RECIPES
Blue Swimmer crab custard
By Maggie Beer
30 minutes
Prep time
15 minutes
Cooking time
8 Servings
INGREDIENTS
50g enoki mushrooms
20g dried shiitake mushrooms (about 5 mushrooms)
750ml water
75ml verjuice
2 teaspoons soy sauce
25ml mirin
3 fresh, whole blue swimmer crabs
1 bunch, chervil or dill
1 teaspoon bonito flakes
20g unsalted butter
sea salt
1 tablespoon verjuice
4 eggs
2 egg yolks
Handful chervil sprigs
Pickled ginger, to garnish
METHOD
- Trim the base off the enoki mushrooms and rinse thoroughly, reserve the stems and caps for later, then place into a solid steam tray, along with the shitake mushrooms, water, 75ml verjuice, soy sauce and mirin.
- Place the crabs on top of the chervil or dill in a solid steam tray. Place into the steam oven with the stock and Steam at 100°C for 4 minutes.
- Remove the crabs from the steam oven and set aside to cool. Continue to steam the stock at 100°C for a further 16 minutes.
- When the crabs are cool enough to handle, pick the meat from the crabs, making sure to get all of the meat from the claws as well.
- Remove the mushroom stock from the steam oven and strain through a fine mesh sieve into a saucepan, pressing down on the solids to extract as much flavour as possible. Place the stock onto medium-high heat, Induction 8 and simmer to reduce by half, 400ml. Remove from heat add the bonito flakes and set aside for 10 minutes to infuse.
- Melt the butter in a large frying pan until nut brown, add the enoki mushroom stems and caps and ¼ teaspoon of sea salt, then sauté until lightly golden, about 1 minute on medium heat, Induction setting 7. Add 1 tablespoon of verjuice and increase to high heat, Induction setting 9 and cook while stirring until the verjuice has evaporated. Place onto a paper towel lined plate to drain.
- Combine the drained mushrooms with the crab meat and season lightly with sea salt, divide evenly between eight 100ml ramekins.
- Beat the eggs and egg yolks into the cooled stock to form a custard, pour through a fine mesh sieve into a jug. Divide the custard evenly between the ramekins. Top each custard with a sprig of chervil and pickled ginger, then place into a perforated steam tray. Cover the tray tightly with foil and place into the steam oven, Steam at 90°C for 15 minutes. The custard should have a slight wobble and be just set, serve hot with extra pickled ginger and chervil.
APPLIANCE / FUNCTION
Maggie Beer
Maggie’s career spans farming, food production, as well as television presenting and food writing. Maggie’s appearance on the hit ABC programme The Cook & The Chef cemented her place as one of Australia’s most well known food personalities, and her line of products is arguably the most highly esteemed and much loved range for Australian gourmets
