A crab cake is a delicious American dish that looks like a Hamburger but is composed of crab meat and various other ingredients, such as bread crumbs, milk, mayonnaise, eggs, yellow onions, and seasonings. Crab cakes are traditionally associated with the area surrounding the Chesapeake Bay, in particular the State of Maryland.
The American Institute of Wine and Food (AIWF) National Capital Area Chapter and The Source by Wolfgang Puck hosted the 8th Annual Crab Cake Competition in Washington DC, USA on June 9, 2013. The contest put eight of the area’s top chefs against one another in a crab cake showdown.
A jury composed of local chefs and food critics selected a winner, based on special plates prepared for the jury. Judges (from left right): Cathey Borrow (Washington Post), Chef Marjorie Meeks Bradley (Ripple) David Hagedorn (Washington Post) Betsy Apple (Washington Post) Eun Yang (Morning news anchor for NBC4/WRC-TV)
Guests had the chance to sample each chef’s unique take on crab cakes and vote for their favorites, as well as cruise oyster, beer and wine stations.
Chef Scott Drewno (Source by Wolfgang Puck) and Ris Lacoste (Ris) refereed.
The star-studded line-up of contestants was comprised of 8 chefs: Kyle Bailey (Birch and Barley), Jeff Black (Black Salt), Chris Clime (PassionFish), John Critchley (Bourbon Steak), Spike Gjerde (Woodberry Kitchen), Matt Hagan (Mussel Bar and Grille), Russell Smith (Wolfgang Puck Catering) and David Stein (Tony and Joe’s Seafood).
The Winner – Judges’ Choice: Jeff Black, Black Salt
Over the years, the Houston native Jeff Black and his wife Barbara Black, both chefs, have created a little empire comprising half a dozen establishments in D.C. and the surrounding suburbs: Addie’s, BlackSalt Restaurant and Fish Market, Black Market Bistro, Black’s Bar & Kitchen, Pearl Dive, and Black Jack—with more on the way.
Jeff Black met his future wife Barbara in New York at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y.. In 1991, Jeff followed Barbara to D.C., where she had family, and got his first job working with Kinkead’s chef Bob Kinkead at now-shuttered 21 Federal. He went on to work for revered chefs Roberto Donna and Jean-Louis Palladin at Pesce before opening his first restaurant, Addie’s, in Rockville in 1995.
See also:
Owner Jean-Bernard Grenié and Wine Journalist Panos Kakaviatos Presented the Wines of Chateau Angélus and Chateau Daugay at Black Salt Restaurant in Washington DC, USA
The Winner - Popular Choice: Chris Clime, PassionFish
PassionFish is a seafood restaurant located in the Reston Town Center, 40 minutes from downtown Washington, DC. It is a sister restaurant of the popular DC Coast, TenPenh, Ceiba, and Acadiana restaurants in Washington DC. Chris Clime is the Executive Chef at PassionFish, He is a native of Virginia.
Other Participants
Matt Hagan (Mussel Bar and Grille)
Chef-restaurateur Robert Wiedmaier pays homage to his Belgian roots at Mussel Bar and Grille in Bethesda
Tablas Creek Wines from Paso Robles and Belgian Food at Brasserie Beck with Tablas Greek GM Jason Haas and Chef Robert Wiedmaier in Washington DC, USA
John Critchley (Bourbon Steak)
A Michael Mina restaurant, this chic and contemporary steakhouse restaurant is located just off the lobby of the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington, D.C.
Kyle Bailey (Birch and Barley)
Birch and Barley is a Washington DC restaurant dedicated to an unparalleled collection of 555 artisanal beers.
David Stein (Tony and Joe’s Seafood)
Seafood Place at the Georgetown Waterfront. Tony Cibel, patriarch of the Oceanside Management Family of restaurants, which includes The Dancing Crab, Tony and Joe’s Seafood Place, Nick’s Riverside Grille, Kaufmanns Tavern, Cabanas and The Rockfish, is a native Washingtonian.
