Taste of Olney
Taste of Olney
Taste of Olney

Taste of Olney

Crab Remoulade Cakes

What could be a more fabulous addition to your Super Bowl party fare or a Valentine’s Day dinner than a plate of piquant crab or lobster cakes with remoulade sauce and a glass of bubbly? The crab and lobster cakes have arrived in the frozen section of Stewart’s Food Store, inspiring Danny to create a zesty remoulade sauce this week, based on a recipe from the Serious Eats website. Remoulade is a cold sauce concocted by French chefs as an accompaniment to meats – but it made its way to American tables via New Orleans, on Creole dishes like seafood po’ boy sandwiches, fried calamari, and fried green tomatoes, and as a condiment or dipping sauce for crab, shrimp, lobster and salmon dishes. The American version is similar to tartar sauce but can be more yellow or red in color because it is sometimes flavored with curry or ketchup and paprika. The basic ingredients for remoulade are vinegar, mustard, shallots, capers, chopped pickles, and fresh herbs such as chives, tarragon, chervil, and burnet. It also can contain horseradish, paprika, anchovies, capers, and other finely chopped vegetables.

Although remoulade is thoroughly French and French Creole, chefs around the world have tweaked the sauce. In Denmark, remoulade is a key ingredient in openface roast beef sandwiches and the Danish version of fish and chips, as well as Danish hot dogs. The modified Danish version is a mayonnaise-based sauce of bright yellow color from the addition of turmeric or curry powder. Puree of capers and pickled gherkins or cucumbers are added, along with cauliflower, cabbage, and carrots. Remoulade is an expression of each chef ’s creativity, so we will suggest the basics - feel free to dress it up or down and serve it with cold seafood and meats and fried fish. All ingredients below are available at Stewart’s Food Store.

Suggested ingredients

1 cup mayonnaise 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 tablespoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley 1 tablespoon Louisiana-style hot sauce 2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 teaspoons capers, roughly chopped 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon mild paprika 1 scallion, finely chopped 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

Preparation: Step 1: In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, parsley, hot sauce, whole-grain mustard, garlic, capers, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, scallion, salt, and cayenne pepper. Let sit for 1 hour for flavors to combine, then serve or cover and store in the refrigerator.

Step 2: Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Heat thawed crab cakes until browned on both sides.

Step 3: Top with chilled Remoulade sauce and enjoy!