Equipment
Ingredients
Avocado Soup Base
- 400 g hass avocado, flesh only, ripe
- 300 g english cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped
- 10 g garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- 250 ml vegetable broth, chilled
- 60 ml lime juice, freshly squeezed
- 45 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 5 g kosher salt
- 2 g black pepper, freshly cracked
Crab Salad
- 225 g jumbo lump crab meat, pasteurized and cooked, picked over for shells
- 50 g celery, finely diced
- 45 g mayonnaise
- 15 ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 10 g fresh chives, finely minced
- 5 g fresh tarragon, finely minced
- 2 g old bay seasoning
Nutrition (per serving)
Method
Prepare the soup vegetables by peeling and seeding the cucumber, peeling and pitting the avocados, and roughly chopping the garlic cloves.
Combine the avocado flesh, chopped cucumber, garlic, vegetable broth, lime juice, olive oil, salt, and black pepper in a high-speed blender. Blend on high until completely smooth and emulsified into a velvety liquid.
Transfer the blended soup to a clean container. Press a layer of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the soup to prevent oxidation, and chill in the refrigerator at 4 degrees Celsius or 39 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 2 hours to allow flavors to meld.
While the soup chills, whisk together the mayonnaise, lemon juice, finely diced celery, minced chives, minced tarragon, and Old Bay seasoning in a medium mixing bowl to create the crab salad dressing.
Gently fold the jumbo lump crab meat into the dressing mixture. Use a soft spatula and extremely gentle folding motions to ensure the large lumps of crab meat do not break apart. Cover and keep refrigerated until serving.
Ladle the fully chilled avocado soup into cold serving bowls. Mound a generous, neat portion of the crab salad directly in the center of each bowl. Serve immediately while frosty and crisp.
Chef's Notes
- For an impeccably smooth texture, ensure your avocados yield easily to gentle pressure. Underripe avocados will result in a grainy, chalky soup that lacks proper emulsification.
- Always pick through store-bought crab meat manually. Even high-end lump crab can contain small pieces of cartilage or shell that ruin the dining experience.
- Acid is the primary balancing factor in this dish. Adjust the lime juice in the soup and the lemon juice in the salad according to the natural sweetness of your specific batch of crab.
- Chilling the serving bowls in the freezer for ten minutes before plating will help the soup maintain its refreshing temperature throughout the meal.
- Raw garlic sharpens significantly when pureed and chilled. Sticking to the specified 10g ensures the garlic plays a supporting aromatic role without overpowering the delicate seafood.
Storage
Refrigerator: 1 day — Avocado base will oxidize slightly over time; press plastic wrap directly to the surface of the soup to minimize browning.
Reheating: Do not reheat. Serve thoroughly chilled.
