Crab Soup With Chipotle Chiles

Rinse crab well under cold running water, scrubbing underside with long-handled brush (but watch out for claws). Place crab in deep pot with cold water to cover by several inches. Cover pot and bring water almost to boil over high heat. Turn off heat; let crab steep 10 minutes.

Remove and rinse with cold water until cool enough to handle and reserve cooking liquid. Clean and crack crab and extract meat, keeping claw and leg sections as intact as possible. Save shells for broth.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion tops and cook 2 minutes. Add 1 quart crab cooking water, tomato juice and crab shells. Bring to boil over high heat, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 10 minutes.

Strain broth, wipe pan dry, return pan to medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon oil. Add garlic and sliced onions and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add broth, chopped tomatoes and chiles and simmer until chile flavor permeates broth, about 2 minutes. Add salt to taste, then add crab meat to broth to reheat, about 2 minutes. Remove chiles before serving.

Serve with lime wedges and oregano for seasoning each bowl to taste.

Variation: If it's more convenient to start with a cooked crab, clean and crack crab as usual and make soup base with shells and plain water. You will lose a bit of flavor, but it will still make good soup.

This recipe yields 4 to 6 servings.

Each of 6 servings: 96 calories ; 322 mg sodium; 27 mg cholesterol; 5 grams fat; 4 grams carbohydrates; 9 grams protein; 0.37 gram fiber.