# Crab-stuffed steak?



## sherifffruitfly (Nov 3, 2004)

Hi all,

A friend of mine mentioned the idea of this to me awhile ago. I'm totally excited to make it this weekend, since it combines my two favorite foods in the world (guess! lol)

Only one obstacle: How does one do this? lol

Anyone got any recipes?

TIA,

cdj


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## Lifter (Nov 3, 2004)

Sounds pretty good!

You'd need a steak that was a bit thicker than normal, and hand-cut it almost all the way through...

I'd be trying this with snow crab meat and/or mini-shrimp that were canned (and therefor cooked)...

Marinating the steak in olive oil, seasoned rice wine vinegar, a dask of Balsamic vinegar, Worcestshire, garlic and the like, for about an hour or two...AFTER the ut was made, that I got some of this stuff into the "slit"...

It would go well to add a tablespoon of shredded cheese into this that matched to your seafood ingredient, and I confess I'd have to look at that at bit, before I tried this on, whether it was ricotta at the low end to asiago at the high end, one would have to experiment a bit to come out with the "best" thought...

Me being me (and thus neccessitating a lot of experimenting!), I'd like to wonder if I couldn't get a bit of minced asparagus tips into the center of this pretty thick piece of meat as welll

And I'd be looking at "rubbing" the exterior of the steak in garlic/onion powders (not "salts") and maybe some seasoning salt as well, so as to sort of close up the pores that everything stays inside...

And cooking method would be the Tim Allen/Ruth Chriss method of about a 1400 degree grill, I mean "flash-burnt" on the outside about 5 minutes a side, then removed, covered, and left to suck the heat into the remainder of the meat and stuffing

This isn't a recipe (obviously!) its an idea....and I certainly hope you run with it, and have some fun...baked potato on the side, with full fixings?  Maybe a Caesar Salad?

Let us know how it goes!

Lifter


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## ironchef (Nov 4, 2004)

Use a beef tenderloin cut if possible, or a sirloin. Other steaks will either be:

Too tough
Too hard to stuff properly
Have too strong a flavor and overpower the crab

You could use a skirt or flank steak, pound it out thin and roll it pinwheel style with the crab meat in it.


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## marmalady (Nov 4, 2004)

This isn't a 'stuffed with' idea, but it's totally awesome and soooo rich!

You'll need - 

-- Filet mignon steaks, cooked however you like them 

--Bearnaise sauce

--crabmeat - blue crab is fine - the meat you buy in the cold packs is already cooked

--Tiny bay scallops, seared in a little butter

To plate- put your filet on the plate; combine the bearnaise with the crabmeat.

Put some scallops on top of the filet, and spoon some of the crab/bearnaise on top.

Swoon!


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Nov 4, 2004)

I made something similar to this a few weeks back.  But instead of stuffing a steak, I purchased a good beef roast.  Starting at the outside edge,  I cut about 1/2 inch deep, turned the knive parallel to the edge and cut one continuous layer of meat until I reached the center, ending up with something resemling a skit stead.  I layed shredded crab meat and sliced mushrooms accross the whole surface, jelly-rolled it and tied it with sring.  I then barbecued it on the Webber Kettle covered grill, using the banked coals/incirect method.    When it was medium rare (as told my my meat thermometer) I removed it, plated it, and carved slices for everyone.

It came out very good.  I strongly recomend this technique to anyone who loves surf & turf, unless of course you have a favorite steak (like a great rib steak) and lobter tails to go with it.  

Seeeeeeya:  Goodweed of the North


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## AllenOK (Nov 4, 2004)

Here's a recipe I have in my files.  I've never made, so I can't comment on it.

Crab-Stuffed Filet Mignon with Whiskey Peppercorn Sauce 
Yields:  4 servings

	A delicious Filet Mignon stuffed with succulent crab, wrapped in bacon and topped with whiskey-peppercorn sauce. Time consuming, but just as good, if not better than any high-end restaurant recipe.  Note:  I often partially cook my filets in the pan, and finish them on the grill. This recipe works well with roasted red potatoes and a nice glass of wine.


