Northwest Dungeness Crab Rolls

By: Julie Blakley | August 09 2010
Posted in Seattle - Cook It - Seattle

Maine may have its lobster, but here in the Northwest we have something even better—Dungeness crab. One of the sweetest, most delicious of crab species, Dungeness crabs are pot-fished in the cold winter waters near the coasts of Washington and Oregon—and are in abundance in Puget Sound where the San Juan Islands are located.

Photo: Julie Blakley

Lucky for me, July and August also mark the summer season for Dungeness crabs, which meant seeing lots of these strange, delicious little animals all over the islands.  And, because the meat is so sweet and succulent and tastes great simply steamed with a little squeeze of lemon, it was hard to stop myself from indulging every day.

While I did not do any crab fishing myself, I did see many people with their own pots, catching and steaming the Dungeness themselves. If you are headed to the San Juan Islands and want to catch crab yourself,* the Seattle Post-Intelligencer wrote a great article on catching these tasty critters, called Puget Sound’s Dungeness Bounty is fun to catch and good to eat.

Photo: Julie Blakley

Since I found myself in the middle of Dungeness crab season, I celebrated with a New England-style lobster roll filled to the brim with fresh Pacific crabmeat. The key to this sandwich is definitely finding the freshest (and therefore best) crabmeat you can find, as the recipe showcases the crab.

Here’s a recipe I adapted from Bon Appetit’s New England Crab Rolls:

Dungeness Crab Rolls

Ingredients

6 tablespoons mayonnaise
(use homemade mayonnaise if you can, it really is better)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3/4 pound fresh crabmeat,
2 toasted and buttered French rolls
Freshly chopped lettuce

Directions

Whisk together mayonnaise, lemon juice, lemon peel, and cayenne pepper in medium bowl. Mix in crabmeat. Season crab salad to taste with salt and pepper.

Spread butter on insides of French rolls. Warm large skillet over medium heat one minute. Place buns, buttered side down, in preheated skillet and toast until golden, about 5 minutes. Place two toasted rolls on each of two plates. Place lettuce inside each bun. Divide crab salad among buns and serve.

Serve with a side of cocktail sauce.

Photo: Julie Blakley

*Keep in mind anyone fishing for crab in Puget Sound must purchase a $3 crab endorsement, which is free to fishers under age 15. All fishers age 15 or older also must carry an applicable Washington fishing license to fish for crab anywhere in Washington. The daily catch limit in Puget Sound is five Dungeness crab, males only, in hard-shell condition with a minimum carapace width of 6¼ inches.