For the deep-fried soft shell crab
- 4 soft shell crabs
- 200ml buttermilk
- 1 tbsp Szechuan pepper
- 1 tbsp Cornish sea salt
- 250g plain flour
For the bao buns
(This makes 24 bao buns, which can be frozen for future use once cooked.)
- 3g dried yeast
- 170ml warm water
- 25g sugar
- ½ tsp vegetable oil
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 300g strong flour
- Vegetable oil for brushing
- For the Singapore chilli sauce
- 10 large dried red chillies, rehydrated,
- deseeded and diced (we like Szechuan
- long-dried chilli)
- 5 serrano chillies, diced
- 1 tbsp shrimp paste, roasted in the
- oven for 5 minutes
- 1 thumb of galangal, diced
- 1 stick lemongrass, diced
- 25ml vegetable oil
For the deep-fried soft shell crab
- Soak the soft shell crabs in the buttermilk.
- Toast off the Szechuan pepper in a frying pan for about a minute and then let cool down.
- Grind the pepper with the salt and then season the flour.
- When needed, take each crab and let the excess buttermilk drip off, then dredge in the flour to coat.
- Deep-fry at 180C till crispy.
For the bao buns
- Mix the water, sugar, vegetable oil and dried yeast in a mixing bowl and leave to react.
- Mix all the other dry ingredients together.
- When the yeast is activated, add everything together to make a dough.
- Knead for a good 10 minutes and then cover with a damp cloth and leave in a warm place to prove for about 1½ hours.
- Knock the dough back and divide into about 24 even balls.
- Leave to prove for another 30 minutes.
- In the meantime, cut out 24 greaseproof paper squares (approx. 10 x 10cm).
- When the dough balls are ready, roll them out into ovals.
- Take an oiled chopstick and place in the middle of the ovals, fold over the ovals to make a bao shape and then withdraw the chopstick.
- Place on the greaseproof paper and let rise for another 30 minutes.
Pair with a Sharp's Brewery Offshore Pilsner.
