Culpeper House

Here Lives A Man with a Pan

Starters

Crab cakes with lemon butter sauce

Toby

Ingredients

  • Potatoes 300g
  • Rock salt for baking
  • Fresh white crabmeat 200g
  • Spring onions 4, finely sliced
  • Dill 1 tsp, chopped
  • Small capers 1 tbsp
  • Gherkins 1½ tbsp, chopped
  • Plain flour 100g
  • Free-range eggs 2, beaten with a splash of milk
  • Panko breadcrumbs 150g
  • Oil for deep frying
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the lemon sauce:

  • Shallots 2 small, peeled and finely chopped
  • Garlic 1 clove, peeled and finely chopped
  • Lemongrass 1 stem, tough outer layers removed, finely sliced
  • White wine 100ml
  • Double cream 50ml
  • Unsalted butter 250g, in small pieces
  • Basil leaves 10, finely sliced

Method

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°c/gas 6. Place the potatoes on little mounds of rock salt on a baking tray and bake for 50-60 minutes until cooked. Remove and leave until cool enough to handle. Cut the potatoes in half, scoop out the flesh into a bowl and mash until smooth. Leave to cool.
  2. Once the mashed potato is cool, add the crabmeat, spring onions, dill, capers, gherkins and a little salt and pepper. Mix together well, then taste to check the seasoning and correct as necessary.
  3. Divide the crab mixture into 4 equal portions and roll into balls in your hands. Have the flour, beaten eggs and breadcrumbs ready in 3 separate bowls. Pass each crab cake through the flour, the egg mixture and the breadcrumbs to coat evenly. Place in the fridge until ready to cook.
  4. For the lemon sauce: put the shallots, garlic, lemongrass and wine in a pan and cook until the wine has almost totally reduced. Add the cream and turn the heat down low. Add the butter, piece by piece, whisking all the time – do not allow the sauce to boil or it will split. Once all the butter is incorporated, season with salt and pepper to taste. Strain the sauce through a sieve into a bowl and cover with clingfilm to prevent a skin forming. Keep warm.
  5. When ready to cook: heat the oil in a deep fryer. Lower the crab cakes into the hot oil and fry for 3–4 minutes until golden and hot through.
  6. Meanwhile, gently warm the sauce and add the sliced basil. Share the sauce between 4 shallow bowls. Carefully lift the crab cakes from the pan, drain on kitchen paper and season with salt. Place a crab cake on each pool of sauce and finish with a drizzle of olive oil. Serve immediately.