For the crab stuffing:
2 T olive oil
1 t minced onion
1 t minced green onion
1 t minced garlic
1 t minced celery
1 t minced green bell pepper
2 T shrimp stock or water
One 6 oz can crab meat, drained
2 T bread crumbs
1 t Cajun seasoning
For the peppercorn sauce:
1 ¼ c beef broth
1 t cracked black pepper
2 T whiskey
1 c heavy cream
For the steaks:
four 6 oz filet mignon steaks
4 slices bacon, cooked lightly
salt and cracked black pepper to taste
1 T olive oil
1 T garlic, minced
1 t minced shallot
1 c crimini mushrooms, sliced
2 T whiskey
1 t Dijon mustard

	To make the crab stuffing: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Sauté onion, green onion, garlic, celery, and green pepper until tender. Stir in shrimp stock, crab meat, bread crumbs, and Cajun seasoning. Remove from the heat, and set aside. 
	To prepare the peppercorn sauce: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine beef broth and cracked black pepper. Simmer until reduced to 1 c, stirring frequently. Add the whiskey and cream. Continue simmering until reduced to 1 c. Remove from heat, and set aside. 
	To prepare the steaks: Slice a pocket into the side of each steak, and stuff generously with crab stuffing. Wrap bacon around side, and secure with toothpicks. Season to taste with salt and pepper; set aside. Heat olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Sauté garlic and shallot for 1 minute. Stir in mushrooms, and sauté until tender. Remove mushroom mixture, and set aside.  Place steaks in skillet, and cook to desired doneness. Remove from skillet, and keep warm. Deglaze skillet with the remaining whiskey. Reduce heat, and stir in peppercorn sauce and Dijon mustard. Add mushroom mixture, and reduce sauce until thickened. Remove toothpicks and bacon from steaks, and arrange steaks on a plate. Top with sauce.


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## sherifffruitfly (Nov 4, 2004)

AllenMI said:
			
		

> Here's a recipe I have in my files.  I've never made, so I can't comment on it.



LOL - that recipe looks astonishingly similar to one on the internet, at:

http://beef.allrecipes.com/az/CrbStffdFiltMignnwithWhisk.asp

In any case, thanks everyone for the thoughts - I'm heading out later today to get the tenderloin(s)!

cdj


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## luvs (Nov 4, 2004)

marmalady said:
			
		

> This isn't a 'stuffed with' idea, but it's totally awesome and soooo rich!
> 
> You'll need -
> 
> ...



marm, that has got to be the most lovely-sounding meal i've heard of in a year. yum!


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## marmalady (Nov 4, 2004)

It is, luvs - to die for!


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## sherifffruitfly (Nov 4, 2004)

sherifffruitfly said:
			
		

> In any case, thanks everyone for the thoughts - I'm heading out later today to get the tenderloin(s)!



Ok, I lied - I'm heading out tomorrow to get the steaks and crab....


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## sherifffruitfly (Nov 5, 2004)

*Uh-oh - do I cook the steaks with the crab inside, or not?*

I've got my 1-ish lb ny strips, and a bunch of king crab meat.

For the stuffing, I'm gonna saute the crab with garlic, butter, green onions, and a hard cheese - probably parm.

I'll be pan-frying the steaks.

Should I leave the stuffing aside until after the steaks are done cooking, or would it be better to cook the steaks with the crab mixture inside?

so confused.... lol

cdj


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## Lifter (Nov 5, 2004)

I believe your  crab with be "over-cooked", as you'll be heating the interior of the steak to a temp that will be more than adequate to cook raw crab....

I like the idea of a splash of green onion...

Parmesan wouldn't be my choice, if I'm gonna spend the big bucks for a treat like this, I'll have Asiago cheese (fresh grated, I'm hoping that you weren't going to use dehydrated Parm, and such the juices out of the meat?)

If you want an interesting addition to your "stuffing" mix, how about some finely diced waterchestnuts?   Just a wild hair...

Lifter


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## Lifter (Nov 5, 2004)

OOPS!

One final thought...

After you have sliced the slit into the steak, but before you stuff it, try "marinating" the meat as follows...

In a cake tin, pour in a half a cup of olive oil, an ounce of Worcestshire, a quarter cup of seasoned rice vinegar, 2 tablespoons of chopped or minced garlic, about 8-10 drops of hot sauce, and a quatercup of BBQ steak sauce...whick together well, and flip your steak(s) through this, and rest them in the mix for 15-20 minutes, then flip them and give a like time...

