Dungeness Crab Salad
Recipe by: Chef Shane McAnelly & Sous Chef Evan Castro
Fresh Dungeness crab is always a special treat here in Sonoma County once the season opens up. Fresh crab holds onto its sweet natural flavors and snappy texture, which is perfect for a delicious wine with good acidity. Cue our 2019 Sauvignon Blanc!
Our Sauvignon Blanc has crisp notes of pineapple, pear, lemongrass, and crushed rocks, a beautiful melody when paired with this citrus crab salad. The leafy green salad helps mediate the wine’s herbaceousness with the crab’s sweetness.
Ingredients:
- 1 lb. of Dungeness crab meat, picked through to make sure there are no shells
- 2 heads of frisée, washed
- 8-10 baby beets, washed
- 1 teaspoon banyuls vinegar (sherry or red wine vinegar will work)
- 2 avocados
- 1 large bulb fennel
- 1 bunch of chives
- 2 Cara Cara oranges (grapefruit or tangelo is good if you can’t find Cara Cara oranges)
- 2 Meyer lemons
- 3-4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt as needed
- Salt and pepper as needed
Method:
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Cut the greens off of your beets toss with a little bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place in a small ovenproof baking dish and add ½ cup water. Cover with foil and bake for 30-45 minutes. You will know they are done when a knife can easily be inserted into the center with no resistance. When the beets come out of the oven let them cool briefly, 5-10 minutes. You want to peel and marinate them while they are still warm, so just cool them until you can handle them. Using a paper towel, peel away the skin of the beets. Depending on the size of the beet cut in half or quarters. Toss the beet with the banyuls vinegar and a small pinch of salt. Place beets in a large mixing bowl.
Cut the root end of the frisée and discard. Cut frisée into 1-inch pieces, so maybe in half depending on the size of the head. Add frisée to the mixing bowl. Cut avocados in half and remove the pit. While the flesh is still in the skin, score the avocado both ways to create medium dice. Remove the avocado from the skin using a spoon. Add to a large mixing bowl. Slice the fennel as thin as you can with a large knife, or alternatively if you have a mandolin use that. Add to the bowl. Chop the chives and add them to the bowl.
Cut the tops and bottoms off of the oranges and carefully cut off the peel and pith with a sharp knife. Cutting in between the membrane, cut out just the flesh of the orange, what we call in professional kitchens the citrus supremes. Cut supremes in half and add to the bowl. Add the crab. Cut the lemons in half and squeeze the juice into the bowl. Drizzle in 3 tablespoons olive oil and season the salad with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper. Gently toss so that everything is evenly distributed.