The Ospidillo Cafe Crab Chowder Recipes

CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• Chop bacon and in a 2-quart heavy saucepan cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp.
• Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, reserving fat in pan.
• While bacon is cooking, cut onion into 1/4-inch dice.
• Peel potatoes and cut into 1/4-inch dice.
• Stir onion, potatoes, and water into bacon fat and simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender and most of water is evaporated, about 15 minutes.
• While mixture is simmering, pick over crab meat, removing any bits of shell and cartilage.
• Stir milk and cayenne into mixture and return just to a simmer.
• Add crab and salt and pepper to taste and bring chowder to a simmer.
• Serve chowder garnished with parsley and bacon.

CORN AND CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• Heat a deep pot over moderate heat. Add oil and butter. As you chop your veggies, add them to the pot: potatoes, celery, onion, and red bell pepper. Add bay leaf to the pot. Season vegetables with salt and pepper and Old Bay seasoning. Saute veggies 5 minutes, then sprinkle in flour. Cook flour 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in broth and combine. Stir in milk and combine. Bring soup up to a bubble. Add corn and crab meat and simmer soup 5 minutes. Adjust the soup seasonings. Remove bay leaf. Ladle soup into bread bowls or soup bowls and top with oyster crackers, hot sauce and sliced scallions.

CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir onion, celery, thyme, salt, and pepper in hot butter until onion and celery start to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir potatoes, milk, broth, cream, and clam juice into onion mixture. Bring to a simmer; cook until potatoes are soft, about 10 minutes.
• Pour broth mixture into a blender no more than half full. Cover and hold lid down; pulse a few times before leaving on to blend. Puree in batches until smooth. Return pureed soup to pot and stir in crabmeat. Cook until soup is hot and crab is heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

CRAB AND CORN CHOWDER

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, saute onion in butter until tender. Add flour; cook and stir until thick and bubbly. Gradually add milk; cook and stir until thickened. Add remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 35-40 minutes. Remove bay leaf before serving.

BACON AND CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• Put a medium pot over med-high heat, add a drizzle of olive oil and cook the bacon until it is crisp. Remove and drain on paper towels.
• Pour off a little of the bacon fat. Add the potatoes, onion, celery bell pepper and bay leaf, season with salt and pepper and cook until the vegetables are softened.
• Stir in flour and cook for 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth and stir with a wooden spoon, scraping up all the brown bits at the bottom of the pan.
• Add the milk and bring to a simmer.
• Break up the crab meat with your fingers, removing any shell bits. Combine with the thyme and Old Bay.
• Stir the crab meat into the pot and simmer 6-7 minutes, until the potatoes are fork-tender and the soup has thickened.
• Finish the chowder with the sherry and serve with the bacon, chives and oyster crackers.

CAULIFLOWER AND CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• In a large saucepan combine cauliflower, broth, bell pepper and lemon peel. Bring to boiling, reduce heat. Cover and simmer 6 to 8 minutes or until cauliflower is crisp tender.
• Stir together half and half and flour. Stir into cauliflower mixture. Bring to boiling.
• Gently stir in crabmeat. Heat through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with dill weed, if desired. Serve immediately.

THE OSPIDILLO CAFE CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a small sauté pan. Add the onions, stirring constantly over medium heat for 1 minute. Then whisk in the flour and continue stirring until onions begin to brown slightly and remove from heat. Set this roux aside.
• In a cooking pot over medium heat, pour in the chicken stock and add the potatoes. Boil, covered, until tender.
• When the potatoes are tender, mash them in the stock a bit and then add in the cabbage, carrots, parsley, kosher salt, oregano, the jalapeño slice, and seasoned salt. Bring it to a medium boil, covered and cook until carrots are just tender.
• After carrots are tender, add in the butter roux and stir, (The broth will thicken), then add the zucchini, cover, and allow it to cook at a low boil for 3 minutes.
• Next, add the crabmeat, the half and half, and the white pepper. Reduce heat to low, cover and allow it to come to a low boil. Once it begins to boil again, remove the cover and let it simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently so it doesn't scorch on the bottom.
• Serve hot.

FRESH CORN AND CRAB CHOWDER

Steps:

• In a 1 qt saucepan, sauté onion and celery in butter until translucent. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• Add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT crabmeat and cilantro. Bring to a boil over moderate heat, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat and simmer covered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add the crab meat, heat through and serve garnished with cilantro.