Pull them out, stuff them, and grill them about 6 minutes a side, pull them out and let them sit 6 minutes, then serve...

This is making me hungry again...

Lifter


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## sherifffruitfly (Nov 5, 2004)

Lifter said:
			
		

> I believe your  crab with be "over-cooked", as you'll be heating the interior of the steak to a temp that will be more than adequate to cook raw crab....



Thanks for all the tips - I'm especially intrigued by the waterchestnut thought - that wouldn't have occurred to me in a million years.

Thanks for pointing out the "twice-cooked crab" problem involved with what I was saying. I'll just put the cold mixture in the steaks, and maybe give them an extra minute on the heat - the steaks are 1.25-1.5 inches anyhoo...

Thanks again!

cdj


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Nov 6, 2004)

Lifter said:
			
		

> I believe your  crab with be "over-cooked", as you'll be heating the interior of the steak to a temp that will be more than adequate to cook raw crab....
> 
> I like the idea of a splash of green onion...
> 
> ...



Lifter.  We must share something genetically when it comes to our likes and dislikes of food.  I was going to suggest the addition of water chestnuts too.  

I do have to say though, I used surimi rather than real crab meat, as it's fairly difficult to find around these parts.  I jellyrolled it into a roast that I transformed into a flat chunk of meat, like a skirt steak, and baked it to a medium rare.  Finally, I hit it with a bit of infra-red from the broiler, just to give it that perfect shade of brown.  It was great,  and the heat didn't have sufficient time to overcook the seafood stuffing.  I would think that broliling would be better suited to the stuffed steak recipe.

Seeeeya; Goodweed of the North


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## Lifter (Nov 8, 2004)

Still waiting for "sherrifffruitfly" to get bak on what he/she did, and how it turned out...maybe we gave some "fatal" advice...?

Lifter


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## sherifffruitfly (Nov 21, 2004)

*oops - sorry!*

LOL - Didn't realize people were waiting for the results - lol

Was awesome - I broiled the steaks, seemed easier than all the motion (=spillage) involved with frying - and I don't have a grill....

I sauteed the crab/garlic/cheese/green onion mixture briefly before stuffing the steaks. I did this because I like my steaks a bit on the rare side, and I wasn't convinced that the middle would heat up sufficiently.

The thickness of the steaks was a bit of a problem however - I would have liked the midde to be a bit more done (was definitely on the R side of MR), but it seemed like the outside was too done to leave them under the heat any longer. How do you guys deal with thick (1.25"+) hunks of ny strip?

But all in all, was awesome. Next time, I'd want to (a) solve the done-outside-raw-inside problem - mebbe broiling is the wrong way to go with thick cuts, (b) get more peppercorns involved, and (c) have something like an A1 based sauce to drizzle....

God I love crab n steak! lol

cdj


off-topic: Wow - the Bills are wiping the floor with the Rams.... If somebody can explain to me how the Seahawks managed to lose (twice!) to those jack@sses, I'll be very appreciative...


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Nov 21, 2004)

My oven has high and low broilier settings.  If I'm cooking something up to a half inch, I use the high setting.  For thicker meat cuts, I use the low setting.

If you have only one setting, move the meat further from the heat source.  Remember that broiling works through infra-red radiation.  That is, the infra red strikes the meat surface and excites the molecules, producing heat.  That heat slowly moves into the meat through conduction.  It takes time.  Also, only one side of the meat is receiving that radiation, the side facing the heat source.  As you move further from the heat source, less infra-red strikes the meat surface, heating it more slowly and giving the generated heat more time to penetrate the inner meat.

You will get the results you want.
Another technique you could use would be to dry roast the meat on a rack at about 450 for about fifteen minutes, turn off the oven, and complete the cooking process under the broiler.  This also will give the heat more time to penetrate the meat, and the stuffing.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


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## sherifffruitfly (Nov 21, 2004)

Goodweed of the North said:
			
		

> My oven has high and low broilier settings.  If I'm cooking something up to a half inch, I use the high setting.  For thicker meat cuts, I use the low setting.
> 
> If you have only one setting, move the meat further from the heat source.



God I'm dense. Cook slower by putting distance between the heat and the meat. Duh. Sheesh.

lol

thanks!

cdj


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