Seafood Sauce Recipes for Stone Crab Claws
tartar sauce recipe - cocktail sauce recipe
Everyone in my family loves stone crab claws! The sweet flesh of stone crabs is very similar in taste and texture to lobster, in my opinion. In case you’re not familiar with the stone crab, it’s about the same size and shape of a blue crab, only it has huge claws. There’s really not enough crab meat in the body to bother with, so only the claws are eaten. You can find stone crab claws fresh or frozen, and you can even buy stone crab claws online, but it’s a real treat when you catch them yourself and eat them when they’re super fresh. We’ve had the good fortune to catch our own stone crabs numerous times, and man, were those stone crab claws delicious! Most people who catch their own stone crabs break off the largest claw and return the crab to the water. The stone crabs are able to generate new claws, and when only one claw is removed, the crabs have a good survival rate. If you've caught you own crabs and need to learn how to cook stone crab claws, click this link.
The secret's in the seafood sauce!
Like blue crabs, the stone crab claws are generally boiled or steamed with herbs and spices for a few minutes. At that point, the shells are broken or cracked, and the crabmeat is extracted. This can be done with a pair of crab crackers or with a kitchen mallet, a hammer, or any heavy object. When using a hammer or mallet to crack the claws, cover the stone crab claws with a dishcloth. This will help prevent pulverizing the crab meat itself, and it will also prevent making a mess with the pieces of shell. You don’t want to hit the crab claws too hard – you just want to break or crack the shell.
Many people like to leave part of the shell on the stone crab claws, to act as a sort of “handle.” Other folks like to completely remove all the shell. When all the shell is removed, the crab meat can be used in a wide variety of crab recipes, much the same as using the cooked flesh from blue crabs. For example, the meat from stone crab claws can be used in crab cakes, crab soup, crab casserole, crab salad, and other crab recipes. The most popular way to enjoy stone crab claws, however, is to eat them steamed or boiled, with some type of seafood sauce on the side. Let’s face it – most seafood recipes are better with a great seafood sauce recipe! Some people prefer cocktail sauce, while others prefer a tartar sauce recipe. Below, I’m going to share with you a cocktail sauce recipe and a tartar sauce recipe that both go well with stone crab claws.
Orange-ginger cocktail sauce recipe
Ingredients:
1/2 cup orange marmalade
½ cup chili sauce
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cayenne
Orange juice
Directions: Place marmalade in a microwave-safe bowl and zap until marmalade is soft. Stir in remaining ingredients. Add a little orange juice, if needed, to thin sauce. Microwave again for just a few seconds. Serve on the side as a seafood sauce for dipping. This is a great seafood sauce recipe for blue crab, too.
Spicy tartar sauce recipe
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons minced onion
1 tablespoon grated horseradish
1 teaspoon curry powder
Directions: In a small bowl, dissolve sugar in lemon juice. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to eat. Serve with cooked stone crab claws. This tartar sauce also goes well with other seafood recipes and crab recipes.