Vietnamese-style Spicy Crab with Garlic Noodles

Ingredients

• 1 cup basil leaves chopped
• 1.5 teaspoons pepper black freshly ground
• 3 tablespoons butter at room temperature
• 0.5 teaspoon cayenne 
• 0.5 cup cilantro leaves 
• 2  dungeness crabs cleaned cooked quartered
• 1 cup flour 
• 2 tablespoons ginger fresh grated
• 10 cloves garlic chopped
• 4  green onions chopped
• 0.5 cup mint leaves chopped
• 6 small chiles dried red
• 0.3 cup sake 
• 1.5 teaspoons salt 
• 4  serrano chiles stemmed seeded chopped
• 0.5 pound spaghettini thin ( spaghetti)
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil for frying

Equipment

• bowl
• paper towels
• pot
• wok
• slotted spoon

Directions

1. Combine flour, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. pepper, and the cayenne in a large bowl. Pat crab pieces dry with paper towels and toss (in batches) with flour mixture.
2. Remove crab and shake off excess flour. Set aside.
3. In a wok or large pot, heat 3 in. oil to 37
4. Lay out paper towels for draining crab and garlic. Fry crab in batches (do not crowd wok) until golden, about 5 minutes per batch.
5. Drain on paper towels.
6. Using the same hot oil, fry garlic until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes.
7. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Set garlic aside; cool and discard oil.
8. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
9. Add 1 tbsp. of the salt and the spaghettini. Cook until tender to the bite, 5 to 10 minutes.
10. Drain, transfer to a serving bowl, and toss with butter and half of the fried garlic. Cover and put in a warm place.
11. Heat a wok or pot large enough to hold all the crab over high heat.
12. Add remaining 3 tbsp. oil, dried chiles, and ginger. Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
13. Add green onions, serrano chiles, and remaining 1/2 tsp. salt. Cook, stirring, until onions wilt, about 1 minute.
14. Add sake and cook, stirring, until sake is reduced by about half. Stir in crab and cover. Cook until crab is heated through, about 3 minutes.
15. Remove lid and cook, stirring, until any liquid evaporates. Stir in basil, mint, cilantro, and remaining 1/2 tsp. pepper. Cook, stirring, until herbs have wilted. Stir in remaining fried garlic.
16. Transfer crab to a warm platter and serve hot, with garlic noodles.