World Food and Wine
what people eat and drink worldwide

Crab pate

A great recipe for warm summer evenings. Serve with cucumber salad and bread as a main course, or with toast or crackers as an appetizer.

Ingredients

2 c crab (crab meat already cooked or canned)
4 T butter (diced)
2 T mayonnaise
2 T tomato paste (or tomato ketchup)
1⁄2 t Worcestershire sauce
2 celery (finely chopped)
3 T chives (optional, finely chopped)
  seasoning (salt and ground pepper to taste)
2 egg (optional, hard boiled, peeled and sliced)
1 c watercress (optional, washed)

Instructions

  1. Place crab meat, butter, mayonnaise, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce in the food processor bowl. Blend until smooth.
  2. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in chopped celery and chives. Mix well to blend flavors.
  3. Transfer the crab mixture to a loaf shaped container. Even the surface with a flat knife or metal spatula. Cover with kitchen foil and chill for at least 4 hours.
  4. Remove by separating the pate form the container with the help of a knife. Turn over a serving dish.
  5. Garnish with egg slices and watercress.
Total time
20 minutes
Cooking time
0
Preparation time
20
Yield
4 servings

Notes

If you don't have a food processor, bring the butter to room temperature first. Place the ingredients in a bowl and mash with a fork until smooth.

Using a container damp and cold will make the task easier when the time comes to get the pate out. To do this, submerge the container in cold water then shake it until almost dry, without rubbing with a cloth. Do the same with the flat knife used to even the surface.

This pate can be done in individual containers. These will need chilling for a shorter time. It can also be layered with other pate or mousse for a contrast of flavors and textures.

Substitute chives with chopped parsley or use a mixture of parsley and chives.

To make salmon pate, substitute crab with 1 16-oz can red salmon, omit tomato puree and Worcestershire sauce, add 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped, together with the celery and chives. Use cayenne pepper for seasoning. To make tuna pate, substitute crab with tuna, omit tomato puree and Worcestershire sauce, substitute mayonnaise with lemon juice, add 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped; substitute celery with 12-14 red pepper stuffed olives, sliced, and add together with chives.

Prepare mackerel pate by substituting crab with canned mackerel, add 1 onion, finely chopped, and add a little French mustard and a pinch of cayenne to the seasoning.

Source

North American cuisine

As an appetizer, it will yield more portions.

easy, chill
fish & seafood, appetizer, buffet
American food recipes
Food in U.S.A.