Watercress Crab Cakes

The joy of simple crab cakes is that they can be made at lightning speed then set in the fridge to firm up ready for cooking as needed. 

 Makes 6 small crab cakes

Preparation 30 minutes (plus one hour resting in the fridge) | Cooking 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 250g brown crab meat

• 200g boiled potatoes, peeled and roughly mashed

• 100g watercress, chopped finely

• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise

• Salt and pepper  

For the crumb coating

• 1 egg

• 200g breadcrumbs

 Method:

1. Put all the ingredients for the crab cakes in a small bowl and mix well, adding salt and pepper to taste.

2. To prepare the crumb coating, beat the egg in a bowl. Put the breadcrumbs on a plate and season well with salt and pepper. 

3. Take a generous tablespoon of the crab mixture and shape it into a small ball in your hand – do this gently as the mixture will be fairly soft at this stage. Dip it fully in the beaten egg and straight into the breadcrumbs, turning to ensure it is evenly coated. Repeat with the remaining crab mixture.

4. Put the crab cakes in the fridge to firm up for at least an hour.

5. When ready to cook, heat the oven to Gas 6/200C. Put the crab cakes on a parchment-lined baking tray and bake for around 15 minutes. These will be ready when they are lightly browned.

6. Serve with mayonnaise and salad, or new potatoes. To make a watercress mayonnaise, stir 1 tablespoon of chopped watercress into 3 tablespoons of ready-made mayonnaise.

 Recipe by Lizzie Crow | Photography by Lara Jane Thorpe