Linguine with Crab

Delicately spiced and filling main course.

A quick poll of my friends showed that linguine with crab, as served at London's River Café, is their all-time favourite crab dish. Here is our version.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• Meat from 1 large cooked crab (if you are buying ready-dressed crab, you will need 2) • Salt and freshly ground pepper • 2 lemons • Handful of chopped fresh parsley • 100ml olive oil • 2 garlic cloves, crushed • 2 hot red chillies, deseeded and chopped • 600g linguine •Lemon pieces and chilli or olive oil, to serve

Directions

1) Remove the meat from the crab, taking care to remove all the shell. 2) Gently mix together the brown and white meats (keeping some nice chunky pieces of white meat if you can). 3) Season and mix with the juice of one lemon and half of the parsley. 4) Heat the oil with the garlic and chillies in a small frying pan and cook very gently so that the oil is infused with the flavours. 5) Take care not to let the garlic burn. 6) Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water. Drain, then toss very quickly with the crab mixture and the oil. 7) Serve immediately, sprinkled with the remaining parsley and with a piece of lemon on each portion and some more chilli or olive oil on the table for people to help themselves.