Fresh Dungeness crab? I can find something to make with that!

We spent the weekend on Guemes Island, a tiny island that's part of the San Juans and only accessible by a small ferry carrying about 25 cars. The island has about 500 residents, and many people have vacation homes there. It is quiet, peaceful, and exactly how island life should be. While there, by brother-in-law, hubby, and dad caught four Dungeness crabs. We got to take 1 1/2 of them home...we were so excited! We don't usually buy Dungeness crab because it can be expensive, so getting some fresh from the Puget Sound was a treat.

We had just watched a show on the best sandwiches across the country, one being a lobster roll from Maine. It was so simple yet looked amazing. When you have fresh lobster (or crab in our case), you don't need to do much to it to end up with a gourmet meal. We decided to try to recreate the lobster rolls we had seen with the Dungeness crab from Guemes.



Guemes Island ferry dock



Basically, a lobster roll is lobster mixed with mayo, lemon juice, and some fresh herbs piled high in a buttered and toasted hot dog bun. Sometimes butter lettuce is included as well. I found a recipe on Epicurious that I used to get an idea, and I lucked out because I happened to have dill from the farmers' market and chives growing outside on our deck. The only thing I really changed was adding a little grated fresh garlic to the mix (my hubby's idea), which made all the difference. We didn't have hot dog buns, but we happened to have hamburger buns in the freezer so we used those instead. The bun is really just a vehicle for the delicious crab mixture.



The mayo-crab mixture consisted of mayo, lemon juice, lemon zest, dill, chives, garlic, salt, and pepper. Stir that together and then stir in the crab meat. Toast and butter the buns. Plop the crab mixture on the buns. Enjoy!

We didn't measure exactly, so these quantities are approximate. The most important thing is to taste it for seasoning. We split the crab mixture between the two of us, but this could easily serve 3 or 4.

Crab Rolls (adapted from Epicurious)

Crab meat from 1 1/2 crabs

1/4 cup mayonaise

Zest and juice of half a lemon

1/2 teaspoon chopped chives

1 teaspoon chopped dill

1/2 of a small clove of garlic, grated on a microplane or box grater

Salt and pepper to taste

3-4 hamburger or hot dog buns

Butter for buns

(Optional: butter lettuce)

Mix all ingredients (except buns and butter), tasting for seasoning and adding more salt and lemon juice as necessary. Toast and butter hamburger or hot dog buns. Split the crab mixture among the buns and serve. 



Freshly cooked Dungeness crab

 

Mix mayo, lemon juice, zest, dill, chives, salt, pepper, and grated garlic.



Put it on a bun!