New Orleans-Broiled Soft-Shell Crab Recipe

In a small saucepan, heat the butter over medium heat and mix in lemon pepper, lemon juice, olive oil , bacon , salt, white pepper, and Worcestershire sauce . While the butter is still warm, thoroughly coat each crab (including the parts under the shell flaps) with the mixture. Then place the crabs in the bottom of your refrigerator - covered - for 3 hours or more.

When you are ready to cook, take the crabs and place them on an oven rack inside a baking pan. Set the oven to 500 degrees F. (broil) and cook the crabs until they turn succulently tender (about 10 minutes). During the broiling process the juices will drip from the crab. Baste the cooking crabs with the drippings periodically to keep the flavoring in the seafood.

I also recommend that you broil the crabs on both sides, initially with the bottom of the crab facing the broiling element and finishing with the top shell facing the element. You should also pierce the crabs twice to keep the pressures from building up inside the individual chambers.

Serve the sliced onions over the crabs as garnish.

On an open grill:

Simply prepare the crabs the same way you would for cooking in the oven, including marinating them for 3 hours. Then when you're ready to cook them, place them on the grill as close as possible to the heat source (the coals) and cover the grill to keep the intensity of the heat constant. Remember that some grills cook faster than others, so keep a close eye on your crabs. When they turn crisp on the outside and the inside meat is totally white (opaque and bubbly), they're ready to eat. Do not overcook. Keep basting with the lemon-butter mixture as they cook.

Hint:

As is the case with fried soft-shells, a good shrimp sauce spooned over the top of each crab when it's served will further enhance the flavor. And for a unique experience, grill your soft-shells over a hickory-chip fire. The delicacy of the crabmeat and the sweetness of hickory make a good combination.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings Recipe Source: The Frank Davis Seafood Notebook by Frank Davis (Pelican Publishing)

Reprinted with permission.