Careme

Instructions

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1. 1.

   Remove the leg, claw, and body meat from the 2-pound cooked Dungeness crab, checking carefully for shell fragments. Refrigerate the picked crab meat and reserve the shells.

2. 2.

   Prepare the produce:

   • Cut 12 ounces on-the-vine tomatoes into 1-inch chunks.
   • Finely dice 4 ounces yellow onion.
   • Mince 2 garlic cloves.
   • Tear 0.5 ounce fresh basil.
   • Finely zest 1/2 lemon and squeeze 2 teaspoons juice from it.

   Keep each prepared ingredient separate.

3. 3.

   Place the reserved crab shells in a saucepan with 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a steady simmer, cover, and cook for 10 minutes. Strain while pressing gently on the shells; reserve 3/4 cup crab stock and discard the shells and excess stock.

4. 4.

   While the stock simmers, bring 3 quarts water to a boil in a large pot. Add 55 grams kosher salt, stir in 8 ounces bucatini, and cook until just shy of al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes. Reserve 1/4 cup pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.

5. 5.

   Heat 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons unsalted butter in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. Add the prepared tomatoes and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes blister and release their juices, about 6 minutes. Add the prepared garlic and cook for 30 seconds.

6. 6.

   Stir the following into the tomato mixture:

   • 3/4 cup reserved crab stock
   • 1/3 cup heavy cream
   • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
   • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
   • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
   • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

   Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently until the sauce lightly coats a spoon, about 3 minutes.

7. 7.

   Add the drained bucatini, 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, reserved 1/4 cup pasta cooking water, and prepared lemon zest. Toss over medium-low heat for about 1 minute, until the sauce turns glossy and coats the pasta.

8. 8.

   Reduce the heat to low and gently fold in the chilled crab meat for 30 to 60 seconds, just until warmed through. Remove the skillet from the heat and fold in the prepared 2 teaspoons lemon juice and basil; do not simmer after adding the lemon juice.

9. 9.

   Twirl the bucatini into two warm shallow bowls, arrange the crab and glossy tomato sauce over the pasta, and serve immediately.