Pappardelle with blue swimmer crab

Anchovy is Paola Toppi's secret weapon in this crab pappardelle. And don't be deterred by the luxurious liquid, it will all be soaked up by the pasta by the time it hits the table. Food Safari Water

• serves

  4

• prep

  45 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 4 live blue swimmer crabs, about 500 g each (or 400 g picked crab meat)
• 100 ml extra virgin olive oil 
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• Finely chopped red chilli, to taste
• 4 anchovy fillets, chopped
• 400 g fresh pappardelle 
• 400 g cherry tomatoes, quartered 
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 250 ml (1 cup) white wine
• 1 bunch chives, finely chopped
• Splash of very light fish stock or pasta cooking water
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Chilling time: 45 min

Instructions

To dispatch the crabs humanely, place them in the freezer for 35 minutes or until sleepy.

Bring a large saucepan of boiling salted water to a rapid boil. Add the crabs, then once they return to the boil, cook for 13 minutes. While the crabs are cooking, get a large bowl of iced water ready to chill them down quickly. Remove the crabs with a slotted spoon, drop into the ice bath and stand for 10 minutes or until cool enough to handle. Drain well.

To pick the crab meat, remove and discard the top shells, then pick off and discard the feathery gills. Chop the crabs into quarters. Use a crab picker or skewer, remove as much meat as possible, then gently crack the claws and remove the meat, keeping the pieces as large as possible.

Bring another large saucepan of water to the boil and add a good amount of salt (about 10 g per litre).

While waiting for the water to boil, heat the oil, garlic, chilli and anchovies in a large frying pan over low heat until the garlic sizzles but you don’t want it to become brown or it will become bitter.

When the water boils, add the pappardelle and cook for 1-2 minutes if freshly made or according to the packet instructions if store bought.

Increase the heat to medium under the frying pan. Add the crab meat, cherry tomatoes, lemon juice and white wine. Reduce just while the pasta is cooking. Strain the pasta and add to the pan with the chives and toss quickly to combine. If you find the pasta is absorbing the liquid too quickly, then add a splash of hot fish stock or pasta cooking water as needed. Usually, home-made pasta absorbs liquid quickly and will need the extra stock. Serve immediately. Check the seasoning and serve immediately.

Photography by Sharyn Cairns. Styling by Lee Blaylock. Food preparation by Rachel Lane. Creative concept by Belinda So.

Maeve O'Meara is back in Food Safari Water airing 8pm, Wednesdays on SBS and then you can catch-up on all episodes via SBS On Demand. Visit the program page for recipes, videos and more.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.