 | I was invited to a ground breaking press conference two days ago, and it was quite the eye-opener. Where will you be able to find such dishes? Only at the House of Seafood. They created a process whereby they would cook the crab dish the regular way, and the magic comes when they flash freeze each dish at -40 degrees celsius before vacuum packing to perfectly preserve the essence of the dish. This locks in the flavour as well as the firmness of the flesh - in theory. When I read about it, I knew I had to make the long trip down to Punggol Settlement to take a taste. Zeline drove me up and we both had an interesting time trying the three different crab dishes. So which are the hits and misses? Crab when flash frozen gets dry - think of the Alaskan crab legs that have been steamed and flash frozen to get a feel of how the flesh turns a little dry and stringy. So, will this happen to the crab dishes, enveloped in sauce? Would the sauce be compromised and taste different because of that? |
How does Frozen Crab Taste?
 | House of Seafood has won several awards, among which they are voted to have the BEST PEPPER CRAB! I couldn't wait to try the crabs, which are going at $55/box, 1 KG, +/- 100g. No more having to wonder about the seasonal price of crab. The price is standard for their MICROWAVE READY-TO-EAT CRAB! Just $55/box |
Microwavable Black Pepper Crab
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After microwaving for 7 mins, the black pepper crab is ready. The taste is exactly like that which is served in the House of Seafood, and this is one of the most famous dishes that they are known for. Receiving awards for this dish, the peppery aroma is addictive - remember to check your teeth for black bits of pepper after eating the crab though, there are bound to be some! The texture of the crab was fantastic - they managed to seal in the sweetness and smoothness of the flesh for this dish. Truly remarkable!
Microwavable Salted Egg Crab
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For the Salted Egg Crab, it took about 8 - 10 mins for the whole microwaving process. Slightly spicy because of the little red chili padi, the hint of curry leaves left a lovely whole mouth feel with the salted egg which was not salty at all. In fact, it was a little sweet, which pretty much surprised my palate. The texture of the flesh however, was a little dry and stringy, akin to the Alaskan crab legs I love. Perhaps it could be improved by having more sauce, so that the crab is "protected" from the flash freezing. The claw itself was, however, meaty and the texture was to the bite. This led me to think that the crab must be smothered in more sauce to preserve the flesh properly. Do also note that the crab was chopped into pieces, but the claws are left intact - you need to prepare your own crab mallet to crack the shell.
Microwavable Chili Crab
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For this dish, they added more sauce than what was in the box. I felt that I would have preferred to just taste it exactly like how it would be served out of the pack, as it would have been better represented. The taste and amount of egg white in the sauce was addictive, and the texture of the crab was pretty much preserved. However, I am unable to comment much about whether the sauce that it is frozen with will be enough when you serve it out of the box.
Verdict
Finally, delicious restaurant crab dishes in the comfort of our own homes - where we can gorge ourselves silly and not worry about looking awkward!
 The claws are as big as my hand! Awesome taste and texture.  Look at how the black pepper sauce clings to every tasty morsel of this crab!  |  The sauce covered the exposed potions of the crab - but not quite enough. I really enjoyed the taste of the sauce! So, where can you buy the first ever microwavable crab dish in Singapore? This makes a great gift if you hand carry it over to other countries that are within 15 hours via flight - that's how long the crab will stay frozen and fresh in a thermal bag. Punggol Point (Seaside & Aircon Dining) 3 Punggol Point Road, Singapore 828694 The Punggol Settlement #01-01 & #01-02 (Near Punggol Jetty) More than 200 carpark lots Monday – Sunday 11am-2pm, 5pm-11pm Tel: (+65) 6466-9000 Fax: (+65) 6467-9000 Upper Serangoon (Upper Serangoon Shopping Centre Fully Air-conditioned with VIP rooms) 756 Upper Serangoon Road #03-33, Singapore 534626 (Opp S’Post, next to Hotel81) More than 100 parking lots Monday – Sunday 11am-2pm, 5pm-10:30pm *Satuarday 11am-3pm, 5pm-11pm Tel: (+65) 6285-9711 Fax: (+65) 6285-9722 |
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