Angela Hartnett, the acclaimed chef, recently appeared on the BBC programme 'Great British Food Revival' to champion the cause of British crab. She revealed that over 95% of the UK's crab catch is exported to Europe, a fact she finds astonishing. Hartnett laments that crab, once a weekly staple on British dinner tables and commonly sold from street seafood stands, is now reserved for fancy restaurants or special occasions.
Now is the perfect season for eating crab, according to Hartnett, who recommends using brown crabs from the south coast of England. For her linguine recipe, she calls for white crab meat, though both brown and white work well in salads. Ideally, she suggests buying a whole crab and cooking it yourself, but pasteurised crab from supermarkets is an acceptable alternative, albeit with a slightly inferior taste.
Hartnett's crab linguine serves as an ideal starter or a light summer lunch. The dish can be spiced up with a touch of ginger. The recipe includes 320g linguine, 6 tbsp olive oil, 2 cloves garlic (finely chopped), ½ tsp finely chopped fresh red chilli, 300g picked fresh white crabmeat, 50ml dry white wine, 1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, 1 tbsp chopped basil, and the juice and grated zest of ½ lemon, with salt and pepper to taste.
To prepare, cook the linguine in salted boiling water for 9-11 minutes until al dente. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large frying pan, add garlic and chilli, and fry lightly for one minute. Stir in the crabmeat and heat through for another minute. Add the wine and let it bubble and reduce completely. Drain the linguine and add to the crab mixture, along with parsley and basil, tossing everything together to coat evenly. Season with lemon juice, zest, salt, and pepper.
