Thai Style Crab Cakes

Thai Style Crab Cakes with Spicy Sesame Dipping Sauce

Serves 4, makes 12 x 5cm round cakes

 Ingredients

• For the cakes
• 2 spring onions, roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp Thai red curry paste
• ½ lime, grated zest and juice
• 1cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh coriander leaves, plus a few sprigs to garnish
• 2 tsp Thai fish sauce (Nam Pla)
• 150g crab meat
• 150g mashed potatoes      (need a ricer)
• To sauté
• 3 tbsp lightly seasoned plain flour
• 1 egg beaten with a little milk
• 100g (dried) breadcrumbs, seasoned with salt and pepper
• Sunflower oil, for frying
• For the dipping sauce
• 1 tsp sesame seeds, toasted
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 1 ½ tsp Thai fish sauce (Nam Pla)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 1 medium red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
• 4 tbsp water

Method

Coriander and lime slices, for garnish
Dipping sauce and Oriental Salad, to serve

1. To make the cakes, place spring onions, Thai red curry paste, grated zest and juice of ½ lime, ginger, coriander leaves and Thai fish sauce in a food processor and blend to a paste
2. Remove to a mixing bowl.  Add the crab meat and mashed potatoes and mix well.  To check for seasoning, fry a mini cake and adjust seasoning to taste.
3. Shape to form 12 cakes.  Keep them in the refrigerator until needed.
4. Meanwhile make the dipping sauce by combining all of the ingredients in a bowl.
5. To cook the cakes, first coat them in the seasoned flour.  Dip them in the beaten egg and coat in the breadcrumbs.  Heat the oil in the frying pan over a high heat, turn down the heat to medium and fry the cakes gently on each side to a pale golden colour and fully cooked through.  You will need to cook them in batches, adding a little more oil, if necessary.
6. Serve with the dipping sauce and the Oriental Salad.  Garnish with some coriander and a slice of lime.