Dungeness Crab Cakes

Ingredients

• 1 pound lump crab meat (try not to break up the lumps of crabmeat as you pick through it)
• 0.3 cup butter unsalted divided
• 0.5 cup shallots chopped
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt 
• 2 large eggs 
• 1.5 teaspoons worcestershire sauce 
• 1 teaspoon paprika sweet
• 0.5 teaspoon pepper black freshly ground
• 2 tablespoons tartar sauce prepared
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest 
• 0.3 teaspoon all the tabasco sauce you handle 
• 2 tablespoons parsley fresh chopped
• 4 slices bread white
• 0.7 cup breadcrumbs fresh

Equipment

• frying pan
• whisk
• wax paper

Directions

1. Heat one tablespoon of butter in a small skillet over medium high heat.
2. Add the shallots and a half teaspoon of salt.
3. Cook until the shallots are translucent, a couple minutes. Do not brown.
4. Let the shallots cool.
5. Whisk together the eggs, Worcestershire sauce, remaining half teaspoon of salt, paprika, freshly ground black pepper, tartar sauce, lemon zest, Tabasco, parsley, and the cooked shallots.
6. Gently fold in the crabmeat and torn bread, taking care again to not break up the lumps of crab meat. The mixture will be very wet.
7. Form the crab cakes: Using your clean hands, take a scoop of the crab mixture and gently form it into a patty form about 2 1/4 inches across and 3/4 inches thick. Continue until you've made 12 crab cakes.
8. Coat with breadcrumbs: Line a rimmed tray with a piece of wax paper just large enough to hold the cakes, and sprinkle the bottom of the tray with half of the bread crumbs.
9. Set the crab cakes in one layer on the top of the layer of breadcrumbs and sprinkle them with the remaining breadcrumbs.
10. Chill: Cover the crab cakes loosely with another sheet of wax paper and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
11. Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter in a large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat until the butter melts and foams up.
12. When the foam subsides, working in batches, place the crab cakes in the pan (do not crowd the pan), and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side.