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Old-fashioned potted crab by Jamie Oliver

>> Friday, January 1, 2010

potted crab
I'm so thrilled today. It's the first time I prepare a recipe by Jamie Oliver... wow, my first time. This recipe can be found in the book Cook with Jamie which I bought last summer while on vacation at Santiago de Compostela. So cook with Jamie if you dare. I admit Mr. Oliver had never really caught my attention before, except for branding him as a bit... dirty: dear Jamie, how can you mix the salads with your hands? But then I started to read the book, which by the way has the loveliest food photography and well, all I can say is... now I'm a believer, not a trace of doubt in my mind.


I've found this dish delicious, how can not be a mixture of shellfish and butter? The only drawback is that it's somewhat time consuming, as you need to pick all the meat inside the crabs. But it's worth the effort. According to Jamie this was a traditional British way of short-term preservation, used not only with shellfish, but with meat too. It lasts around one week in the fridge.

This recipe is easier and shorter to prepare if you buy a crab that's already boiled. I used an Irish crab, which weighed more or less half the weight required in Jamie's recipe. In fact it was a female crab that was full of roe, poor thing. Thanks to that I could gather all the brown crab meat required in the recipe (well, I mean, half of it).

crab
Jamie Oliver's potted crab (adapted)

  • 40g brown crab meat or roe
  • 110g picked white meat
  • 1 small dried chilli
  • 1/4 tsp fennel seeds (I didn't have any and I've never used them therefore I didn't add them)
  • 1 good dash of lemon juice (the recipe calls for lemon zest, but I'm lazy)
  • 2 good pinches nutmeg
  • 100g butter
  • Salt to taste
potted crab
Let the butter soften at ambient temperature. Boil the crab, in case you've bought it uncooked, and let it cool. Then pick all the meat in the crab... be patient. Put the brown meat/roe that's found inside the body of the crab aside from the white meat. Smash the chilli in a mortar and add half the softened butter, lemon juice and all the brown meat/roe. Then mix and smash everything together till you have a soft paste. Add the nutmeg, mix and then the white meat. Mix thoroughly and season well. Jamie recommends to try a small portion on a toast to adjust the seasoning. He advises to over-season the mixture because it's going to be served cold and the flavors are somewhat dimmed.

potted crab
Find a beautiful pot to pot your crab and fill it with the mixture. Flatten the crab and smooth the surface with a spoon, then melt the remaining half butter, mix some fresh herb like dill, and pour it on the crab. Put it in the fridge to set and leave it overnight for the flavors to meld... delicious on a toast.

dill

29 comentarios:

Valerie Harrison (bellini) January 1, 2010 at 3:38 PM  

Welcome to 2010 Miriam. I look forward to all that the New year brings with all it's possibilities. The potted crab looks like a wonderful dish, love the pottery as well.

Janice January 1, 2010 at 3:51 PM  

Happy New Year Miriam. Your crab looks lovely. Jamie's recipes are generally really straightforward and delicious. He always washes his hands before mixing the salad lol!

I got Jamie's America recently, but haven't made anything from it yet.

Anonymous January 1, 2010 at 4:08 PM  

That looks delicious! I love Jamie Oliver. I just bought his last book. Feliz 2010, Miriam!

dokuzuncubulut January 1, 2010 at 5:30 PM  

I like Jamie Oliver's recipe very much. It's also wonderful...
I wish you have an excellet year...

Tasty Trix January 1, 2010 at 5:32 PM  

This is a really lovely recipe, and your photos are so beautiful Happy New Year!!

Erica January 1, 2010 at 6:26 PM  

That is beautiful dish! Fantastic pictures as usual! Happy new year.

Whats Cookin Italian Style Cuisine January 1, 2010 at 6:31 PM  

Gorgeous photo's I love the crab :) Happy New Year :)

Robin, David, Simon and Leo January 1, 2010 at 7:18 PM  

Another beautiful and inspiring photo, Miriam. Great way to start 2010!

Drick January 2, 2010 at 2:15 AM  

never had crab this way, with cold butter - bet it is a remarkable spread...Happy New Year

surfingtheworldcuisine January 2, 2010 at 7:53 AM  

It's great to see that you tried your first recipe by Jamie Oliver and it looks absolutely wonderful!Personally I have some kind of 'love at first sight' with Jamie Oliver and everytime I 'cook with Jamie', the dish turns out the way it is supposed to.

