Quand on a encore envie de crabe – Croquettes de crabe et crevettes à l’estragon et câpres sur un lit de concombre spaghetti

crabcakesweb

Well it might no longer be crab season, but I have urges of a pregnant woman when it has to do with food. Anytime I see crab, I cannot help and buy some. I am a big supporter of eating seasonal and local products, except for crab, I see it, I buy it, which I know goes against what I preach. I hope I will be forgiven.

Don’t get confused, there is no pasta in this dish, just cucumbers cut like spaghetti. I love to make those cucumber spaghetti with fish terrine, or any appetizer bouchée that has seafood in it, it is so refreshing. The thing is you cannot make those ahead of time because the cucumbers produce a lot of water, then they will be soaked in it and lose their crunchy texture. Whenever you grate them, you have to serve them right away.

Crab and shrimps are a great combination. You just need to be careful when you break the shell of the crab legs to remove the flesh, they have some thorns that can be quite dangerous if you are not careful.

Ingredients for 3 (2 crab cakes each) 6 crab cakes

For the crab cakes

  • 3/4 lb king crab legs (leave some extra for decoration)
  • about 12 large shrimps, ground
  • 3 shrimps cut in half for decoration
  • 1 egg
  • 6 tbs plain bread crumbs
  • 1/2 tsp chili flakes
  • 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
  • 1 tsp capers, chopped
  • 1 tbs red onion, chopped
  • 1/3 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • salt and pepper
  • paprika for decoration

For the cucumber spaghetti

  • 1 english cucumber
  • 2 tbs olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp hot Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 honey
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 tsp fennel leaves chopped
  • salt and pepper

Preparation

For the crab-shrimp cakes

Break crab legs and remove flesh, set aside. Remove shell from shrimp and devein them. Grind them in a mixer, not too thin. Mix with crab flesh. Add all other ingredients and mix well. For small patties about 2 inches diameter.

Heat olive oil in a pan and cook cakes on both sides until golden brown and cooked all the way through, about 5-6 minutes at medium heat.

For the cucumber spaghetti

Start making the dressing. Mix olive oil, honey, lemon juice, mustard and fennel, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Set aside

Peel the cucumbers and grate them lengthwise using a julienne cutter, place in mixing bowl with dressing and serve right away. Spoon a tbs of cucumber in a small plate, add one cake on top and decorate with shrimp cut in 2, topped with a little crab, fennel leaves and paprika.