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Preparation
30 minutes
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Cooking
1 hour
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Difficulty
Medium
Ingredients for Crab Noodle Soup For 4 people
Ground freshwater crab 400 gr Pork trotters 500 gr Fresh noodles 1 kg Chicken egg 1 piece Garlic 4 cloves Shallots 4 bulbs Tomatoes 2 pieces Fried tofu 3 pieces Onion 2 bulbs Annatto oil 4 tablespoons Shrimp paste 2 tablespoons Accompanying herbs A little (lettuce/ basil/ Vietnamese balm/ perilla/…) Common spices A little (salt/ sugar/ monosodium glutamate/ seasoning powder/ ground pepper)
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose good quality freshwater crabs
- Good freshwater crabs have a shiny color, and when lifted, the crab’s legs always point upwards, with intact legs that are not broken or fallen off.
- When turning the crab over and pressing on the crab’s belly, if it feels firm, it means the crab has a lot of meat; if it sinks, the crab is underdeveloped, has little meat, and is not tasty.
- Avoid choosing freshwater crabs with red eyes, hairy undersides, or those with star-shaped spots on their backs as these can be toxic and not good for health.
How to choose fresh, quality noodles
- Delicious noodles are usually bought in the morning, have an off-white color, slightly opaque, soft and easily breakable. When eaten, they have a natural sour smell from soaked rice flour.
- Do not buy noodles if you see them slimy, turning yellow, and having an unpleasant odor.
- Additionally, noodles that are bright white, shiny, and unusually chewy may have been soaked in harmful chemicals.
How to choose fresh, delicious pork leg
- Depending on your preference, you can choose to buy either the hind leg or the foreleg. The hind leg is larger and meatier, while the foreleg is smaller with less meat but the meat is more tender.
- Good quality pork leg will be firm, the cut surface dry, the hoof intact and solid, with bright pink meat that is elastic when pressed.
- Do not buy if you notice any unusual color changes like pale green, bruises, blood clots, or if it is slimy and has a foul odor.
How to prepare Crab Rice Noodle Soup
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Prepare the freshwater crab
To save time on preparation, you should choose freshwater crabs and ask the seller to grind them on-site, or you can buy the crabs and grind them at home.
Put the ground crabs into a bowl, add 500ml of water, and use a spoon to stir until the crab meat dissolves in the water, then use a sieve to filter out the crab solids and collect the liquid. Collect the thick crab broth obtained into a bowl to make crab cakes.
Next, add 500ml of water to the crab solids and continue to filter through a sieve to collect the second broth for cooking the soup.
Use a spoon to scrape the crab roe into a separate bowl.
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Prepare the other ingredients
You can ask the seller to cut the pork leg into small pieces, wash it once with water, then use salt to rub the pork leg thoroughly for about 3 minutes, after that wash it clean and drain in a basket.
Remove the stem from the tomatoes, peel the onion, wash both, and cut them into wedges.
Peel the garlic and shallots, then chop them finely on a cutting board.
Rinse the tofu with water, then cut it into bite-sized squares.
For the fresh herbs, pick out any wilted leaves, wash them clean, and let them drain.
Crack the eggs into a bowl, and use chopsticks to stir well until the egg whites and yolks are blended together.
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Steamed crab cakes
Add to the bowl of thick crab water obtained from the first filtration the following ingredients: 1 beaten egg, 1 teaspoon of ground pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 1 teaspoon of seasoning powder, and stir with a spoon until the seasonings are completely dissolved.
Then pour the crab water into a pot to steam for about 30 – 40 minutes on high heat.
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Sautéed tomatoes
Put a pan on the stove and add 2 tablespoons of colorful oil, wait for the oil to heat up, then add minced onion and garlic to sauté until fragrant, next add the crab meat and stir well, then add the tomatoes and continue to stir for about 30 seconds before turning off the heat.
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Marinate the pork leg
Put the pork leg into a pot, add 1 tablespoon of salt, pour in enough water to cover the pork leg, turn on the stove and boil on high heat until the water boils, then take the pork leg out and rinse it with cold water to drain. This step helps to remove the odor and dirt sticking to the pork leg.
Place the pork in a bowl, add 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 2 tablespoons of annatto oil, mix well and marinate the pork for about 30 minutes.
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Stew the pork leg
Turn on the stove, put the pork into the pot, add 2 liters of water, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Cover the lid and stew the pork for about 45 minutes.
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Cooking the crab soup stock
After 45 minutes when the sausage is cooked and soft, add all the crab water into the pot, season with 2 teaspoons of salt, 2 tablespoons of seasoning powder, 4 tablespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, and 2 tablespoons of shrimp paste.
Bring the water to a boil, then add tomatoes, tofu, and onions. Let the crab soup boil again, adjust the seasoning to taste, and turn off the stove.
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Final product
Put the noodles into a bowl, cut the steamed crab cakes into bite-sized pieces and place them on top, then pour the soup along with tomatoes, tofu, onions, and a bit of scallions and enjoy immediately.
The crab noodle soup is delicious, the crab broth is rich and sweet, the steamed crab cake is fatty and soft, blending with the tangy flavor of tomatoes, served with fresh herbs and dipped in shrimp paste is absolutely wonderful. Let’s try cooking it right away!
With detailed steps from sister Tuyết Nhung, you have completed the super attractive crab noodle soup. Today, TasteVN will introduce you to some delicious variations of this dish. Click to see now!
See details: 3 easy and delicious ways to cook crab noodle soup at home
Above, TasteVN has guided you to make the delicious and attractive dish of river crab noodle soup for the whole family. Wishing you success!
