Devilled Crab Recipe - Great British Chefs

Josh Eggleton salutes the iconic produce of the West Country in his devilled crab recipe, melding the fresh flavours of crab and cider with pungent, beautifully creamy Cheddar cheese. This recipe works equally well with ale or with herbs such as parsley or tarragon. Try it with your favourite bread, substitute the lemon juice with lime, and serve with a selection of pickled vegetables to create your own unique twist.

Ingredients

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Devilled crab

250g of white crab meat, picked through for broken shell
10g of unsalted butter
10g of plain flour
125ml of cider
120g of cheddar, grated
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Tabasco to taste
fresh coriander to taste, chopped, plus extra for garnishing
lemon juice to taste
salt
black pepper

To serve

4 slices of sourdough bread, toasted

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Melt the butter in a small saucepan over a low heat. Mix in the flour with a spatula and cook very gently for 2 minutes

10g of unsalted butter
10g of plain flour

Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in half of the cider. Return the pan to the heat and whisk again until the mixture thickens

62.5ml of cider

Whilst still over the heat, pour in the remaining cider and continue to whisk. Once the sauce is smooth, whisk in the mustard and the Worcestershire sauce

62.5ml of cider
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

After about 10 minutes of gentle cooking, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the grated cheese a little at a time

120g of cheddar, grated

Once the cheese is fully incorporated, transfer the sauce to a bowl and leave to cool

Place the crab meat on a clean kitchen cloth and pull up the sides of the cloth to form a sack. Twist the sack over a sink to squeeze any excess water out of the crab meat

250g of white crab meat, picked through for broken shell

Gently mix the drained crab meat into the cheese sauce

Season with salt, pepper, Tabasco sauce, coriander and lemon juice – make sure you keep trying the mix to make sure it is to your liking

Tabasco to taste
fresh coriander to taste, chopped
lemon juice to taste
salt
black pepper

Spread the crab rarebit as thickly as desired over the freshly toasted sourdough and place under a grill until golden

4 slices of sourdough bread, toasted

Serve by itself, sprinkled with freshly chopped coriander, or with a selection of pickled vegetables such as sliced gherkins, onions and pickled carrots

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Josh Eggleton

It can take decades of dedication and dogged effort to win a Michelin star. Josh Eggleton, though, was ‘shocked’ to win his first Michelin star at the age of 27, after only a few years of being a Head Chef.