Banh Canh Cua

Ingredients

• 500 g fresh thick tapioca noodles (banh canh bot loc)
• 1.5 litres pork bone stock
• 250 g cooked crab meat, picked over
• 200 g raw shrimp, shelled and deveined
• 150 g gio lua (Vietnamese pork sausage), sliced into batons
• 12 quail eggs, boiled and peeled
• 4 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked and sliced (optional)
• 3 shallots, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 3 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 tbsp annatto seeds
• 3 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1.5 tsp ground black pepper
• 4 tbsp tapioca starch mixed with 6 tbsp cold water
• 4 spring onions, thinly sliced
• 1 large handful cilantro, chopped
• 2 tbsp fried shallots
• 1 lime, cut into wedges
• 2 tbsp chilli and salt seasoning (muoi ot) or sliced chilli

Before you cook

• Boil the quail eggs for 4 minutes, then cool and peel them.
• Soak the dried shiitake in hot water for 20 minutes, then squeeze them dry and slice them.
• Pick through the crab meat for any fragments of shell.
• Mix the tapioca starch with the cold water in a small bowl until it is completely smooth.
• Chop the shallots, garlic, spring onions and cilantro.

Steps

1. Warm 3 tbsp of oil in a small pan over low heat with the annatto seeds and swirl for 2 minutes until the oil turns orange-red.
2. Strain the coloured oil into a large pot and discard the seeds.
3. Set the pot over medium heat and fry the chopped shallots and garlic for 2 minutes until fragrant.
4. Add the sliced shiitake and cook for 2 minutes.
5. Add half the crab meat and stir it through the aromatics for 1 minute.
6. Pour in the 1.5 litres of pork stock and bring it to a simmer.
7. Season with the fish sauce, sugar, salt and 1 tsp of the black pepper.
8. Simmer for 15 minutes so the flavours settle.
9. Stir the tapioca slurry again, then pour it into the simmering broth in a slow stream while stirring constantly.
10. Keep stirring for 2 minutes until the broth turns silky and thick enough to coat a spoon.
11. Add the shrimp and poach them for 2 minutes until they curl.
12. Add the gio lua batons and the peeled quail eggs and heat them through for 2 minutes.
13. Taste the broth and adjust the fish sauce and sugar until it is savoury with a gentle sweetness.
14. Bring a separate pot of water to the boil and cook the thick noodles for 3 minutes, then drain them.
15. Rinse the noodles briefly under hot water to wash off loose starch.
16. Divide the noodles between four deep bowls.
17. Ladle the thickened broth over the noodles, sharing the shrimp, sausage and eggs evenly.
18. Pile the remaining fresh crab meat on top of each bowl.
19. Scatter over the spring onion, cilantro, fried shallots and the remaining 1/2 tsp of black pepper.
20. Serve with lime wedges and chilli salt for dipping the crab.