Well, aren’t we having some lovely weather?
I’ve almost forgotten what a cloud looks like, as we enjoy (or endure, delete as applicable) seemingly endless days of hot weather and blue skies.
Much as I love it up here on the Pennines, with those breathtaking views and clear air, sometimes I envy those who live close to the sea when the weather’s warm.
The idea of pacing down a baking hot beach and plunging into the waves is very tempting indeed. Or diving off a rock into a deep, gently-swelling sea, the cold thrilling the senses.
I’m sure seaside life has more than its share of troubles – salt getting everywhere, dangerous storms and the high tides they bring, and, of course, the delights of the herring gull; greedy, messy and possessed of the most annoying call in the ornithological world – but the benefits are many.
You have beautiful views, charming towns, and perhaps most importantly access to the freshest fish and seafood in the country.
Growing up, our family had a cottage in Robin Hood’s Bay, and almost every holiday was spent there, bombing up and down the narrow alleyways, fishing in the beck, or taking trips out to Whitby and Scarborough, or the steam railway at Grosmont.
It was blissful, and some of the best days were when we stopped at the fishmongers on the way home.
Fresh fillets of fish were often on our supper menu; cod, sole, plaice or haddock, simply grilled with butter and black pepper – good fish requires little else – with boiled potatoes and some greens. Really fresh fish can satisfy so completely.
My folks were also partial to kippers, and a greasy brown paper parcel of Fortunes’ finest were always picked up and enjoyed with poached eggs at breakfast time.
I loved them then, but these days find I can’t abide the bones, so unless it’s filleted by a gifted surgeon I’m afraid my kippering days are over.
Occasionally, we would buy lobsters or, more often, crabs, huge fat things the size of sideplates, that wonderful shade of terracotta with evil-looking black claws.
I’ve never been really wowed by crab – I find it a little too rich a lot of the time, but it is my wife Tracy’s absolute favourite.
I’m charmed by the tale she tells of a Suffolk childhood memory of sitting on the kitchen floor on sheets of newspaper, cracking crabs open and scoffing the sweet flesh.
Years later, I watched her demolish a colossal crab at Rick Stein’s restaurant in Padstow, and I don’t think I’ve seen her happier than tackling that monster and extracting every morsel. So lovely.
Personally, I prefer crab when it’s involved in things, like pasta dishes, or puff pastry pasties, where the deep ‘umami’ is tempered a little, and today’s recipe for crabcakes is a great way of cooking fresh crab meat with a few sympathetic ingredients that help with that richness.
Often, fishcakes involve potato, but these are reliant on just the crab meat and some fresh breadcrumbs, making for a fresher, lighter dish.
On the side, we’re making an amazing crab ketchup, adapted from a recipe by chef Mark Sargeant, which is dynamite stuff.
Make plenty, and use the rest as a dip for crudités, or even just for dipping hot chips into. It’s terrific stuff, and a lovely way of using up the brown crab meat.
Serves 4
For the crab cakes:
50g fresh white or sourdough breadcrumbs
½ tsp mustard powder
The grated zest of a lemon
2 tbsp curly parsley, finely chopped
1 tbsps tarragon, finely chopped
250g white crabmeat, picked over for shell
1 fresh free-range egg, beaten
Maldon salt (optional)
A pinch of Cayenne pepper
A little plain flour
Sunflower oil, for frying
A knob of butter, for frying
For the crab ketchup:
½ leaf of gelatine
The juice of a lemon
110g brown crab meat
A splash of Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp English mustard
4 anchovy fillets
2 tsp tomato ketchup
1 free-range egg yolk
1 tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs
110ml vegetable oil
4 tbsp Yorkshire rapeseed oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extras:
Salad leaves
Vinaigrette
For the crab ketchup, mix the oils together in a jug and set aside.
Soak the gelatine in cold water until soft. Squeeze dry, then add to a small saucepan with the lemon juice.
Dissolve over a very gentle heat, then transfer to a blender.
Add the crab meat, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, anchovy fillets, ketchup and egg yolk then whizz until completely smooth.
Add the breadcrumbs and whizz until the mixture is smooth once again.
Then, with the power on slow, add the oil mixture in a thin stream.
Scrape down the sides every so often. Season with salt and pepper if necessary, then pass through a fine sieve into a bowl or squeezy bottle.
Chill until your crabcakes are ready.
For the crabcakes, put the breadcrumbs, mustard powder, lemon and herbs together in a wide bowl and combine.
Add the crab meat and stir in gently.
Add the beaten egg, gradually, until you have a firm enough mixture to form into the crabcakes without them collapsing.
Divide the mixture into four, and shape into little neat ‘burgers’.
Put a little flour in a shallow bowl, season lightly with salt and Cayenne, and gently coat the crabcakes, patting away any excess.
Chill on a lined tray for at least 30 minutes, so they firm up nicely.
Set a frying pan over gentle heat, with a splash of oil and a knob of butter.
Cook the crab cakes over for about 4 minutes on each side, flipping them over with great care, until they are crisp and golden. Serve immediately with a dollop of ketchup, and a nice green salad.
