Baked Crab Shells (Casquinhas de Siri)
Casquinhas de siri Say it: kah-SKEEN-yahz jee see-REE
Casquinhas de siri are the Brazilian coast's most beloved bar snack: the crab's own shell refilled with its sweet meat bound in a creamy tomato-and-pepper stew, then dusted with breadcrumbs and cheese and gratinated until the top crackles. They are eaten all along the Atlantic seaboard, most famously in Sergipe, Bahia and Espírito Santo, always with a cold beer and a squeeze of lime. Rich, briny-sweet and faintly smoky from the oven, they turn a frugal catch into a celebration.
Baked Crab Shells (Casquinhas de Siri)
Casquinhas de siri
Pronounced kah-SKEEN-yahz jee see-REE
- Serves
- 4
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Total
- 55 min
- Level
- Medium
Also nut-free and egg-free.
Allergens: contains shellfish, milk, gluten. Check labels on packaged ingredients.
Ingredients
Amounts are scaled. Cooking times and pan sizes stay the same.
The filling
To assemble
Method
Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Grease the crab shells or ramekins with the softened butter and set them on a baking sheet.
Warm the olive oil in a wide skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes, until soft and translucent, then add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds, until fragrant but not browned.
Add the bell pepper and tomato and cook for 4 minutes, until the tomato collapses and the pepper softens. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute, until it darkens slightly.
Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir for 1 minute, then pour in the milk and coconut milk in a steady stream, whisking constantly. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, until the sauce is thick enough to hold a line drawn with a spoon.
Fold in the crab meat, lime juice, parsley and chives, and season with the salt and pepper. Stir for 2 minutes, just until the crab is heated through, then take the pan off the heat.
Spoon the mixture into the shells, mounding it generously and smoothing the top with the back of the spoon.
Mix the breadcrumbs and parmesan and scatter it over the filled shells, then dot with the butter bits.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the topping is golden and the filling bubbles at the edges. Let them stand for 5 minutes before serving, as the filling is very hot.
Regional variants
In Bahia the filling is often enriched with coconut milk and a few drops of dendê palm oil, while in Sergipe cooks stir in a spoonful of requeijão (soft cream cheese) instead of béchamel for a richer, silkier filling. Some modern versions mix a little sweet corn or hearts of palm into the crab.
Cook's notes
- Do not simmer the crab for long once it is added, or it turns dry and stringy; it only needs to heat through.
- If the filling looks loose, cook it a minute longer before filling the shells so it does not spill in the oven.
- No crab shells? Small ramekins, scallop shells or even a shallow gratin dish work perfectly.
Serve with
Cold beer, a squeeze of lime, and a simple tomato or hearts-of-palm salad.
Make ahead and storage
Fill and top the shells up to a day ahead, refrigerate covered, and bake straight from cold, adding 4 to 5 minutes. Leftovers keep 2 days refrigerated and reheat well at 350°F (175°C).
