Crab pancakes

Preparation time
less than 30 mins

Cooking time
10 to 30 mins

Serves
Serves 2

By Tom Kitchin
From Saturday Kitchen

Ingredients

For the pancake batter

120g/4½oz gram flour
2 tsp olive oil
pinch salt
vegetable oil, for frying

For the crab mixture

100g/3½oz white crab meat, picked
200g/7oz finely chopped fresh root ginger, blanched 3 times
2 spring onions, finely sliced
bunch coriander, finely shredded, few leaves reserved to garnish
10g red chillies, finely diced
10g green chillies, finely diced
100ml/3½fl oz fresh lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Little Gem lettuce leaf, cut in quarters, to garnish

For the brown crab mayo

250g/9oz brown crab meat, picked
25g/1oz free-range egg yolk
15g/½oz Dijon mustard
250g/9oz mayonnaise
25ml/1fl oz lemon juice
salt

Method

To make the pancakes, combine all the batter ingredients with 300ml/10fl oz water, or enough to make a thin batter, in a bowl and whisk vigorously. Heat a small amount of vegetable oil in a large frying pan and when hot, ladle in a quarter of the batter and swirl to create a 2mm thick pancake. Cook on a medium–high heat until golden brown, flip over and cook, then repeat to create four pancakes in total. Keep each pancake warm as you cook.
To make the crab mixture, mix the white crab meat, ginger, spring onion, coriander and chillies in a large bowl. Stir in the lemon juice, to taste, and season with salt and pepper.
To make the brown crab mayo, add the brown crab meat, egg yolk and Dijon mustard to a food processor and slowly start to mix. Very gradually add the mayonnaise and slowly mix. Pour in lemon juice and season with salt.
Serve the pancakes with the crab mixture on top and the mayo on the side. Garnish with coriander and lettuce. Store any leftover mayo in the fridge and consume within 1 day.