We have to admit we’ve been sitting on this recipe and feature for RSVP International for a few months. Why? Because we wanted to create the perfect recipe to plate in RSVP’s Japanese Crackle bowls. Sure, we could have gone with plain rice, or taken the easy way out with dips, but we’ve been wanting to try our hand at risotto for ages.
We spent months talking with a few people in the restaurant biz and browsing the internet for a starting point, finally landing on Chef Simon Hulstone’s Crab Risotto with Creme Fraiche and Chives recipe. Next, we needed to purchase the ingredients. It doesn’t sound difficult until needing to hit up a specialty store with no car and kids in tow. Luckily we already had Acquerello rice hidden away in the kitchen thanks to a gift from the guys at Alphonse DC. Then we needed to find time to concentrate alone in the kitchen without the spawn under foot begging for Pop Tarts and cookies.
Anyway, we did it, and made a few tweeks to Hulstone’s recipe along the way; we used Stone Crab instead of whatever Hulstone used. Note for future reference, there isn’t a lot of brown mean (if any) in a Stone Crab so we had to figure out a way to enhance the flavor and color of the rice. We did this with a generous dash of curry powder. We love curry and would curry nearly everything, so to us that was a no brainer. We’re also thinking next time maybe adding in some Parmesan would make it even creamier and zingy-ier. And finally, we toned down the lemon. We’re not huge fans of lemony rice.
- 2 - Steamed Stone Crabs w/ all claw meat (including legs and body knuckles) removed.
- ½ Cup - Acquerello Rice
- 3 Cups (approximately) - Seafood Stock
- 1 TBSP - Butter
- ½ Shallot - Chopped
- 1 Garlic Clove - Minced
- 2 TBSP - Chopped Chives (or to suit personal preference)
- ⅛ Cup - Dry White Wine
- Curry Powder - To Taste
- Fine Sea Salt - To Taste
- 2 TBSP - Creme Fraiche
- 1 to 3 TSP - Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
- Heat fish stock in a pot so it's hot when adding it to the rice later.
- Add butter to a non stick pan, allow to foam, then add the chopped shallot and garlic. Cook slowly to soften but not burn. (Approximately 5 minutes.)
- Add in the rice, and stir to coat.
- Stir in the white wine and allow to absorb.
- Once white wine is absorbed start adding in the seafood stock a small ladle full at at a time, stirring constantly, and only adding more stock once it has absorbed.
- As you go, add in the curry powder, and any additional salt.
- Continue to add stock as it absorbs until the rice is al dente (still a little firm in the middle, but soft and fluffy on the outside - or to your personal preference).
- Before removing from heat, stir in the creme fraiche, crab meat, and add your lemon juice.
- Remove from heat and stir in chives.
- Garnish with any extra crab meat and additional chives.
RSVP International is a wholesale website with hundreds of beautiful kitchen gadgets – with everything for making eggs, to stunning tableware, spice racks and and food prep necessities. In fact, we also have a beautiful hanging metal and glass spice rack from RSVP that we’re hoping to feature soon as well – but you can find it on Amazon
Although we were coveting all of the products they offer, our eyes kept coming back to the Japanese Crackle Bowls. We typically plate our food on very plain white surfaces, but we were looking for something more unique. There was something about the colors and the textures of the crackle bowls we thought would make the food pop. With colors in wine (more of a brown-purple), blue, green, and yellow – the exterior is non-glossy stoneware (probably a great idea for people with butter fingers) and the dishes have a delicate feel, but are dishwasher safe. The best of both worlds. Available in two sizes, know that if you pick these up for yourself they will be very small. One size is meant for serving rice, while the other is more for condiments.
The bowls were exactly what we needed for this recipe and worked out to be just the right size. We loved the contrasting color of the blue with the yellow and red of the crab claw and curried rice – and we’re convinced we’d eat just about anything out of these bowls. Now we just need to find a place for them in our kitchen.
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