THE SAUCE BASE
1 c Soy oil
1/2 c Onion chopped into small
-dice
3/4 c Bell peppers (red;green and
-yellow)chopped into small
-dice
3 Egg yolks
1/4 c Fresh lime juice
1/4 c Dijon mustard
1/2 tb Tabasco sauce
1 tb Vietnamese fish sauce
CRAB CAKES
1 lb Jumbo lump crab meat picked
-over
2 tb Sauce base; (2 or 3 heaping
-Tbsps)
1 1/2 tb Fresh dill roughly chopped
1 1/2 tb Chives roughly chopped
1 1/2 tb Parsley cleaned; stems
-removed and roughly chopped
1 1/2 c Fresh bread crumbs; (crusts
-removed)
1 c Japanese bread crumbs;
-(Panko)
1 tb Freshly ground white pepper
2 Eggs
Vegetable oil for sauteing
CHIPOTLE SAUCE
2 Chipotle peppers in 1 Tbsp;
-adobo sauce
1 tb Garlic chopped
1 tb Shallots chopped
1/2 c Cilantro washed and roughly
-chopped
1/2 c Seasoned rice vinegar
1 Lemon; juiced
2 c Soy oil
MAKE THE BASE : In a saucepan over medium heat, place the oil, onions and
peppers, and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 7 minutes.
Combine the 3 egg yolks, lime juice, mustard, Tabasco, and fish sauce in a
large bowl. Remove the oil and vegetables from the heat. Slowly pour them
into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Begin by pouring with small
splashes, incorporating the oil completely before adding more. The heat of
the oil will cook the yolks as you go, and you should end up with a
hollandaise-like sauce when all the oil has been blended. Return the
saucepan to the heat for 30 seconds, whisking constantly to insure that the
sauce is fully incorporated. Set the saucepan down over a bowl of ice and
whisk to cool quickly. Refrigerate the sauce covered, until it is
well-chilled.
MAKE THE CHIPOTLE SAUCE: In a food processor, process all the ingredients,
except the soy oil. With the machine running, add the oil in a slow stream
until the sauce is emulsified. Taste. Add more oil if necessary. Set aside.
MAKE THE CRAB CAKES: Pick over the crab meat to remove any shell pieces.
Add the dill, chives and parsley and gently toss, taking care not to break
up crab. Add two or three heaping tablespoons of the chilled sauce base to
the crab and gently combine. Add enough of the bread crumbs to bind the
crab mixture. Check to see that the mixture is moist (the bread crumbs will
absorb moisture as the crab mixture sits) and add more sauce or bread
crumbs as needed. Add the white pepper and taste for seasoning. Form the
crab into little cakes, about 2 inches in diameter. In a separate bowl,
beat the eggs. One at a time, coat each crab cake with egg. Then coat with
Japanese bread crumbs (Panko). Heat 1/4 inch of the vegetable oil in a
large saute pan over medium heat. Sauteing in batches, brown the crab cakes
on both sides and reserve on a platter. Place in a preheated 350 degree
oven for 2- 3 minutes to heat through, and serve. To serve, place some
chipotle sauce on a dish and place the crab cakes on the sauce. Yield 12
crabcakes, or 6 first course servings.
NOTES : In the original recipe chef Rick Moonen served these with a
cucumber carrot salad.
Yields
6 Servings