Bánh Đa Cua Recipe: Rice Noodle with Crab Meat

Bánh đa cua is rice noodles with crab meat. The noodle is wide, like fresh wide rice noodles, and the broth is made from minced paddy crab. When the broth cooks, the crab floats up; it is lifted out and goes on top of the bowl with water spinach and celery.

Check the noodle before you shop. Bánh đa for this dish is sold dried, not fresh, and needs 30 minutes to 1 hour of soaking before it’s soft enough to use.

Ingredients

• 500 g minced crab
• 300 g dried wide rice noodles (bánh đa)
• 100 g water spinach
• 100 g celery
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons seasonings
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon shrimp paste
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Pepper, lime juice or tamarind

How to make bánh đa cua

1. Make the crab liquid

Strain the crab and collect the strained water. Stir ½ tablespoon shrimp paste and 1 teaspoon salt into it.

Take the crab fat from the shell and wash it.

2. Prepare the noodles and greens

Soak the noodles until they’re soft, then drain them and put them into a bowl. Pick and wash the water spinach and celery, cut them into pieces and boil them.

Fry the minced garlic in the oil, then fry the crab until it’s cooked and fragrant.

3. Cook the broth and lift out the crab

This is the most important step. Cook the crab liquid in a pot. When the crab floats up on the broth, reduce the heat, pick the crab out and let it drain until no water is left.

Season the broth with salt and sugar to suit your taste.

4. Assemble the bowls

Ladle the broth into the bowl of noodles and add a few slices of crab on top. Eat it with the water spinach and boiled celery, and with shrimp sauce if you like.