Sautéed Soft-Shell Crab Sandwiches With Pickled Vegetables, Cilantro, and Ginger-Chili Mayo Recipe

Daniel Gritzer
Saut\u00e9ed Soft-Shell Crab Sandwiches With Pickled Vegetables, Cilantro, and Ginger-Chili Mayo Recipe
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  • Yield:Makes 2 large sandwiches, serving 2 to 4
  • Active time:20 minutes
  • Total time:30 minutes
This recipe appears in:
Two Delicious and Easy Soft-Shell Crab Sandwiches to Celebrate the Season

Each of these large banh mi-style sandwiches is packed with three crispy soft-shell crabs. [Photograph: Daniel Gritzer]

Inspired by both the Cantonese dish of crabs sautéed with scallions and ginger, and Vietnamese banh mi, these oversized soft-shell crab sandwiches feature lightly toasted soft baguettes packed with three crisp sautéed soft-shell crabs each, along with ginger-chili mayo, quick-pickled carrots and cucumbers, fresh scallions, and cilantro.

Why this recipe works:

  • Dredging the crabs in cornstarch and sautéeing them in neutral oil results in crabs with a crisp, shattering shell and clean flavor.
  • Quick-pickling the carrots and cucumbers in seasoned rice vinegar adds just enough tang while not requiring a lengthy pickling time.

Note: While the pickles are ready in just 25 minutes, they can also be refrigerated overnight before using.

Ingredients

  • 1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into fine matchsticks
  • 1 medium cucumber, seeds removed, split lengthwise into 1/4-inch spears
  • 1/2 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
  • 1/4 cup rice vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons sambal oelek, Sriracha, or other chili paste
  • 1 (1-inch) piece fresh peeled ginger, finely grated on microplane
  • 1 medium garlic clove, finely grated on microplane
  • 1/2 cup cornstarch
  • 6 large soft-shell crabs, preferably jumbo or "whale" size, cleaned
  • 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 Vietnamese-style baguettes, split and lightly toasted, or 1 French baguette, halved, split, and lightly toasted
  • 2 scallions, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced lengthwise
  • Cilantro leaves and fine stems from 1 bunch, for serving

Directions

  1. 1.

    Combine carrot, cucumber, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Using fingertips, massage salt and sugar into vegetables until dissolved. Add rice vinegar and water and let stand for at least 25 minutes.

  2. 2.

    Meanwhile, in a small bowl, thoroughly mix together mayonnaise, chili paste, ginger, and garlic. Season with salt.

  3. 3.

    In a shallow bowl, stir together cornstarch with a pinch of salt. Lightly dredge crabs in the seasoned cornstarch.

  4. 4.

    In a large, wide skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add crabs, shell-side down, and cook until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes; be careful, as soft-shell crabs sometimes pop in the pan. Flip crabs and cook until golden and crisp on bottom side, about 3 minutes. Transfer crabs to paper-towel-lined plates.

  5. 5.

    Drain carrot and cucumber. Spread top and bottom halves of baguettes with ginger-chili mayonnaise. Arrange 3 crabs on each of the bottom halves and top with scallions and pickled carrot and cucumber. Top with cilantro sprigs, close sandwiches, and serve immediately.

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Daniel Gritzer
Culinary Director

Daniel cooked for years in some of New York's top American, Italian and French restaurants - starting at the age of 13, when he began staging at the legendary restaurant Chanterelle. He spent nearly a year working on organic farms in Europe, where he harvested almonds and Padron peppers in Spain, shepherded a flock of more than 200 sheep in Italy, and made charcuterie in France. When not working on, thinking about, cooking and eating food, he blows off steam (and calories) as an instructor of capoeira, the Afro-Brazilian martial art.

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