Hong Kong Style Stir-Fried Crab with Ginger and Scallions

Place the live crab on a cutting board, open its plastron, and pierce the center with the tip of a knife to immobilize it. Twist off the two main claws at the joints using kitchen scissors. Insert the knife between the legs and top shell, press down on the legs, and lift off the top shell. Discard the plastron, trim the shell edges and mouth, remove the stomach pouch from inside the top shell, cut away the gills on both sides of the body, and cut the body into 4 pieces.

Place the prepped crab shells, bodies, and legs under running water. Use a small brush to thoroughly scrub away dirt from shell edges, leg joints, and crevices until completely clean.

Place the cleaned claws flat on the cutting board. Lightly crush the claw shells using a meat mallet or the spine of a knife until cracked for easy seasoning and eating. Remove the bindings afterwards.

Cut 100g of scallions into 8cm sections, separating the white stalks from the green tops. Peel and slice 3 cloves of garlic into thin slices. Peel and slice 20g of ginger into ginger slices.

Place drained crab pieces and top shells in a mesh colander. Sprinkle 2 tbsp of cornstarch evenly over them and gently toss so all meat cuts and paste are lightly coated with a thin layer of starch.

Heat the wok on high, add 5 tbsp cooking oil, and turn to medium heat once hot. Place crab pieces meat-side down in oil to sear and seal the juice. Shake the wok occasionally for even heating, and shallow-fry for about 3 minutes until shells turn red, then remove and set aside. Next, fry the top shells paste-side down for about 1 minute until red, then remove immediately. Discard the fishy oil and wipe the wok clean.

Reheat the clean wok with 1 tsp cooking oil over medium heat. Fry ginger slices until golden and aromatic, then add sliced garlic and white scallion stalks to sauté. Pour 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine along the edge of the wok to deglaze, then add 150ml water. Season the liquid with 1 tsp sugar, 1/3 tsp salt, 1 tsp white pepper powder, and 1/2 tbsp oyster sauce, stirring until brought to a boil.

Add the fried crab pieces into the boiling sauce and toss to combine, then place the 2 top shells over the top. Cover with a lid, turn to the highest heat (3000W), and simmer covered for 1.5 minutes (90 seconds) to let steam cook the crab thoroughly and absorb flavor.

After 1.5 minutes, uncover and add the reserved green scallion tops. Stir-fry evenly, then mix 0.5 tsp cornstarch with 1 tbsp water and pour in a little cornstarch slurry. Stir-fry rapidly over high heat until the thick glaze clings evenly to all crab pieces, then turn off the heat.

Turn off the heat. Transfer the stir-fried crab and aromatic glazes onto a large white serving plate using a spatula. Arrange top shells on top to reform the crab shape before serving hot.