A starter rather than a meal, and one built entirely on assembly. There is no cooking anywhere in it.
Crab meat dressed in mirin, wasabi and rice vinegar, moulded into a neat round, set on dressed rocket with avocado dotted over the top. Four generous portions.
Split the dressing before it touches anything
Whisk the mirin, wasabi, rice vinegar, sesame oil and salt together, then take out about four teaspoons into a second larger bowl.
This is the step that makes the recipe work and it is easy to miss on a first read. The larger amount stays in the first bowl for the crab. The four teaspoons go into a bowl big enough for the leaves.
The crab wants a generous coating, since it is the centre of the dish and it is mild. The leaves want barely anything, because rocket dressed heavily collapses within a minute.
Do it in this order rather than making two separate dressings. One whisking, split afterwards.
One drop of sesame oil
Not a teaspoon. One drop.
Toasted sesame oil is extraordinarily strong and it is easy to let it take over a delicate dressing. Against two tablespoons of mirin and a tablespoon of rice vinegar, a single drop is enough to register as a background note.
Anything approaching a teaspoon and the whole dish tastes of sesame rather than of crab.
Half a teaspoon of wasabi
Enough to give the dressing a faint heat that clears rather than burns.
Wasabi heat is volatile and it fades quickly once mixed into liquid, which is why sushi wasabi is applied at the last moment. In a dressing it mellows into a gentle warmth.
Most wasabi paste sold outside Japan is horseradish with colouring and it works fine here. Check the packaging if you need it gluten free, since some brands contain wheat.
Mould the crab in a cup measure
A third cup measure or a small ramekin, packed down firmly, then turned out onto the plate.
This is presentation rather than technique, and it is what turns a pile of crab into something that looks composed. Press it down properly so it holds, then invert, tap, and it should drop out cleanly.
If it sticks, the crab was too dry. A little more dressing fixes it.
Scoop the avocado rather than slicing it
A rounded teaspoon measure, scooping curls or humps to dot around the crab.
Sliced avocado looks flat against a moulded round. Scooped curls give height and shape, and they sit on the leaves without sliding.
Spritz them with lime as you go. Avocado browns within minutes of being cut and the acid slows it noticeably.
Two hundred grams of white crab meat
White rather than brown, and the distinction matters.
White meat comes from the claws and body and it is delicate, sweet and pale. Brown meat comes from the shell cavity, it is darker, softer and far stronger in flavour, and it would overwhelm this dressing completely.
Fresh tubs from a fishmonger or supermarket are what the recipe assumes. Pick through it for shell fragments before dressing it, since even good crab carries some.
Eat it immediately
The source says outright that it is not advisable to make ahead or store, and that is worth respecting.
Crab meat is fragile and it degrades quickly once dressed. The avocado browns. The rocket wilts under even a light dressing within twenty minutes.
Everything here can be prepared to the point of assembly. The assembly itself takes three minutes and should happen just before you sit down.
Halving it
The quantities are generous for four as a starter, and the recipe halves cleanly for two as a light supper. Everything scales directly with no adjustments.
What mirin is
A sweet Japanese rice wine used for cooking, lower in alcohol and higher in sugar than sake. It brings sweetness and a glossy quality that sugar alone does not. If you cannot find it, a teaspoon of sugar dissolved in two tablespoons of dry sherry approximates it.
Crab and Avocado Salad with Japanese Dressing
Description
A no-cook starter of white crab meat in a Japanese-style dressing with avocado, rocket and chives.
Ingredients:
Instructions
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In a bowl large enough to take the crab meat, whisk together the mirin wasabi paste rice vinegar sesame oil and salt. Remove about 4 teaspoons to another large bowl big enough for the salad leaves.
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To the larger amount of dressing add the finely chopped chilli and then the crab meat, forking through to mix thoroughly.
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To the small amount of dressing in the other bowl add the lime juice and then the salad leaves. Toss well and arrange on four plates.
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Spoon a quarter of the crab mixture into a 1/3 cup measure or small ramekin, squishing it down firmly, then unmould in the centre of a salad-lined plate. Turn over, tap, and the crab should fall out. Repeat for the other three plates.
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Using a rounded teaspoon, scoop curls of avocado and dot them around on top of the salad. Spritz with a little lime juice.
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Sprinkle the chopped chives over the crab and serve immediately..
Note
Whisk the dressing once and split it, removing about 4 teaspoons for the leaves and leaving the rest for the crab. The crab needs a generous coating; rocket dressed heavily collapses within a minute. Use one drop of sesame oil, not a teaspoon, as it is extremely strong. Use white crab meat rather than brown, which is far stronger and would overwhelm the dressing. Pick through the crab for shell fragments before dressing. Most wasabi is gluten free but check the packaging. This should not be made ahead or stored; assemble just before serving, as the crab degrades, the avocado browns and the rocket wilts.
