Dungeness Crab with Sweet and Sour Sauce

When i was younger , my grandma used to cook lots of crabs . But my mom never really cooked them , my grandma used to cook them with coconut milk , but unfortunately i never knew how to cook it the way she used to . And since both of them are no longer in this world , i have nobody to ask to .

So , this morning i decided to buy a live dungeness crab at the Korean Supermarket . They’re alive , of course , because you don’t want to buy a dead crab . Did you know that a dead crab releases somekind of really bad chemical to eat the body that is already decomposing ? And not only that , if you have more than just 1 crab in a basket and 1 is dead , you have to throw away the other one too . So it’s only make sense that they sell a live crab and you DO want to buy a LIVE crab . We bought just 1 crab , since it’s my first time dealing with it , like many other things , i don’t feel comfortable buying too much things esp. if it’s my first time cooking it . On the way home , we didn’t put the crab in the trunk , because we don’t want it to be dead , esp. that we’re about 45 minutes away from the grocery store .

When we got home , we took the crab out and fill up a sink with cold water and added ice cubes in there to keep him alive UNTIL you’re ready to cook .

About an hour later , i was ready to cook the crab ,one of the website said if you’re a softie , then you can pick up the crab , and pet the head of the crab to make it falling asleep before dropping them into the boiling water . And NOPE .. i didn’t do that . I picked up the crab and slowly head first , dropping him into the boiling water . Don’t forget to add salt into the water .Bring the water back to boil , then cook the crab about 18 minutes . And then take the crab out and here it is ..

 

Now it’s time to make the sauce , i would suggest to cut the crab into 2 , just cut right in the middle , and if you want , you can smash the claws to make eating them a lot easier . I didn’t do that earlier , as a result , my husband was complaining because the claws were too slippery . LOL Anyway if you see some yellow gooey stuff coming out after you cut them , that’s the liver , i personally don’t want to eat it , although some people would .

For the sauce :

5 cloves of garlic

1/2 of medium onion , sliced

2 shallots

sugar

salt

pepper

14 oz of tomato sauce

1/2 can of crab stock ( the water from where you boil the crab earlier , save it , this makes a good seafood stock )

about 5 tbsp. oyster sauce

1 green pepper , sliced thin

1 inch of ginger , smashed

vegetable oil

5-6 bird eye’s chilis

1. In a pot , heat the vegetable oil , then add onion and ginger , and garlic , cook for few minutes , add green pepper , cook few more minutes . Add salt and pepper and chilis .

2. Add tomato sauce , oyster sauce , crab stock and sugar , adjust to your taste since the tomato is pretty acidic .

3. If it’s too runny , add cornstarch mixed with a little water , to make it thicker . Then add your crab , and let it simmer for about 7 minutes or so . Serve with warm jasmine rice .

Now you’re ready to eat your dungeness crab and make sure wash your hand before eating , because you will need your hand , and it’ll be very messy !!! Enjoy !!