Recipe: Crab Meat Soup (Sup Cua)

Crab meat soup can be found all across Asia, especially in China, where the dish is a popular Chinese cuisine especially in Hakka-speaking regions. The dish made its way to other parts of Asia, and each country has their own take on the dish once they have adapted it to their local preference. 

Sup cua or Vietnamese crab meat soup, is a staple dish on the streets of Vietnam. The Vietnamese usually have the dish for breakfast making it easily found in the streets of Ho Chi Minh City at a very low price.

You can have it to-go or dine in the establishment while enjoying the wonderful morning of Vietnam.Go ahead and try to make this famous street food at home with this simple recipe, and enjoy this delicious dish.

Ingredients (4 servings):

• 10 cup of chicken stock
• 1 whole crab
• 1 tbsp of oil
• 1 tsp of chilli powder
• 1 ½ tsp of salt
• 3 ½ tbsp of corn starch
• ½  white onion (chopped finely)
• 2 green onions (chopped finely)
• 2 tbsp of chopped cilantro
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp of white pepper
• ½ cup of fish sauce

Directions:

1. Clean, brush and wash the crab thoroughly.
2. Pour a cup of water into a pot and add the crab.
3. Boil it for 10 minutes.
4. Place the crab in an ice water bath for 3 minutes. Then, drain and discard the water.
5. Remove the abdominal flaps of the crab (the triangle-shaped tails).
6. Lift and separate the back-fin with the rest of the claws by placing a large tablespoon on the bottom of the crab. Remove the crab’s “lungs”.
7. Carefully remove the crab meat from the back-fins and the claws 
8. Place the meat in a mixing bowl.
9. Dissolve the corn starch into ¾ cup of water in a bowl.
10. Boil the chicken broth in a large pot over medium to high heat.
11. Crack the eggs and mix the yolks using a fork in a bowl.
12. Add small amount of beaten egg at a time while the soup is boiling. Stir the mixture thoroughly.
13. Add the dissolved corn starch to the boiling broth and continuously stir the broth.
14. Then, add the onions and crab meat.
15. Check the texture of the sauce; it should be thick and velvety.
16. Cook the soup for about 2 more minutes.
17. Sprinkle white pepper with fish sauce on the side and it is ready to be enjoyed