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WEST BRITON CRAB CLAWS WITH LEMON AND GARLIC BROTH

A fabulously messy thing to eat, these claws are served on a thick base of newspaper (the West Briton is particularly good!) with a hammer, a shellfish pick, a bucket for the shells and a bowl of lemon water for rinsing your hands.

Serves 4

1kg cooked crab claws

200g butter, softened

5 garlic cloves, crushed

a handful of parsley leaves, chopped

3 tbsp olive oil

crusty bread, to serve

newspaper (West Briton ideally!), a hammer, or nut crackers, and shellfish picks or skewers

FOR THE BROTH

200g butter

5 garlic cloves, crushed

1 lemon, cut into 8 wedges

2 bay leaves

200ml white wine

20g tarragon sprigs

10 black peppercorns

10 coriander seeds

2 tbsp sea salt

First, make the broth. Take a large saucepan that will hold the claws, add the butter and melt it over a medium heat. Add the garlic, lemon and bay leaves, and cook until the garlic just starts to colour. Pour in the wine and cook until reduced by half and there is no smell of alcohol. Add the remaining broth ingredients and 300ml water, then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.

Increase the heat to bring the broth to a gentle boil, then add the crab claws and return to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes to heat through.

Transfer the crab claws and broth to a large serving bowl. Put the butter in a separate bowl and add the garlic, parsley and olive oil. Mix together well, then spoon over the hot crab claws and broth to make a buttery sauce.

Cover your table with sheets of the newspaper of your choice and put the bowl of crab claws and broth in the middle. You will also need a small hammer or nut crackers, a bucket for the shells and a bowl of lemon water for rinsing your hands.

To eat, scoop the crab claws out of the broth and crack with the hammer using just enough pressure to crack the shell without shattering it into lots of small pieces. Pull out the meat using the hard cartilage in the centre of the claw to help; if you are lucky it will come out in one piece. Alternatively, extract or pick out the meat using a shellfish pick or skewer. Mop up the buttery cooking broth with plenty of crusty bread.