Crabs. Crabs.. Crabs...

Crabs tend to slip under my culinary preference radar all the time, I think it's simply because I struggle to find a good recipe for them. The way they are puts them at a disadvantage with me, or shall we say, I am disadvantaged because I have not been able to effectively use crabs in my recipes...

Crab meat is actually quite nutritious, with high levels of minerals and vitamins particularly B6, B12, magnesium, calcium and iron. It is also quite high in dietary cholesterol, but there is an ongoing debate as to whether this is really bad for health since this type of cholesterol is processed in a different way in the body.

So it's been established, crab meat is nutritious, delicious and good for you....but the problem is, how do you get access to the meat.?

Eating crabs can be really clumsy and pretty. You will have to use your hands if you want to ensure you get as much out as possible. You will also need to devote a bit of time to spend on eating crab!

So in the past, I have only ever cooked crabs in my imooyo stew or in my okra soup. And, I do admit that crab meat can be really tasty, especially if you used fresh crabs. So it's often a case of if/when I find some fresh ones, I will be cooking them....

When last weekend I attended a house party and I saw crabs on the menu, I was quite surprised...and the way it was cooked was quite different and refreshing. It was one of the options for a buffet, and I was surprised to see a lot of people actually going for some....not worrying about the challenges of eating them.

This got me looking at crabs in a totally different way. And I began to think that they can actually be featured more regularly on the menu.

Some of my tips for cooking crabs

• Make sure you buy only the fresh ones. If possible, buy them live.
• Get your fishmonger to clean them, by removing the crown and the gut.
• At home rinse crabs thoroughly using fresh clean water with a dash of lime or lemon juice
• Remove the main claws which are also the source of the main chunk of crab meat. Give them a bash using a mallet to crack them a little for the permeation of flavours
• Remove the remaining tiny claws or legs...they don't have that much meat in them but can be used to create tastes and flavour.

So I asked the host of the party how the crab dish was made, and it was really simple actually, see below

What You need

• Fresh crabs (cleaned and clawed)
• Mixed peppers (chopped)
• Onion (chopped)
• Garlic (finely chopped)
• Ginger (finely chopped)
• Maggi seasoning cube
• Dried thyme
• Curry pounder
• Dried chilli powder/or fresh scotch bonnet peppers (optional)
• Coconut oil

What to do

1. Heat up some oil in a deep base pan and add the chopped onions and peppers, garlic and ginger. Add some seasoning cube and salt to taste. 
2. Then add some curry powder and dried thyme. Stir and allow to sizzle for about 2 minutes. Also, add the scotch bonnet or chilli powder if using.
3. Then carefully place the crab pieces into the sizzling sauce, cover the pan and allow to cook for about 5 minutes. Crabs do not take that long to cook.
4. Serve hot