From nancyaery@hotmail.com Sat Aug 17 11:56:11 2002 Date: Thu, 15 Aug 2002 12:12:59 -0700 From: Not The Real Nancy Newsgroups: alt.food.asian Subject: Boo Jah (Crab Cakes With Cilantro Pesto) recipes from "Real Thai" the Klai Tahlay region * Exported from MasterCook * Boo Jah (Crab Cakes With Cilantro Pesto) Recipe By :Nancee McDermott Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : The Gulf Coast Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- sweet-hot garlic sauce -- see recipe 1/2 pound cooked lump crabmeat -- picked over for shell fragments 1/2 pound ground pork 2 tablespoons cilantro pesto -- see recipe 1 egg -- beaten 1 tablespoon fish sauce 1 teaspoon soy sauce 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon sugar 1 cup all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 handful fresh cilantro leaves 3 fresh red chee fah chilies -- cut into long thin strips =OR= 9 long thin sweet red pepper strips Thai crab cakes are wonderful, seasoned with a garlicky cilantro-pepper pesto and served with a full-flavored garlic sauce or a simple mix of chilies, lime juice and fish sauce. Fresh crabmeat is ideal, but canned will do. Substitute finely chopped shrimp or slivers of meaty fish for the crabmeat and you'll have tasty shrimp cakes or fish cakes. Prepare the Sweet-Hot Garlic Sauce and pour into a small serving bowl. Let cool to room temperature. In a medium bowl, gently combine the crabmeat, pork, pesto, egg, fish sauce, soy sauce, salt and sugar. Mix well, leaving the crabmeat in large chunks if possible. Put the flour on a plate and set this by the stove. Carefully shape the crab-pork mixture into small cakes. Dip each cake in the flour to coat it lightly. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Add the crab cakes and sauce, turning once, until golden brown and cooked, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer the cakes to a serving platter and garnish with the cilantro and chili. Serve at once with the dipping sauce. NOTE: In Thailand, boo jah is stuffed into cleaned crab shells, steamed until cooked, and then briefly fried to brown the top. If you form the meat mixture into small balls or pack it into tiny cups and steam them, you'll have mah uan, or "fat horses," a popular hors d'oeuvre. Try a simple dipping sauce of 3 tablespoons fish sauce, 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice, 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 tablespoon chopped fresh hot chili. Stir to dissolve sugar and serve. Source: "Chronicle Books" S(ISBN#): "0-8118-0017-2" Copyright: "1992 by Nancee McDermott" - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 391 Calories; 25g Fat (57.4% calories from fat); 15g Protein; 26g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 89mg Cholesterol; 454mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain(Starch); 1 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 4 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates. Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- Nancy