These little twists are best made the day before you serve them - they hold their shape better when they've dried out. As for the sauce, we've kept it simple with a flavoured oil, crab and a sprinkling of toasted breadcrumbs for the perfect textural contrast.
Busiate with crab, ginger and pangrattato
When it comes to crab, it's often best to keep things simple. Here that means a flavoured oil, some breadcrumbs and herbs as the background notes.
- 30 mins preparation
- 25 mins cooking plus resting
- Serves 4
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Ingredients
- 400 gm "00" flour (2⅔ cups)
- 100 gm day-old crustless sourdough bread, processed to fine breadcrumbs
- 60 ml olive oil (¼ cup)
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus extra to serve
Crab and ginger sauce
- 125 ml mild-flavoured extra-virgin olive oil (½ cup)
- 20 gm peeled ginger, cut into julienne
- 4 small garlic cloves, very finely chopped
- 2-4 red birdseye chillies, or to taste, seeds removed (optional), finely chopped
- 400 gm cooked spanner crab meat, drained
Method
Main
- 1Process flour and 200ml water in a food processor until a dough forms. If necessary add a couple of teaspoons extra water to bring it together. Knead on a lightly floured surface to a smooth ball (2-3 minutes), then wrap in plastic wrap and leave to rest for 30-40 minutes. Roll pieces of dough about the size of a large pea to a thin rope, dusting with flour to prevent sticking, then twirl around a small craft rod or chopstick (a knitting needle is traditional) to form a corkscrew shape. Slide off and set aside on a lightly floured tray to dry (at least 3 hours or overnight).
- 2To make pangrattato, preheat oven to 200°C. Toss breadcrumbs, oil, garlic and parsley in a bowl and season. Spread on an oven tray and bake until golden brown and crisp (10-15 minutes).
- 3For crab and ginger sauce, heat oil in a large saucepan over low-medium heat. Add ginger, garlic and chilli and sauté until fragrant and softened (5-6 minutes). Stir in crab and warm through, then season to taste.
- 4Cook pasta in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until al dente (2-4 minutes). Drain well, reserving 60ml pasta water, then add busiate to crab sauce with extra parsley and toss gently to combine, adding a little pasta water if needed to coat well. Serve scattered with pangrattato.
Notes
Drink Suggestion: Crisp, fragrant traminer Drink suggestion by Max Allen