulse to mix well. Turn the blender to its highest speed and add ½ cup of the oil in a slow stream, until the mixture emulsifies and thickens.As it does so, you can add the oil
more quickly. Add the rice vinegar and continue blending. Add the remaining oil and continue blending. Transfer the mayonnaise to a medium bowl and stir in the chili sauce and tobiko. Taste carefully and adjust the flavor by adding
more vinegar.

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the drained crabmeat in a 9-inch casserole and toss lightly with the scallions until well combined. Gently fold in ¼ of the mayonnaise mixture and again gently toss until the crab is lightly coated. Loosely pat down the crabmeat and cover it with the remaining sauce. Bake for 15 minutes, then turn on the broiler and run the casserole under the broiler until the top is golden brown, moving the dish constantly to make sure the entire top browns evenly. Serve at once.

Labels: Appetizer, Blue Crab, Creamy Spicy Crab, King Crab, Nobu, Snow Crab