Crab “Ravigote”
Serves 6-10
Ravigote generally refers to a zesty cold sauce with capers, herbs and shallots…which is nothing like the (deliciously rich) recipe below, but this warm dip is what they serve as “Crab Ravigote” at the venerable Galatoire’s on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, and who am I to argue? This is great for a party.
Read this in advance, as it calls for two other sauces as ingredients.
Ingredients #
- 1 16” French baguette, sliced into 1/4” rounds
- Olive oil or clarified butter
- 2 tbsp. butter
- ¼ cup finely chopped scallions (white and green parts)
- 1 lb. jumbo lump crab meat, picked over to remove any bits of cartilage or shell
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. cayenne pepper
- 3/4 cup béchamel sauce (made with 2 tbsp of flour and butter and 1 cup milk)
- 3/4 cup hollandaise sauce
Instructions #
Heat the oven to 250 F. Brush the sliced bread lightly with olive oil or clarified butter and place on cookie sheets. Bake until golden and crisp, about 10 minutes. Set aside. These can be made early in the day; once they’re completely cool, seal them up in a large freezer bag.
Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the scallions and cook, stirring, for about 10 minutes or until they’re tender. Add the crabmeat and mix gently. Cook for another 3 minutes (just until the crab is heated through). Add the salt, cayenne and béchamel sauce. Cook, stirring, until the mixture is hot. Remove from the heat and fold in the hollandaise sauce. Season to taste with additional salt and cayenne pepper.
Serve at once with the toast canapes. For a party, serve this in a chafing dish over hot water along with a basket of French bread.