Lobster and Crab Steamed in Beer Recipe

In spite of its appearance on menus in restaurants that specialize in the complex and refined imperial dishes of Hue, this is one of the easiest recipes in this book. Depending on the size and availability of the lobster and crabs, you can make it for as many people as you like, because the quantities are simple to adjust.

Steaming crabs and lobsters - whether you cook the lobsters and crabs at the same time depends on the number of people you are cooking for and the size of your steamer. However, they don't take long to cook so it is easy to steam them in batches. In the markets and restaurants in Vietnam, you can find crabs that are 600 cm in diameter, which my feed several people but require a huge steamer.

Ingredients : Serves 4

4

4-8

600 ml

4

4 cm

2

3 stalks

1 bunch

1 bunch each

30 ml

1

1/4 teaspoon

1/4 teaspoon

Uncooked lobsters, about 450g each

Uncooked crabs, about 225g each

Beer

Spring onions (scallions) trimmed and chopped into long pieces

Fresh root ginger, peeled and finely sliced

Green or red Thai chilies, seeded and finely sliced

Lemon grass, finely sliced

Fresh dill, fronds chopped

Fresh basil and coriander (cilantro), stalks removed, leaves chopped

Nuoc mam, plus extra for serving

Lemon, juiced

Salt

Ground black pepper

• Clean the lobsters and crabs well and rub them with salt and pepper.

• Place half of them in a large steamer and pour the beer into the base.

• Scatter half the spring onions, ginger, chilies, lemon grass and herbs over the lobsters and crabs, and steam for about 10 minutes, or until the lobsters turn red.

• Lift them on to a serving dish. Cook the remaining half in the same way.

• Add the lemon grass, herbs and nuoc mam to the simmering beer, stir in the lemon juice, then pour into a dipping bowl.

• Serve the shellfish hot, dipping the lobster and crab meat into the beer broth and adding extra splashes of nuoc cham, if you like.