Dungeness Crabcakes with Green Cocktail Sauce

  5.0 – 5 reviews  • American
Level: Intermediate
Total: 1 hr 5 min
Prep: 35 min
Cook: 30 min
Yield: 8 appetizer or 4 main-dish ser

Ingredients

  1. 10 slices supermarket white bread (about 1/2 loaf)
  2. 3/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  3. 1 large egg yolk
  4. 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
  5. 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  6. 1 1/2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce
  7. 7 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  8. 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  9. 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  10. 1/2 teaspoon celery seeds
  11. 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  12. 5 tablespoons olive oil
  13. 1 pound fresh cooked Dungeness crabmeat, picked over for bits of shell and cartilage with claw meat and large pieces left whole
  14. 1/4 cup chopped onions
  15. 1/4 cup seeded and chopped green bell peppers
  16. 1/4 cup seeded and chopped red bell peppers
  17. Unsalted butter, for pan frying, about 6 tablespoons
  18. Green Cocktail Sauce, recipe follows
  19. 4 to 8 lemon wedges
  20. 8 ounces tomatillos, husked and cut into quarters
  21. 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
  22. 1 tablespoon sugar
  23. 2 teaspoons green hot pepper sauce
  24. 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
  25. 1 teaspoon mustard seeds, toasted
  26. 1 teaspoon peeled and grated fresh horseradish

Instructions

  1. Tear up the white bread and pulse the pieces in a food processor to make fine, soft crumbs. (You should have about 6 cups crumbs.) Remove the bread crumbs to a shallow pan and mix in 1/2 cup of the chopped parsley (reserving the remaining 1/4 cup for the crabcake mixture). Set aside.
  2. In a food processor, combine the egg yolk, lemon juice, Worcestershire, hot pepper, mustard, paprika, thyme, celery seeds, and black pepper and pulse to combine. With the motor running, slowly add the oil through the feed tube in a steady stream until the mixture emulsifies and forms a mayonnaise. Remove the mayonnaise from the food processor and refrigerate.
  3. Place the crabmeat in a cheesecloth-lined sieve set over a bowl. Pull the cheesecloth tightly around the crabmeat and squeeze out as much juice as possible. Place the chopped onions and bell peppers in a sieve set over a bowl and use your hands to squeeze out as much juice as possible. In a large bowl, combine the onions and bell peppers with remaining 1/4 cup parsley. Add the chilled mayonnaise and crabmeat and toss lightly to combine. Add 1 cup of the bread crumbs-parsley mixture and combine. Do not overwork the mixture or the crabcakes may get gummy. Gently form 8 patties and roll the patties lightly in the remaining bread crumb-parsley mixture. Leave the crabcakes in the pan of the bread crumbs until you saute them.
  4. Preheat the oven to 425 degree. Using a nonstick saute pan and butter as needed, panfry the crabcakes, in batches, until golden brown on both sides and place them on a baking sheet as they are browned, put them in the oven until they are heated all the way through, 5 to 8 minutes.
  5. Serve 1 crabcake as an appetizer or 2 as an entree. Serve with a ramekin of cocktail sauce and a lemon wedge.
  6. Cook’s Note: The crabcakes hold together better if prepared a day ahead and stored in the refrigerator before cooking. Store them in the pan of bread crumbs, covered with plastic wrap.
  7. Put the tomatillos in a food processor and process until coarsely pureed. Remove the tomatillo puree to a sieve, drain off the liquid, and discard. Put the drained puree in a small bowl and stir in the vinegar, sugar, pepper sauce, garlic, mustard seeds, and horseradish until combined.
  8. Yield: 2/3 cup

Reviews

David May
I think this is a great recipe because personally crab cakes are my favorite thing to eat yum
Stephanie Alexander
I’m a student at Le Cordon Bleu in Seattle, WA and I had a chance to trail at Etta’s Seafood Restaurant this past weekend. Ultimatly I had a wonderful time. Everyone in the BOH was welcoming and friendly. After I did my trailing I was able to order off the menu and I chose the Dungeness Crabcakes with the cocktail sauce, it was wonderful. I have to say these Cooks and Chefs know how to please a palette. If your every in Pike Place Market i highly recommend you stop at Etta’s and enjoy the wonderful atmosphere and great food.

Thank you Tom, Chefs and cook and everyone in BOH and FOH,

Le Cordon Bleu Student

Erik Roman
This was a fabulous recipe. My husband and I really enjoyed this dish, this evening. I recommend thoroughly chilling the crab cakes before frying them up, so they will hold together better. Thank you Tom for another great recipe, and for the memories this recipe brought back of our trips to Seattle!
Sherri Grant
I’ve made this three times now and every time I’ve gotten rave reviews! Its good. trust me..living in Seattle, we have set the standard pretty high on decent seafood. This wont disappoint!
The last time I substituted imitation crab (I know…shame on me, but I ran out of time to hit the market)…No one even questioned it (snicker)…I could tell the difference, but it seemed no one else could.

 

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