Sapateira Recheada – Portuguese Stuffed Crab

1. Opening the crab and removing the meat.
2. First, grasp the claws firmly and very close to where they attach to the body. Twist and pull to remove them. Repeat with the little legs. Set aside.
3. To open the crab turn it over so the belly is right side up. There you’ll find a triangular shaped “apron” Fit the point of a knife in the the line at the back of the crab (opposite of the mouth ) and carefully pry it up. It should pop open fairly easily. Remove this piece and look at the gills, they are feathery and can be pulled off and thrown out. You don’t want them getting mixed with the good meat.
4. There will be some meat and roe (bright orange-red in color) still attached to the part that’s been removed from the body that you can remove with your fingers or a small spoon and place in a bowl.
5. Inside the body there will be some meat and more roe that can be removed from inside with a spoon and added to the bowl. Rinse out the inside of the body shell and set aside.
6. With a nut cracker or wooden mallet, crack the shell on the legs and knuckles to give access to the meat inside. Remove the meat with the tines of a fork and add to the bowl with the other meat.
7. Tip: If fork tines aren’t readily available or are too difficult to use, use the little claws from the legs to help pull out hard to reach crab meat!

Preparing the filling.

1. Shred the crab meat in the bowl with your fingers. If there are big chunks, chop them with a knife on a cutting board and transfer them back to the bowl.
2. Add the shallot, egg, capers, beer, mayonnaise, mustard, and paprika to the crab bowl. Stir well with a fork and season to taste with salt and parsley leaves.
3. Spoon the crab mixture into the crab shell and serve with crackers or mini tostas!