Crab and Mango Salad with Avocado! Lump meat of Dungeness crab gently folded with coriander, lime, avocado and mango. Served with a citrus mango sauce.
I first encountered a crab and mango salad at Fringale, the exquisite French-Basque restaurant on 4th Street in San Francisco. I recently had another delicious crab and mango salad at an LA restaurant, this time topped with avocado and surrounded by peeled ruby red grapefruit chunks. I’ve been dreaming about it ever since!
Crab Mango and Avocado Salad
ingredients
- For the sauce:
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1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
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1 ripe mango, peeled, stoned and diced
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1/4 cup water
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1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
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Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- For the salad:
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1 pound fresh chunks of Dungeness crabmeat, pierced to remove small bits of shell or gristle
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1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
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3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
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1 tbsp coriander leaves, finely chopped
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2 teaspoons mint leaves, finely chopped
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1 tablespoon chopped shallot or purple onion
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1 medium mango, peeled, seeded and diced (See How to Cut a Mango)
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1 firm but ripe avocado, pitted, peeled and diced
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Tabasco sauce
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Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Optional: ruby red grapefruit pieces, peeled
method
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Make the sauce:
Heat 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add mango cubes made from 1 whole mango, season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the fruit is very soft, about 3 minutes.
Add 1/4 cup water, bring to a boil and remove from heat. Stir in 1 tbsp lemon juice.
Place the mixture in a blender and blend until smooth. Cool.
Alternatively, if you’re pressed for time, place all the sauce ingredients in a blender and puree.
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Gently mix crab meat with mint, shallots, lime juice, olive oil, cilantro, tabasco:
In a bowl, combine the crab meat, 2 teaspoons cilantro, 1 teaspoon mint, the chopped shallot, 1 tablespoon lime juice, 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 10 drops Tabasco sauce, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix gently with a fork to avoid breaking up the larger chunks of crab meat. Put aside.
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Combine Mango, Avocado, Olive Oil, Lime Juice, Cilantro, Mint, Tabasco:
In a separate bowl, add diced mango, one whole mango, diced avocado, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/2 tablespoon lime juice, the remaining coriander and mint leaves, 10 drops Tabasco, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix gently with a spoon, being careful not to mash the avocado pieces.
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Assemble the salad:
Place some mango and avocado mixture on a chilled plate and carefully heap some shrimp mixture on top. Garnish with coriander leaves.
For a savory extra touch, if you have any, arrange peeled chunks of sweet ruby red grapefruit around the salads. The grapefruit is a flavorful addition to the crab salad.
Alternatively, you can use small tureens or dessert bowls for individual molds, line the mold with plastic wrap, and then layer the crab mixture and mango-avocado mixture. Chill in the fridge for 1 to 2 hours. When ready to serve, carefully unmold the salads and arrange on individual plates.
Serve with the sauce.
