Catch Of The Day: King Crab Cobb Salad
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The original Cobb was essentially a garden salad that was billed as a main dish. It included a bounty of novel ingredients that suddenly could be shipped by freight from far-flung agricultural areas. There were so many new and delicious tastes all together on one plate. Imagine how cool such a composition must have been at the time! I include a recipe here because bringing together so many great tastes and textures is still a cool thing — not to mention pretty damn delicious.
- 2 large ripe tomatoes
- salt
- Double recipe of Red Wine Vinaigrette
- 2 heads Belgian endive or 1 head chicory
- 1 bunch watercress
- 2 avocados
- 2 pounds king crab legs
- 4 hard-boiled eggs
- 1 lemon
- Freshly ground pepper-allspice
- 4 tablespoons whole grain mustard
- 4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 (5-ounce) cans oil-packed U.S. albacore tuna or Alaska sockeye or pink salmon
- salt
- :::vinaigrette:::
- Whisk together the mustard, vinegar, and grated garlic in a small bowl. While whisking, slowly add the olive oil and reserved tuna oil. Season to taste with salt. Set aside.
- :::salad:::
- Season the tomatoes with salt and toss with half of the vinaigrette. Let marinate for 10 minutes.
- Divide the endive, watercress, avocados, crabmeat, hard-boiled eggs, and lemon equally among 4 plates. Drizzle the remaining vinaigrette over the salads and season with salt. Divide the marinated tomatoes among the salads and season with freshly ground pepper-allspice.