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Fresh Spider Crab Salad
Sweet white crab meat, still fresh and briny, meets crisp Little Gem lettuce and shaved fennel in this elegant seafood starter. You'll make smart use of the whole crab by turning the rich brown meat into a savory dressing studded with chopped capers and diced gherkins. Quartered hard-boiled eggs add a creamy contrast to the crunchy vegetables. It's a beautifully balanced dish that feels special enough for a dinner party but simple enough for a weekend lunch.
Ingredients
- 1 cock spider crab (about 1kg), cooked
- 4 small gherkins, finely diced
- 3 tbsp capers, rinsed, drained and roughly chopped
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Little Gem lettuce
- 4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
- 1 small fennel bulb, finely sliced, feathery fronds reserved
Instructions
- 1Carefully extract all the meat from the cooked spider crab. Keep the white meat and the brown meat in two separate bowls. You'll use the brown meat to build a rich, savory dressing.
- 2Create the dressing by combining the brown crab meat, diced gherkins, and chopped capers in a mixing bowl. Whisk the mixture thoroughly, then slowly drizzle in the extra virgin olive oil while continuing to whisk.
- 3Check the consistency of the dressing and stir in a splash of water if it needs thinning out. Taste and season with black pepper. The capers and gherkins usually provide enough salt, but you can adjust to your preference.
- 4Pull apart the Little Gem lettuce leaves and divide them among your serving plates. Slice the peeled hard-boiled eggs into quarters and place them over the greens along with the reserved white crab meat and thinly sliced fennel.
- 5Drizzle the brown crab dressing generously over each salad, then garnish with the reserved feathery fennel fronds.
Notes
- Prep: Picking crab meat takes patience. Take your time to ensure no small shell fragments end up in the final dish.
- Make ahead: You can boil the eggs and pick the crab meat up to a day in advance. Store them in separate airtight containers in the fridge.
- Swap: If you can't find spider crab, standard brown crab works beautifully here.