Singapore-Style Chili Crab with Mantou-Style Toasting

Ingredients

• 300 g Dungeness or blue crab meat (cooked, picked)
• 2 tbsp Neutral oil
• 3 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp Ginger, minced
• 1/2 cup Yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup Ketchup
• 1/4 cup Chili sauce (sweet chili or chili-tomato sauce)
• 1 tbsp Light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp Brown sugar
• 1/4 cup Water
• 2 tbsp Cornstarch
• 3 tbsp Cold water (for slurry)
• 4 buns Mantou-style buns (or plain steamed buns), split
• 1 tbsp Butter(optional)
• 1 pinch Salt(optional)
• 1/4 tsp White pepper(optional)

Instructions

1. 1

   Prep (20 minutes): If using cooked crab, pick through for shell bits and pat dry. Mince garlic and ginger; finely chop onion. Split mantou-style buns and set aside.

2. 2

   Cook sauce base (10 minutes): Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté onion until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and stir 30–60 seconds until fragrant.

3. 3

   Build chili-tomato sauce (10 minutes): Stir in ketchup, chili sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and brown sugar. Add 1/4 cup water and simmer, stirring, until glossy and slightly thickened, about 8–10 minutes.

4. 4

   Thicken (5 minutes): In a small bowl, whisk cornstarch with the cold water to make a smooth slurry. Reduce heat to medium. Pour slurry into the simmering sauce while stirring constantly until it turns thick and clingy, about 1–2 minutes.

5. 5

   Finish crab (5 minutes): Add crab meat to the sauce and toss gently to coat. Cook just until heated through and the sauce coats the crab, about 2–3 minutes. Season lightly with salt and white pepper if needed.

6. 6

   Mantou-style toasting (10 minutes, overlaps with finishing): While crab heats, toast the split buns in a dry skillet or lightly buttered pan over medium heat until golden and crisp on the cut sides, about 4–6 minutes total. Serve immediately with the sauce for dunking.