Tempura Soft-shell Crab with Asian Slaw

Ingredients:

Preparation mode:

👉 Soft-shell crabs are blue crabs caught just after they shed their hard shell, so you can eat the whole crab – legs and all. Fried in a thin Japanese-style tempura batter, they turn shatteringly crisp outside and sweet and juicy inside.

🍳 How to Make Tempura Soft-Shell Crab

1. Make the slaw. Toss the cabbage, carrot and spring onions with the rice vinegar, lime juice, sesame oil and a pinch of salt. Set aside while you fry.
2. Dry the crabs. Pat the cleaned crabs very dry with paper towels and dust them lightly with flour. Dry crabs fry crisper and spit less.
3. Heat the oil. Heat about 5 cm of oil in a deep pot to 175–180°C (350°F).
4. Mix the batter. Whisk the egg yolk into the ice-cold sparkling water, then add the flour, cornstarch and salt and stir just a few times with chopsticks. Lumps are fine – an overmixed batter turns heavy.
5. Fry. Dip 2 crabs at a time in the batter, let the excess drip off and lower them into the oil. Fry for about 2 minutes per side, until pale golden and crisp.
6. Drain and serve. Drain on a rack or paper towels and sprinkle with a little salt. Serve right away, halved, on the slaw with soy sauce for dipping and sesame seeds on top.

💡 Tips

• Keep the batter cold – put the bowl over ice if your kitchen is warm.
• Stand back when the crabs go in: the legs can pop in the hot oil.
• A splatter screen helps a lot.

❓ FAQ

Do I eat the whole soft-shell crab?
Yes. Once cleaned (face, gills and apron removed – your fishmonger can do this), everything else is edible.

When are soft-shell crabs in season?
Fresh ones are mainly available in late spring and summer; frozen cleaned crabs work well the rest of the year.

👉 More seafood ideas: browse all recipes.

Footnotes:

Whole soft-shell crabs in a light, crackly tempura batter, served with a crunchy sesame-lime slaw and a quick soy dipping sauce.