Crab hotpot with rich hometown flavor

Easy to do

Born and raised in Vinh Lap commune (Thanh Ha), since childhood, Ms. Tieu Thi Thanh Thao has been attached to crabs and clams. When she grew up, started a business and lived in Quang Trung ward (Hai Duong city), Ms. Thao still remembers the rustic dishes made from field crabs. Therefore, she often makes traditional dishes from crabs such as crab soup, crab rieu... Recently, she has been experimenting with making field crab hotpot to treat her family whenever she has the chance.

Ms. Thao said that crabs are available all year round and are sold in many markets, so every weekend she buys them to cook. Once, when she went to a restaurant, there was a very attractive crab hotpot, so she immediately learned the recipe and made it herself. According to Ms. Thao, the way to make crab hotpot is similar to cooking crab soup, but crab hotpot is eaten with some other dipping ingredients (depending on each person's preference) such as vegetables, shrimp, minced pork, beef, etc. The purchased crabs are washed to remove dirt, the shell is separated, the apron is removed, and the crab fat is scooped out into a separate bowl. The crab meat is crushed or ground, filtered to get the water. The next step is to put the pan on the stove, heat the cooking oil, then add the shallots and saute until fragrant, add the tomatoes and stir well. Add a little sugar to create a beautiful golden color, then add the crab fat and stir for about 5 minutes, then turn off the stove and pour the mixture into a bowl. Then put the pot on the stove, add the filtered crab broth into the pot, add seasoning powder, MSG, seasoning powder to taste and simmer until the crab fat floats to the surface, then turn off the stove, use a spoon to scoop the crab fat out and set aside. After scooping the crab fat, turn on the stove to simmer and pour the stir-fried tomato and crab fat mixture into the pot. To create a light, sweet taste and the characteristic aroma of the crab hotpot, Ms. Thao adds star fruit or tamarind, a few crushed lemongrass stalks and then simmer for 10 minutes. Ms. Thao's family often prepares fried tofu slices and fried onions to make the hotpot more attractive.

“The hot pot is boiled over low heat, dipped with vegetables such as perilla, lettuce, Malabar spinach, water spinach, banana flowers. You can add beef, pork paste, shrimp... very suitable. The hot pot is also delicious when eaten with vermicelli and rice paper,” Ms. Thao shared.

Mr. Pham Van Trong, Manager of Xu Dong Crab Hotpot Restaurant on Ngo Quyen Street (Hai Duong City) said that crab hotpot is currently prepared by many restaurants in Hai Duong City. In addition to the abundant ingredients available in Thanh Ha, Tu Ky, Ninh Giang, Thanh Mien regions, this dish is also simple and easy to make. However, each place and each person has a different way of taking care of and seasoning the spices to create different flavors according to their preferences. To make a crab hotpot with the right flavor, the most important step is the raw crab. Crabs must be large, even, firm, and still alive. When pounding or grinding the crab, add a little salt so that the crab fat floats evenly during cooking. The hotpot water, in addition to being filtered from crab meat, is also purified from pork or chicken bone broth. The main seasonings are white salt, MSG, and fish sauce.

According to Mr. Trong, to make the crab hotpot attractive and eye-catching, when simmering the crab roe, tomatoes are definitely needed to create color. When boiling the crab hotpot, add sour star fruit or fresh tamarind to make it taste light, and add fried tofu. The restaurant's hotpot vegetables are usually squash (seasonal), shredded squash, water spinach, jute, and some herbs such as perilla, fresh green onions, bean sprouts, lettuce, etc.

Attract customers

From traditional crab soup and crab soup, crab hotpot has now become a popular dish in both urban and rural areas. Due to the readily available ingredients, this dish is enjoyed all year round, but is most suitable in winter. In the cold weather, everyone gathers around the crab hotpot, enjoying a rustic dish with a strong local flavor. “If you cook soup or crab soup, you can eat very little vegetables, so sometimes on weekends, my family organizes a crab hotpot. The delicious crab, the familiar rustic flavor, served with dipping sauces such as vegetables, beef, cartilage, pork paste, etc. is very appealing,” said Ms. Pham Thi Bien on Tran Van Giap Street (Hai Duong City).

On cold winter days, most restaurants with crab hotpot are very popular. Mr. Pham Van Trong, Manager of Xu Dong crab hotpot restaurant, added that in addition to crab hotpot, the restaurant also has other types of hotpot such as seafood hotpot, mixed hotpot... but most of the customers coming to the restaurant choose crab hotpot.

Mr. Dinh Dai Duong on Ngo Quyen Street (Hai Duong City) occasionally comes to the restaurant to eat crab hotpot and says that the crab hotpot is delicious and nutritious. Every time he eats, he is attracted by the sweet taste of the hotpot broth, the golden color of the crab fat, and the aroma of fried onions. That rustic, country-style flavor lingers on him forever.