Chili crab is a Singaporean seafood dish. It is crab stir-fried with ginger, garlic, shallots and chilies in a thick, sweet and savory egg and tomato sauce. Despite its name, the dish is not very spicy. Mud crabs are typically used in this dish but I didn’t use mud crabs. I didn’t even use crab. Instead, I used lobster. The dish still came out super delicious, as if I were in a hawker stall in Singapore. Just remember to wear a bib as it can get super messy. Recipe below. Enjoy!
Singapore-Style Chili Crab
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 3 1x
Description
Chili crab is a Singaporean seafood dish. It is stir-fried crab with ginger, garlic, shallots and chilies in a thick sweet and savory egg and tomato sauce. Despite its name, the dish is not very spicy.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Lobster / Crab
- 2–3 lbs whole lobster/crabs
Aromatics
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3–6 fresh chili peppers (slice thin)
- 1 thumb-size piece ginger (peel and chop finely)
- 1 large shallot (peel and finely chop)
- 1 whole head garlic (about 8 cloves)
Sauce Mixture
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon soybean paste
- 2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
- 4 tablespoons tomato sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
Thickening agents
- 1 tablespoon tapioca starch
- 2 tablespoons cold water
- 2 eggs (beaten)
Garnish
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro/green onions (optional)
Instructions
- Clean the Seafood: When working with any seafood, make sure to clean it properly to get rid of the strong fishy smell. Get into all the nooks and cranny with a small brush and rinse several times. Cut crab or lobster into bite-size pieces. If there’s any roe, scoop it out and set aside. The roe would be a great addition to the sauce mixture below if preferred.
- Cook the Aromatics: In a large wok with a lid, heat up vegetable oil on medium high. Add all the aromatics in once (chili peppers, ginger, shallot and garlic) and sauté until fragrant (about 1-2 minutes).
- Prepare the Sauce: To the wok, add water, soybean paste, sugar, tomato sauce and salt. Add roe here if there’s any. Mix until combined.
- Cook the Seafood: Add crab/lobster. Cover the wok with a lid and simmer on medium-high for 10 minutes. Occasionally toss to cover lobster/crab in sauce.
- Thicken the Sauce: After 10 minutes, remove lid. In a small bowl, mix together tapioca starch with cold water until completely dissolved. Add this slurry mixture to the wok and simmer on medium-high without lid until sauce thickens.
- Finish with Eggs: Add beaten eggs and cook for 2-3 more minutes.
- Serve: Transfer crab/lobster to a large serving platter and garnish with chopped cilantro or green onions (optional). Serve by itself or with steamed rice or steamed buns for a full meal.
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 20
- Category: entree
- Method: Simmer
- Cuisine: Singaporean
