If you’re a beach person, there’s a good chance you like eating seafood. Crabs have been a food source for humans living near water since prehistoric times and they are still a very popular meal. 1.5 million tons of crabs are cooked each year. (That’s an awful lot of crabs!) Fresh crabs are prepared and eaten all over the world. The most consumed species of crab is the Japanese Blue Crab.
Some kinds of crabs are eaten whole, including the shell. Those are the soft-shelled crabs. They tend to be small. With larger crabs, just the claws or legs are eaten. For those of us who are landlocked and don’t get to the beach much, pre-packaged crabmeat is the way to go. Thankfully, it is widely available in the refrigerated seafood section of grocery stores. It wouldn’t be summer without some crab dishes on the menu, even if you are not at the beach!
Crab-Stuffed Bell Peppers
Crab-Stuffed Bell Peppers (adapted from cookinglight.com) Yield: Serves 8, Total time required: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
- 4 small sweet bell peppers, halved and seeded
- 1 celery stalk, chopped
- 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 ounces lump crabmeat, shell pieces removed
- 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley or chives, for garnish
Preparation:
Preheat the grill to high. Coat the grill rack with cooking spray. Arrange the peppers, cut sides up, on the grill rack. Cover the grill and cook the peppers for 4 minutes or until they are well marked. Remove them from the grill and allow them to cool.
Roast the peppers on the grill.
Place the celery, lemon rind and juice, salt and pepper, crabmeat, and cream cheese in a food processor. Process until the mixture is well combined.
Combine the filling ingredients in a food processor.
Spoon the mixture into the pepper halves. Garnish with the fresh herbs. Chill the filled peppers, covered, until ready to serve.
Fill the peppers with the crab mixture.
Awesome & easy! Time to relax on the deck!
Relaxing on the deck with good food is a summertime pleasure! ~Linda
Crab-Stuffed Bell Peppers (adapted from cookinglight.com) Yield: Serves 8, Total time required: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
- 4 small sweet bell peppers, halved and seeded
- 1 celery stalk, chopped
- 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 ounces lump crabmeat, shell pieces removed
- 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley or chives, for garnish
Preparation:
Preheat the grill to high. Coat the grill rack with cooking spray. Arrange the peppers, cut sides up, on the grill rack. Cover the grill and cook the peppers for 4 minutes or until they are well marked. Remove them from the grill and allow them to cool.
Place the celery, lemon rind and juice, salt and pepper, crabmeat, and cream cheese in a food processor. Process until the mixture is well combined. Spoon the mixture into the pepper halves. Garnish with the fresh herbs. Chill the filled peppers, covered, until ready to serve.