February 2019 Monthly Recipe / Crab with Crème Fraîche and Roe

This combination of of textures and flavours works beautifully and makes for a lovely simple starter. At the restaurant we serve it on individual plates but you could just as well arrange it nicely on one large plate in the centre of the table for everyone to help themselves. 

Serves 6

360g freshly prepared white crab meat

2 ½ – 3 tbsp mild-tasting extra virgin olive oil

Juice of ½ lemon, or to taste

A handful of mixed herb leaves, such as chervil, purslane and mint, and/or rocket leaves

180ml crème fraîche

100g lumpfish roe

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Rye crackers, to serve

Preheat the oven to its lowest setting and warm the rye crackers gently on a tray in the oven while you prepare the other ingredients.

Pick over the crab meat to remove any fragments of shell, then place in a bowl and season very sparingly with salt and just a little black pepper. Add about 1 ½ tbsp olive oil and a few drops of lemon juice. Toss together very lightly but thoroughly with your fingertips.

In a separate bowl, dress the leaves with the remaining olive oil and lemon juice to taste. Season with salt and pepper and toss gently to coat.

Divide the crab meat among the plates and arrange the dressed leaves alongside. Spoon the crème fraîche on top of the crab and finish with the roe. Serve the warmed rye crackers on the side.