Crab Cakes with Sweet Peppers & Capers

These aren’t your typical breadcrumb-packed crab cakes. The binder here is a light, herbed batter, more like a thin pancake batter spiked with thyme, scallion, parsley, and a dash of Tabasco, that wraps around generous lumps of crab without burying them.

Two tricks make them special. First, the baking powder goes in at the very last moment before frying, so it puffs the cakes into something tender and almost soufflé-light. Add it too early and you lose the lift.

Second, they fry in clarified butter. Clarifying removes the milk solids that would otherwise scorch, so you get rich, buttery flavor and clean golden browning over medium heat.

Plated, they go properly fancy: a pool of warm beurre blanc, three cakes per serving, and a scatter of julienned sweet peppers, chives, and briny capers for color and a sharp, salty pop.

Chef Tips

• Pick through the crab and fold gently to keep the lumps whole; aggressive stirring shreds them.
• Add the baking powder right before frying so the cakes stay light and puffed.
• Use clarified butter so you can fry hotter without burning the milk solids.
• Make the herbed batter base a few hours ahead and chill it, then fold in the crab just before cooking.

Variations

• Fold in a spoonful of Dijon or Old Bay for a more classic crab cake flavor.
• Serve over a simple lemon butter or remoulade instead of beurre blanc.
• Make smaller cakes and pass them as appetizers with a caper-dotted sauce.