Ireland’s greatest ingredients part 2 – Crab and Sea Spice Risotto. Cheese or no cheese?

I told you recently that the last thing the world needs is yet another risotto recipe. I lied. That was before eldest daughter returned, from a break on our wild Atlantic shore, bearing gifts. Gifts of Sea Spice! That and the Kerry crab catapults this otherwise ordinary dish into the extraordinary and onto my Ireland’s Greatest Ingredients list. “Sea Spice?” I can hear your busy little mind at work “What is Sea Spice?” I hear you ruminate. 

According to the website, Sea Spice is a combination of “Sea Spaghetti, Dulse, Sweet Kombu, Spirulina, Wakame, Kombu and Nori. An easy to use product which is versatile enough to be incorporated into many recipes.”  In plain language, seaweed. Very tasty seaweed indeed.

My ingredients list is not too long and contains lots of sea related stuff.

Ingredients

• 10 to 12 crab claws
• 50 grammes or so of fresh Kerry crab
• Half a litre (1 pint) of fish stock
• 2 heaped teaspoons of Sea Spice
• 2 prawn bombs (If you have them) or an additional 250 ml / half pint of fish stock.
• 250 grammes of risotto rice
• 1 glass of nice, dry white wine
• 1 onion
• 1 chili
• 1 lime
• 1 handful of parmesan cheese (optional)
• A few knobs of butter

Slice the onion up nice and small. The only time there will be tears with this dish.

Make the risotto in the usual way.Bring the stock (including the bombs if using) to a simmer. Sweat the onion, over a low heat, in a little olive oil, until translucent. Add the risotto rice and stir until the rice becomes coated in oil and onion. Add the wine and stir until the alcohol evaporates and the rice absorbs the liquid. Add the stock, one ladle at a time, stirring until absorbed. This process will take about 30 minutes. It’s worth it.

Start to add the stock, one ladle at a time.

When the rice is almost cooked, add the sea spice and stir in. It will reconstitute in the risotto.

I have never used sea spice before. I will be using it again.

Add in the chili and stir it in too.

The chili adds a nice little kick. Lovely with the other flavours.

Add the crab meat. Taste and season as required.

The difference between fresh and pasteurised crab meat is huge. Go fresh.

Stir it all to combine. Add one last ladle of stock. Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese, if using.

Creating a delicious dish and a bit of controversy. What the hell…

Note on Parmesan Cheese in Seafood Risotto: Ace Blogger, Rory Kelly has been beating the drum for parmesan in seafood risotto. Pretty well every Italian on the planet recoils in horror at the prospect. 

Add the knobs of butter. Let them melt in.

A few knobs of butter are essential. Essential, do you hear, not like the cheese.

Place a lid on the pan and turn off the heat. Let the risotto rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Warm the crab claws in the microwave. Don’t overdo them. If you do, I’ll call around and hurl abuse at you. Stir the risotto. Place in bowls. Artistically place the crab claws around the bowls.

Tart it up with some lime juice, lime zest shavings and chili. Add a bit of parmesan, if so inclined.

Sit down and enjoy a unique risotto that tastes wonderfully of the ocean. If you like seafood, you will really love this. The sea spice is a wonderful addition. The jury is out on the parmesan. Sorry Rory.

Final note on commercialism: My company, Firstcom, is doing some business with Quinlan’s Fish, who’s crab features here. Whether we were, or whether we weren’t would not change the facts of the tasty crab. It is truly delicious. The business relationship has no influence on the blog. I promise.