Gingered crab filo parcels recipe

Preparation time: 45–50 minutes

Cooking time: about 15 minutes

 

1 can crabmeat, about 170 g, drained

1 can water chestnuts, about 225 g, drained and coarsely chopped

1 can corn, about 200 g, drained

4 spring onions, chopped

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger

1 fresh red chilli, seeded and finely chopped

2 tablespoons Chinese cooking wine or dry sherry

salt and pepper

2 tablespoons peanut oil

1 tablespoon sesame oil

6 sheets filo pastry, about 50 x 30 cm each, about 225 g in total

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

 

spring onions

Thai sweet chilli dipping sauce

 

1 Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Combine the crab, water chestnuts, corn, spring onions, ginger, chilli and Chinese cooking wine or sherry in a bowl, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix together the peanut and sesame oils in a cup.

 

2 Roll up the sheets of filo loosely, rolling from a short side. Using a sharp knife, cut the roll across evenly into 3. Cover 2 of these shorter rolls with plastic wrap to prevent them from drying out. Unravel the third roll, remove one of the strips and set the rest aside, covered.

 

3 Lay the strip of filo flat on the work surface, with a short end nearest to you, and brush with a little of the oil mixture. Place a heaped teaspoon of the crab mixture near the bottom, towards the right-hand corner of the short end, and fold the pastry diagonally over it. Continue folding diagonally, over and over, until you reach the end of the strip, making a neat triangular parcel. Place on a baking tray, seam side down.

 

4 Repeat with remaining strips of filo, uncovering them only when needed, until all of the crab mixture is used. (The parcels can be prepared in advance; cover the baking trays with plastic wrap and keep in the fridge. The baking time may need to be increased to 15 minutes if the parcels are very cold.)

 

5 Lightly brush the tops of the parcels with any remaining oil mixture and sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Bake for 12–13 minutes, or until crisp and golden.

 

6 Transfer the parcels to a wire rack and cool slightly. Meanwhile, shred the spring onion tops for garnishing, to form ‘brushes’. Serve the parcels warm, on a tray garnished with the spring onion brushes and a little dish of Thai sweet chilli dipping sauce to accompany.

 

Each parcel provides 331 kJ, 79 kcal, 3 g protein, 3 g fat (0.5 g saturated fat), 11 g carbohydrate (1 g sugars), 0.5 g fibre