Fresh mud crab or any variety of crab is used. Take your crabs and clean as you normally do (check my video for detailed instructions). You can ask your fish monger to clean the crab for you.

Or if you are preparing the crab, follow my video for detailed steps. First open the top hard shell of the crab with the help of the flap which is located in the back of the crab. Reserve the crab shell which we will be using for the recipe. You can rinse it once under running tap water to remove any sand, grits or slimy stuff. Now remove the gills of the crab and wash the crab under running water to remove the slimy stuff present in the centre.

If your crab is large in size, you might need to remove the crab claws separately for easy mixing the dish. Remove the ends of the crab legs which practically doesn’t have any meat. Once the crab is prepared, use a meat mallet or back of your knife to crack the crab legs a little so the sauce or juices can penetrate into the legs. Set this aside till use.

If you are using fresh red chillies then you can skip this step. I like to use dry red chillies which I always have on hand. So I soaked the dry red chillies in hot water for 10 mins. You can remove the seeds from the dry red chillies if you want to cut down the spice level. Remove the stems from the dry red chillies and tap of the dried seeds from it. Now you can soak the chillies in hot water for 10 mins to dehydrate the chillies.

Take peeled onions or shallots in a food processor. Add in garlic, ginger, soaked dry red chillies and puree it into a coarse puree. Set aside till use.

Add in salt and sugar and stir for 1 min more. Now add in the cleaned crab while reserving the top shell which we will be using later. Now toss the crab into the masala and stir fry for 2 mins. Now pour in the chicken stock and mix well. Cover the wok with a lid and cook for 5 to 6 mins.

Now open the lid and stir in the cornstarch slurry little at a time and give a good mix. The sauce will thicken instantly. Add in beaten egg slowly and half of the coriander leaves. Mix it once and simmer for 30 more seconds while mixing gently. Now turn off the heat. Add the final half of the coriander leaves and mix well.

Serve with rice, toasted bread, steamed buns or mantou.