Crab Rolls

Makes 6 rolls

From “The Red Boat Fish Sauce Cookbook,” by Cuong Pham, with Tien Nguyen and Diep Tran (Mariner Books): “Depending on where you live, crab season can be yearround or just a few precious months between the fall and early spring. Wherever you are, these crab rolls are a great, easy way to make the most of the season. We like to simply steam the crab to retain as much of its natural flavor as possible — in fact, many supermarket seafood counters and fishmongers will provide steaming services if you ask. From there, the crab is dressed with a mayonnaise amped up with fish sauce, then piled high on buttery split-top or sweet Hawaiian rolls. We can't resist having a warm roll as soon as it's assembled, but the rolls are also delicious cold.”

Crab

2 ¼ pounds whole crab

Zest of 1 lemon

3 tablespoons chopped dill fronds 1⁄8 teaspoon ground black pepper ¼ red onion, minced

Dressing

1 teaspoon Red Boat Fish Sauce 2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 ½ teaspoons mustard powder 2 tablespoons mayonnaise, preferably Best Foods

Rolls

6 split-top rolls or 12 Hawaiian rolls, unseparated

2 tablespoons butter, divided

Instructions: Prepare the crab. If your fishmonger does not provide steaming services, steam the crab by first filling a steamer with 1½ inches of water. Bring the water to a boil over high heat, then add the crabs, cover, steam for 15 minutes, then remove. Once the crabs have cooled enough to handle, remove the crab meat from the shells. You should end up with about 1½ cups of crab meat, or ½ pound.

Place the crab meat in a mixing bowl along with the lemon zest, chopped dill fronds, and black pepper. Set aside.

Soak the minced red onion in 3 cups of water for 10 minutes, then drain and add to the crab mixture.

In a small bowl, make the dressing by mixing together the fish sauce, lemon juice, mustard powder and mayonnaise.

Pour the dressing over the crab meat mixture. Use a fork to gently incorporate the dressing with the crab. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes.

Prepare the buns and assemble the rolls: If using Hawaiian rolls, pull apart the rolls a pair at a time, being careful to keep the pair adjoined. A packet of 12 rolls will yield 6 large buns. (Regular split-top rolls are twice as long, so you will only need 6 of those if you use them instead.)

Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon butter to the pan and toast the rolls, adding the additional tablespoon of butter as necessary. Transfer the rolls to a cooling rack.

If using Hawaiian rolls, split the top of each pair of buns. To assemble, carefully spoon ¼ cup crab mixture into each roll. Serve immediately.