Assistants of Russell Smith (Wolfgang Puck Catering)
Part of the Wolfgang Puck empire in the US.
Spike Gjerde (Woodberry Kitchen)
Huffington Post: “Nestled in a long-closed mill in Baltimore's Hampden neighborhood Woodberry Kitchen is a bastion of local and organic cooking. Since opening in fall 2007, the place has won acclaim for dishes by chef and owner Spike Gjerde”. The Washington Post's Tom Sietsema enthusiastically endorsed it, writing "One part Fannie Farmer, one part Alice Waters, Woodberry Kitchen is all heart. Go, Baltimore!" In Washingtonian magazine's list of the 100 best restaurants in the region for 2012, Woodberry Kitchen is the only Baltimore spot profiled.
See also:
Chef Spike Gjerde's Farm-to-Table Food of Woodberry Kitchen and Sarah O’Herron's and Ed Boyce's Premium Organic Wines of Black Ankle Vineyards, Maryland, USA
4 Oyster Producers
Chesapeak Gold Oysters
Hooper Island, Maryland
Hollywood Oyster Company
Hollywood, Maryland
The Choptank Oyster Company
Cambridge, Maryland
Barren Island Oysters
Hoopers Island, Maryland
Maryland Blue Crabs
Last year in May, wine guru and Maryland resident Robert J. Parker tweeted: “Maryland’s greatest culinary delicacy – blue channel soft-shelled crabs are starting to arrive … lightly floured and sautéed in butter.” Maryland – with the large Chesapeake Bay – is indeed blessed with Blue Crabs which came in different forms, when you eat them at a Crab Shack. Unfortunately, Maryland’s delicious seafood was on the backburner during the conference.
The blue crab is a crustacean found in the waters of the western Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Coast of Central America and the Gulf of Mexico. Chesapeake Bay Blue Crabs undergo a seasonal migration; after mating, the female crab travels to the southern portion of the Chesapeake, fertilizing her eggs with sperm stored up from the last mating months or almost a year later. In November or December, the female crab releases her eggs. The crabs hatch in a larval form and float in the mouth of the bay for four to five weeks, then the juvenile crabs make their way back up into the bay.
Four Ways to Eat Chesapeake Blue Crabs
Hard Shell Blue Crabs
Blue crabs are most often eaten in the hard shell. Steaming them in large pots with water, vinegar and seasoning is the norm on the East coast. You need the whole experience: the smell of steamed crabs in the air, a pile of large steamed blue crabs covered with Old Bay Seasoning, ready to be cracked with wooden mallets, accompanied by corn on the cob, plus a roll of paper towels and a metal bucket for tossing the empty shells.
Picture: Hard Shell Blue CrabsSoft Shell Crabs
The Chesapeake Bay is famous for its soft-shell blue crabs. As crabs grow larger, their shells cannot expand, so they molt the exteriors and have a soft covering for a matter of days when they are vulnerable and considered usable. Crabs caught just after molting are prepared as soft shell crabs: first cutting out the gills, face, and guts; the crab is then battered in flour, egg, and seasoning, then fried in oil until crispy. The entire crab is consumed, legs and all.
Pictures: Christian G.E. Schiller eating Soft Shell CrabsCrab Cake
Crab cakes is another delicacy. Crab Cakes are basically Hamburgers made out of crab meat. We ate it recently as a starter with tomatoes and avocado on the side.
Picture: Maryland Crab CakeSee more:
Wine and Crab Cakes: Amy Brandwein from Casa Nonna and Chris Clime from PassionFish win the 6th Annual Crab Cake Competition in Washington DC, USA
Maryland Crab Soup
Usually I start my crab dinner with a Maryland Crab Soup. This is a kind of an Italian Minestrone with crab meat.
Pictures: Annette Schiller, wine tours by ombiasy, eating Maryland Crab SoupSee more:
Maryland Crabs and Wine
Schiller's World of Seafood
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