News

When small entertaining spaces and big aspirations collide, it's best to take the party outside. So, for the past six or seven years in Vancouver, my husband and I have hosted a moveable feast loosely known as Crab Fest. It's a very casual affair that comes together at the last minute: We need a very low tide at a reasonable time of day on a sunny weekend in late May or June.

If the water is too warm, the crab are too deep; if we start too early, they're too small; if it's too windy, we can't see them. On the day the stars align, a dozen of us head to a beach 45 minutes from Vancouver (that shall remain nameless), fishing licences in hand, and wade out into the water with old tennis racquets.

The Dungeness crab, hiding in the reeds or floating out in a tidal stream known as crab alley, cling to the racquet strings. After measuring their shells and checking the sex (females and undersized males must be released), we bucket our catch and head back to the sandy shore. It can take 45 minutes or four hours to catch our limit of four. Either way, it's great exercise and the mountain views are breathtaking.

There are always chefs at Crab Fest, including my husband, Murray. Back at home it's like a door-knock dinner; they drift around the kitchen in their wet bathing suits pulling out black beans, dried chilies, Vietnamese beer, Kaffir lime leaves, whatever they can find, and in woks and 10-quart pots prepare the crab in two or three ways. At the most recent fest, we built a fire in a stainless-steel box and slowly made paella, which we washed down with Sancerre.

And if wine glasses get broken in the crush, no matter - there are always more. But crab? Don't count on leftovers.

These are Murray's recipes. Each serves six to eight people.

CHILI LIME CRAB

What you need

3 Dungeness crabs, 2 pounds each

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1-2 red Thai chilies, seeds removed and finely chopped

2-inch piece of young ginger, grated

2 green onions, chopped

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

juice of one lime

salt and pepper to taste

What you do

Drop whole crabs (the fat gives more flavour if you don't clean them than cleaning them first) into plenty of well-salted boiling water for 15 minutes. Remove from water and pop off top shell, clean and split crab in half. Heat wok or large pan with oil and cook garlic, chili and ginger for three minutes. Add cooked crab and toss with green onion, cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

DUNGENESS CRAB, PURPLE MINT AND RADISH SALAD

What you need

1/2 pound Dungeness crab meat, cooked and shelled

2 tablespoons mayonnaise (we like Polish Polski Majonez, despite the spelling)

1 tablespoon chives, chopped

6 leaves each purple basil and Thai basil, chopped

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon Pastis (the anise-flavoured French aperitif)

salt and pepper to taste

4 red radishes, cut into matchsticks

crackers/flatbread to serve

What you do

In a bowl, gently mix crab meat with mayo, chives, basil, lemon juice and Pastis, then taste and season. Place about 1 tablespoon of salad on each cracker or toasted flatbread and garnish with fresh radish.

SEAFOOD PAELLA

What you need

3 cups Bomba Spanish paella rice

6 cups chicken stock

1 teaspoon saffron

1/2 cup olive oil

1 whole rabbit or chicken trimmed and portioned (optional)

1/2 cup dried chorizo, sliced

1/2 cup prosciutto or Serrano ham, diced into chunks

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 medium white onion, diced

2 Roma tomatoes, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 bay leaf torn in half

8 Dungeness crab claws, cooked (plus some additional cooked/shelled meat if

you have it)

16 raw prawns, head on (on the West Coast, use Spot prawns)

1/2 cup English peas (fresh or thawed)

1 small bunch Italian parsley, chopped

8 lemon wedges

What you do

Heat chicken stock in a pot, add saffron and simmer. Heat olive oil in a 20-inch paella pan over coals or medium-high heat and brown rabbit or chicken for two to three minutes each side, then remove from pan. Add the chorizo and prosciutto and cook for four to five minutes, then remove from pan.

Add the onion, tomato, garlic and smoked paprika, stir, and let these ingredients start to absorb the flavours of the meat. Cook for five minutes.

Add the rice, stir, then add the wine. The wine will evaporate and be absorbed into the other ingredients.

Return all the meat to the pan. Add the hot stock and bay leaf. Simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Lay the cooked crab claws and the whole prawns over the rice and loosely cover with lid or foil and simmer for five more minutes. Taste rice - it should be fully cooked but still slightly firm to bite.

Remove from heat and spread out peas and parsley, cover loosely again and let rest five to 10 minutes before serving.

Garnish with lemon wedges and serve at the table.

Murray Bancroft is a chef and the consultant behind Cibo restaurant opening next month at Vancouver's Moda Hotel.