Thai Soft Shell Crab Curry – ปูนิ่มผัดผงกระหรี่

Here on the east coast of the United States, soft shell crabs come into season in the summer months. Many cooks fry them until crispy and then serve them with a few simple garnishes. I love eating soft shell crabs this way, but preparing them Thai-style, with a rich and aromatic curry, might be even more delicious. I first tasted soft shell crab curry in Bangkok at a restaurant called Soei and I will never forget it. After doing lots of research, I have come up with a recipe that I am very happy with. It is not identical to the version I first tried in BKK, but it is pretty damn delicious.

The curry itself is spicy, rich and aromatic. There is a bit of egg “scrambled” in which serves to enrich, thicken and give the curry an incredibly addictive texture. It also uses cow’s milk instead of coconut milk, which is a bit rare in Thai cuisine. I like to serve this curry as part of a multi-dish meal, but it would also make a great simple dinner alongside a quick vegetable dish. Whatever you do, make sure you serve this curry with plenty of freshly cooked jasmine rice!

Ingredients

Making the curry is not difficult but you will need to do a little bit of sourcing. For the curry powder, I like to use a Thai yellow curry powder or a madras-style curry powder. Also, buy live soft shell crabs if possible. They tend to die quickly so try to use them within a day or two of purchasing. You can clean them at home and I will provide step-by-step instructions on how to do so.

You will also need some nam prik pao AKA Thai chili jam. Nam prik pao is an oily chili paste that is made of fried chilies, garlic, and shallots. It usually contains fish sauce, tamarind, sugar, and shrimp paste. The resulting paste is a little sweet, spicy, savory, and absolutely delicious. You can certainly make your own, but for this recipe, a store-bought jar works perfectly. Maesri brand makes a nice version.

Serve with:

• Steamed Jasmine Rice

Round Out The Spread With:

• Steamed Whole Fish with Garlic, Chili, and Lime
• Green Curry of Chicken and Eggplant
• Thai Crispy Fried Egg Salad
• Green Papaya Salad
• Crabmeat Fried Rice

Thai Soft Shell Crab Curry – ปูนิ่มผัดผงกระหรี่

Ian Benites

A rich, spicy, and aromatic curry made with soft shell crabs. Eat with plenty of steamed jasmine rice!

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Servings 2 to 4

Equipment

• wok OR large pot and a large saute pan
• kitchen scissors

Ingredients

  

Frying the crabs

• 2 medium or large soft shell crabs
• 4 tbsp corn starch
• 3 cups neutral flavored cooking oil (canola, vegetable, corn….etc)

Curry

• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1.5 tbsp nam prik pao (store bought is OK)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tbsp Shaoxing wine (optional)
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1.5 tbsp fish sauce
• 4 tbsp neutral flavored cooking oil (canola, vegetable, corn….etc)
• 1/2 medium-sized onion
• 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tbsp curry powder (preferably thai curry powder or madras-style curry powder)
• 1 cup whole milk
• about 1/2 cup water or chicken stock
• 1 egg, beaten with a fork
• 10 red or green thai bird chilies
• 4 scallions
• 3-6 cilantro branches, with the stem (enough to yield 1/2 cup after very roughly chopping)

Instructions

 

Cleaning the crabs

• If you are squeamish about killing the crabs, put them in the freezer for 10-15 minutes before killing them. This will slow them down and *supposedly* keep them from feeling pain. Use a pair of scissors to cut off the front of the crabs (about a 1/4 inch cut, behind the eyes and mouth). Discard the front.
  
• Lay the crab flat on its belly and flip up one side of the carapace to reveal the gills.
  
• Cut off the feathery-looking gills with your scissors and discard them.
  
• Repeat on the other side. There should be no gills left as shown in the picture.
  
• Flip the crab over and pull back its apron. Males will have thin, long aprons and females will have wider aprons.
  
• Cut off and discard the apron.
  
• Cut the crabs in half and set them aside until ready to fry.
  

Prepping the curry ingredients

• In a small bowl, mix together 1 tbsp oyster sauce, 1.5 tbsp nam prik pao, 1 tsp sugar, 1/2 tbsp shaoxing wine (optional), 1 tsp soy sauce, 1.5 tbsp fish sauce. Stir until well combined and set aside.
  
• Cut the onions into 1/3 inch thick slices. Set aside.
  
• Remove the roots from the scallions and cut them into 1/4 inch sections. Set aside.
  
• Cut the cilantro (with its stems) into 1/2 inch pieces. Set aside
  
• Cut the 10 bird chilies into 1/8 inch thick pieces. Set aside.
  

Cooking the Curry

• Make sure you have all of your ingredients cut and prepped before cooking the curry.
  
• Heat 3 cups of neutral oil in a large wok over medium-high until hot ( ideally 375F). If you do not have a wok, use a large pot (you may need to add more or less oil depending on the size of your pot, you want at least 1 inch of oil in the pot.
  
• Place the pieces of crab into a bowl and toss with 4 tbsp of cornstarch to evenly coat the crab.
  
• When the oil is hot, carefully add the pieces of crab to the oil. BE VERY CAREFUL AT THIS STAGE AS THE OIL MAY SIZZLE AND POP AGGRESSIVELY FOR THE FIRST 30 SECONDS.
  
• Cook the crabs for about 90 seconds on the first side. Adjust the heat on the wok to keep the oil nice and hot. The target temperature for the oil is about 350F after the crabs have been added (the crabs will drop the temperature of the oil)
  
• Flip the crabs over and cook for another 2 minutes, or until the crabs are crispy and lightly golden.
  
• Remove the crabs from the hot oil.
  
• Set the crabs aside on a plate lined with paper towels.
  
• Clean out the wok (or get out your large sautee pan), dry it well, and add 4 tbsp neutral oil. Heat the oil over medium heat.
  
• When the oil is hot, add the onions and stir fry for about 30-45 seconds. They should barely start to soften and get light brown around the edges.
  
• Add the garlic and cook another 15-30 seconds, don't let the garlic burn. Adjust heat as necessary.
  
• Add the curry powder to the wok and stir fry the powder for about 15-30 seconds. It should start to smell aromatic but do not let the powder scorch.
  
• Add the sauce mixture to the wok and allow it to cook over medium heat for about 30-45 seconds. It should boil and reduce as it cooks.
  
• Add the milk and water/stock to the pan and increase the heat to medium high.
  
• Allow the sauce to fully boil and then drizzle in the beaten egg and immediately stir it in well.
  
• Immediately after the eggs have been added to the pan, add the scallion, bird chilies and cilantro.
  
• Immediately after the herbs and chilies, add the fried soft shell crabs. Cook everything together for about 15-30 seconds while stirring so that the sauce is simmering and thickens up slightly from the egg.
  
• Turn off the heat and now adjust the curry. Adjust the consistency of the curry by adding stock or water if necessary in order to achieve a consistency that is thick but still flows nicely. Adjust seasoning with fish sauce and sugar if necessary.
  
• Serve curry with plenty of steamed rice!