Description
The lime juice, cilantro, chiles, and soy sauce in the dipping sauce add bright, bold flavors to these soft-shell crabs.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons beef stock or low-sodium broth
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 large shallot, very thinly sliced
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro
- 2 to 3 serrano chiles, halved lengthwise and very thinly sliced crosswise
- 2 large egg whites
- 8 jumbo soft-shell crabs, cleaned and patted dry
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground white pepper
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- vegetable oil, for frying
Directions
- Whisk soy sauce and beef stock in a bowl with lime juice, sugar, and water. Add shallot, cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Stir in cilantro and chiles.
- Whisk egg whites until frothy. Add crabs and turn to coat. In another bowl, whisk flour with cornstarch, white pepper, salt, and cayenne.
- Heat 2 inches of oil in a large saucepan to 375°F. Set a wire rack over a baking sheet. Dredge 2 or 3 crabs at a time in flour mixture and add them to the hot oil. Fry crabs over high heat, turning once, until golden brown and crisp, about 3 minutes. Transfer crabs to rack. Serve crabs on a platter with dipping sauce.
