Meeting Street Crab Meat
Serves 4
This is from “Charleston Receipts”, the famed 1950 cookbook by the Junior League of Charleston, SC. I’ve only made a few small changes to my own taste, but you’ll find this easy, quick and luxurious.
Baked in a single dish and served with toasts or crackers, it makes a pleasant appetizer for a party. Baked in individual ramekins, it’s an ideal first course for a dinner party.
Ingredients #
- 1 lb jumbo lump crab meat, picked over for shell fragments
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp finely minced shallot or scallion
- 4 tbsp flour
- 1 cup cream
- 4 tbsp dry sherry
- Salt, white pepper, and cayenne to taste
- 3/4 cup shredded Gruyère or sharp white cheddar
Instructions #
Preheat oven to 350 F.
In a saucepan over medium heat, heat the butter until it foams and subsides. Add the shallot or scallion and cook just until softened. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for a minute or so to cook out the raw taste. Stirring constantly, add the cream 1/4 cup at a time to achieve a smooth cream sauce. Add the sherry, return to a simmer, and season to taste with salt, plus a small pinch of white pepper and cayenne.
Remove from heat and fold in the crab meat. Spoon the mixture into a buttered casserole, or 4 individual ramekins. Sprinkle with the grated cheese.
Bake until the mixture is bubbly and the cheese is melted just beginning to brown. Do not overcook. Let rest for a couple of minutes before serving.