Chilli Mud Crab with Fermented Black Beans

Cook Time 45 minutes to 1 hour

Servings 4

Ingredients

2 x 800g-1kg mud crab
Vegetable oil
1 knob ginger, julienned
3 garlic cloves, julienned
2 long red chillies, sliced (deseed if you prefer a milder taste)
1 bullet chillies, sliced (deseed if you prefer a milder taste)
¼ cup fermented black beans soaked in water
3 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 cup chicken stock
¼ cup corn flour
Water to mix with the corn flour
½ bunch spring onions, chopped
½ bunch coriander, chopped
2 limes, halved
ketjap manis to taste
Jasmine rice, cooked

Method

Remove the top and the gills from the crab. Break the crab into quarters, by cracking it down the back and then in half again. Tap the shell of each claw and leg a little to break the surface.

In a hot wok, heat the vegetable oil and then add the crab to cook for a few minutes with the lid on. Take the the lid off and add the chilli, ginger, garlic and fermented beans and cook for a few minutes. Then add spring onion and coriander, together with rice wine vinegar and chicken stock.

Add the cornflour mixed with water to thicken the sauce. Stir it all together.

Plate up with the rice, lime wedges and a drizzle of ketjap manis to finished it off.

TIP: Put the crab in the freezer or a bucket of ice water to put it to sleep before cooking.