Miriam January 2, 2010 at 4:32 PM  

Val: thank you, happy 2010!
Janice: thanks, happy 2010!
Anonymous: feliz 2010!
Dokuzuncubulut: you too!
Trix: happy New Year!
Erica: happy 2010!
Pegasus: happy 2010!
VM: thank you!!!!!
Drick: happy 2010!
Jolita: thanks for visiting, hope you come often!

Unknown January 2, 2010 at 9:37 PM  

i bet this tasted really good. crab on toast. hmmm. perfection!

Cleo Coyle January 2, 2010 at 10:12 PM  

What a fantastic recipe to kick off the New Year. (My husband just goes crazy for crabmeat, too.) Thank you for sharing this!

Cheers and
Happy New Year,
~ Cleo Coyle
author of The Coffeehouse Mysteries

Anna January 3, 2010 at 1:30 AM  

Beautiful pictures, it looks delicious.

My Little Space January 3, 2010 at 3:06 PM  

Happy New Year, Mariam! Congrats on your well deserved top 9. This is such a gorgeous posting. As always I adore your photos. Well done!

Sarah January 3, 2010 at 5:16 PM  

Wow, this is beautiful. Somewhat like a confit. Yum, crabmeat and butter, I agree, a match made in heaven.

Anonymous January 3, 2010 at 6:40 PM  

You know, I find anything Jamie Oliver absolutely amazing, and am soon to purchase his cook book "Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food", a. because it has a clever title and b. because I love the work he's doing to help out his community.

Now onto your delightful blog, the fact you made this recipe and were happy with it is simply awesome :)

Quick question though, what do you think would happen, if instead of an actual crab, you were to buy the crab meat straight off? Is the "brown meat" available to buy in this manner?

Thank you and keep up the great work =D, much love..

Anonymous January 3, 2010 at 6:41 PM  

Oh and if you have the time, I have a great recipe up by George Calombaris for Strawberry Martini's - It is simply divine!

Alina January 3, 2010 at 9:18 PM  

Your posts and pictures are poetry :) I'm definitely old-fashioned as I *love* this recipe! :) Congrats on making the Top9 at Foodbuzz!! And Happy New Year!

Miriam January 3, 2010 at 11:23 PM  

Xai: it did, thanks!
Cleo: Happy New Year!
Anna: thanks!
MLS: Happy New Year and thanks!
AOFP: thanks for visiting!
Molicious: I agree about Jamie's work. About the canned crab meat, I admit I thought about, but the bad thing is that there's no way to get the white meat separated from the brown... maybe you could use some roe instead for the butter paste, but I don't know if it is sold on its own where you live. And thanks for visiting, good luck on your new blog!
Alina: thank you and Happy New Year to you too!

Anonymous January 3, 2010 at 11:36 PM  

Sadly I doubt highly that it is sold in Australia. However our friends in the UK can rest easy knowing that they can buy crab meat pre-separated if they ever need to cook this recipe (or any other) in a short amount of time.
http://www.thefishsociety.co.uk/fish-detail_crab-meat-%3E-white-&-brown_10_199_0_1.html
That is the link =D
Thank you for the good wishes and I hope your blog continues with its success :)

Simones Kitchen January 4, 2010 at 5:29 PM  

O how lovely this looks! I am a true Jamie fan; I think I own most of his books and I just love the way he cooks... (you should try mixing the salad with your hands too... it actually makes sense once you get used to it!)

Miriam January 6, 2010 at 12:39 PM  

Molicious: thanks!
Simone: mmm, I think I'll be buying some other book from Jamie pretty soon!

MrsLavendula January 6, 2010 at 6:57 PM  

looks wonderfully delicious! Happy new year!

Miriam January 9, 2010 at 12:37 AM  

Mrs. Lavendula: Happy New Year to you too!

we are never full January 10, 2010 at 12:32 AM  

happy new year! jamie never excites me but his recipes are usually spot-on. he is just a good chef.

this dish has always caught my eye in this book. we made a similar dish last christmas with a mixture of fresh salmon and smoked salmon. easy and always a crowd pleaser!

Miriam January 12, 2010 at 7:07 PM  

Never full boys: Happy New Year!! Mmmm salmon, sounds good...

Belinda @zomppa January 19, 2010 at 2:03 PM  

This looks so perfect for a winter day...gorgeous photo. It's so inviting...I may invite myself over!

Miriam January 27, 2010 at 5:34 PM  

Belinda, you'd be more than welcome!

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