This recipe was really more of an experiment, but it went so well I had to share! I had cooked crab meat leftover from one of the recipes I was testing for my upcoming cookbook (spoiler alert: it’s crab rangoon), so I came up with this spaghetti since it packed the 1-2 punch of being both ridiculously easy to make and film AND super delicious thanks to its use of umami-laden pantry ingredients. We’re talking miso paste, scallions that I’ve been growing in a glass of water on my windowsill, furikake (a Japanese rice seasoning made from sesame seeds, dried seaweed, and bonito flakes amongst other good stuff), and my favorite Fly by Jing Sichuan chili crisp that I’ve waxed poetic on in numerous recipes.
Part of what made it so easy to make was that all the cooking was done in one pan, my gorgeous Our Place Always Pan that I had been eyeing for ages and finally bit the bullet to buy. It has a built in steamer/strainer basket, so as you can see in the video you can actually boil your pasta or noodles right in the basket, strain it out, then use the same pan to cook your sauce so there’s one less pan to clean up.
The Always Pan also comes with a wooden spoon and a built-in spoon rest right in the pan’s handle that makes it easy to put down as you’re adding ingredients.
This pasta would also be excellent without the crab meat if you want to make it as pantry-friendly as possible, but I love how the saltiness and heat go so well with the sweet crab meat. You could also try it with frozen shrimp or lobster if you have that on hand, but anything will taste good with this miso-Sichuan chili crisp oil combo so give it a try!
Spicy Crab Miso Spaghetti with Fly by Jing Sichuan Chili Crisp
Ingredients
- 3 oz dry spaghetti or your choice of pasta/noodles
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup pasta water, more as needed
- 1 tbsp miso paste
- 4 oz cooked crab meat (substitute with shrimp or lobster)
- Sichuan chili crisp oil to taste
- Chopped scallions and furikake for garnish
Instructions
- Cook noodles in salted boiling water to 1 minute below al dente according to package instructions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain
- Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat, then add a few tbsp pasta water. Add the miso and use a wooden spoon to dissolve it into the butter and pasta water
- Add the drained noodles and toss or stir to coat, then add the crab meat and chili oil and combine well, cooking for a minute until heated through and adding pasta water as needed to emulsify the sauce
- Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with chopped scallions, furikake, and more chili oil as desired, then enjoy immediately
