Over the last weekend we had Nottingham Cousin and his family over for dinner. He insisted (as always) on bringing a roast duck, in his quest for finding the best roast duck in London.
On this occasion the challenge was between the roast duck from Four Seasons, and another from a nearby restaurant, both in Chinatown’s Gerrard Street. Over dinner we had a blind tasting and each of us chose the one we preferred. I am still not convinced we found the one, so next time I propose we get two roast ducks from Bayswater/ Queensway. Previously the challenge was between Green Cottage and Duck Duck Goose in Swiss Cottage (the latter won).
My contribution to the dinner was a large bowl of stir-fried vegetables and a platter of pork and crab patties. I have not made these patties for a long time, and I had in the past stuffed the meat back into the crab shell to be baked/ deep fried. This time I just made patties as it was easier to handle between the six of us at dinner.
The crabmeat was from Furness Fish in Borough Market
For the Patties:
2 large dressed crabs
500 g minced pork
12 kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced
50 g fresh coriander leaves, chopped finely
30 g chives, sliced thinly
2 tablespoons fish sauce (Red Boat brand, see notes below)
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
ground black pepper
large pinch of golden castor sugar
How to Make:
Place all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and squish together using your hand. I cannot think of any easier way, but you should use a disposable food preparation glove when doing so.
Using an ice cream scoop or a large serving spoon, make rounds with some of the meat paste then flatten between the palms of your hands.
Heat some sunflower oil in a pan and fry the patties on both sides until browned. Serve with some sweet chilli or Sriracha sauce.
The minced pork mixed with crabmeat and herbs/ chilli
What next? I will probably get some lobster to make lobster rolls. I had one recently at The Park in Queensway, the new venture by Jeremy King (who should be designated a National Treasure). The roll was delicious but tiny, and I could have eaten another two. I didn’t, as I was with Mr Gochugaru, and our marriage has lasted 35 years partly because neither of us acts like savages when dining out at a restaurant. But at home, well, I could really sink my teeth into a supersize version of a fantasy lobster roll.
Finally, the fish sauce. This was a precious gift from Shoe Lady. You can read about it here and in the UK it’s available from Sous Chef. Previously I used a different brand from Thailand but consider that too harsh now.
How can we justify the huge price difference? I always think about my train fare to town which costs nearly £6 for a return journey that takes around 15 minutes each way. Now consider a product that involves fishing, processing, ageing, packaging, transporting and storing. All for the benefit of helping me make a better meal. It’s a fair price to pay.
