Singapore Style Chilli Crab

Singapore style chilli sauce is one of the best way to cook your seafood. A lot of chinese restaurants in Perth offer Singapore Style Chilli crab but I find it really expensive, so that option of dining out is only reserved for special occasions. 

Anyway, i've decided to make my own chilli crab at home for a fraction of the price i would pay outside. (with the aid of google) I remembered that my mum used to cook it before, and it wasn't difficult.

 

My mum was right, the dish was not difficult to make. I made the sauce thicker, darker and spicier, just the way i like it. The crab was also bought from Kailis' seafood and it is good because i cannot bring myself to kill a live crab. but dead ones are alright.  I steamed some mantou (soft and fluffy chinese buns)  to dip into the sauce. 

The original Singapore chilli crab uses mud crab, but i cant find mud crab so i used the blue manna crab (see pic below). The result was still great! very delicious and easy to make. The sauce was sweet, spicy and egg was beaten into it. Really simple, go try it too! Definitely a crowd pleaser and family favourite. love getting my fingers all covered with the sauce when eating the crabs, there are simply no other ways to enjoy this crab than to eat it with your hands

recipe for the chilli crab below or click here

Ingredients:

2 Fresh Crabs Approximately 500g each

1/2 cup Plain Four

1/4 cup Cooking Oil

1 Medium finely chopped onion

5cm fresh ginger finely grated

4 cloves finely chopping garic

5 red chillies, finely chopped

2 cups bottled tomato sauce

1 cup water

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

2 tablespoons soft brown sugar

Method:

• Wash the crabs well and scrub the shell.
• Using a large cleaver, cut the crabs in half and rinse well under cold water, carefully removing the yellow gills or spongy parts.
• Hit the legs and larger front nippers with the flat side of the cleaver to crack the shell. This is to make the eating process easier.
• Lightly and carefully coat the shells with a little flour.
• Heat about 2 tablespoons cooking oil in a large wok and cook 1 1/2 crab at a time, carefully turning and holding the crab in the hot oil until the shell just turns red.
• Repeat with the remaining crab halves.
• Add the remaining oil to the wok and cook the onion, ginger, garlic and chili for 5 minutes over medium heat and stirring regularly.
• Add the tomato sauce, water, soy sauce, chili sauce, vinegar and sugar. Bring to boil and cook for 15 minutes.
• Return the crab to the wok and simmer, turning carefully in the sauce for 10 minutes or until the crab meat turns white.
• Do not overcook.
• Serve with steamed rice.

in case you are wondering, this is what a blue manna crab looks like. i went crabbing in mandurah a year ago and caught some undersized crabs that have to be thrown back. yes, i am holding the crab with my gardening gloves because i dont want my fingers to snap off. i really appreciate the dept of fisheries for imposing heavy penalties on catching undersized crabs, wait till they grow bigger and fatter, by doing this we can also enjoy sustainable crabbing in the future! there are heavy penalties for catching undersized crabs,  might as well use the money for the fine to buy crabs from the shops...