Claws open

MANILA, Philippines – For celebrity chef Peter Ayson, a culinary journey to Hong Kong isn’t complete without sampling his favorite crab dish, which is believed to have originated in typhoon shelters (makeshift boats) and whipped up by the fishermen themselves. Popularly known as typhoon shelter crab, this spicy treat is a specialty in Causeway Bay where the sampans are docked.

Back in the late Sixties, the fishermen would fry the crab in high heat kneeling down on their sampans during stormy weather. They just added ingredients which are readily available such as chopped garlic, chili peppers, black beans, shrimp paste, onion leeks and voila! They’ve invented a hot and spicy dish that’s enough to keep them warm during the typhoon season. The dish tastes so good that foodies from Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and mainland China got hooked. However, the cooking style is often adjusted to suit one’s taste.

“As demand for the typhoon shelter crab grew, the fishermen cooked nonstop on high fire. For safety reasons the Hong Kong government banned the practice of cooking on sampans in the early Seventies,” explains chef Ayson, executive chef of the Red Crab Group.

Well, that incident didn’t dampen the fishermen’s spirit. They moved ashore, and still offer the famous dish not on boats but on wooden carts or holes-in-the-wall scattered around the bay area. The good news is Pinoys need not travel to Hong Kong to enjoy this famed dish. Typhoon shelter crab is now part of Clawdaddy’s new and extensive menu.

 “As the leading crab authority in the country, Clawdaddy felt that our diners deserve more so we revamped our menu. The typhoon shelter crab is definitely a must-try. We adjusted the flavor to match the Pinoy taste, something that would keep our clients coming back for more,” enthuses the amiable chef.

 It’s hard to tell how spicy this dish is just by looking at it. It is covered by chopped roasted garlic that you could hardly see the crab underneath. Woven into this tiny brown bits soaked overnight in black bean sauce are chili peppers, which give the dish its distinct flavor. As with most seafood dishes, the typhoon shelter crab is best eaten with your bare hands and in the company of family members and friends.

 Chef Ayson is the former sous chef of the award-winning gourmet breakfast restaurant Orange in Chicago, USA. He has been with the Red Crab Group for over three years now.

 “The Red Crab Group has been very innovative and I’m very lucky to work with the genius behind this restaurant chain – Raymund Magdaluyo. Raymund gives me the freedom to do whatever I want in the kitchen. We develop new concepts together,” chef Ayson notes.

In designing the restaurant’s new menu, the first thing chef Ayson and his partner Raymund considered is how to make these new dishes connect with their clients.

“We asked them what they loved about our restos and what they expect from us. It’s not always about what the chef wants. If you’re a good chef, you should not intimidate your guests with the dishes you serve,” chef Ayson relates.

Chef Ayson adjusted the tastes of the dishes to suit the Filipino palate. Well, it’s not really about fusion cuisine, but it’s something that their diners are familiar with.

“If they want to eat adobo, make sure that they taste that rich adobo flavor. As a chef, you have to keep yourself anchored to that basic adobo taste, the familiar adobo flavor Pinoys love. Not just that. I’ve also realized that great tasting meals must be enjoyed by the whole family,” he says with a grin.

Clawdaddy is a place families love to bond with over a sumptuous meal. They use their hands to eat. Clawdaddy provides diners with their own bibs and a bucket right in the middle of the table to throw in cobs of corn and shells.

“At Clawdaddy, you can be your own person. No pretensions. If it means that you have to use your hands to best enjoy our dishes, then by all means do it. Our tables are set up in such a way that families can take time to enjoy their meals.  The kids are also at home here. It’s not just about the food. It’s a connection between the guests, the chef, and the resto staff,” chef Ayson adds.

Something To Claw About

Clawdaddy’s menu offers the best of southern food in a homey ambience – an experience of claw-getherness, or the chance for family and friends to bond over good food.

The food choices are extensive, the appetizer, soup and salad selections definitely perk up one’s appetite.

“We’ve recently introduced 25 new dishes in our menu. We’ve narrowed the list down and kept the best-selling items,” chef Ayson explains.

For starters, we ordered the Asian beef salad which is a whole meal in itself. This mixed greens is made more flavorful with fresh bean sprouts and fried flat noodles with seared beef tenderloin, carrots, bell peppers and onions drenched with Asian Mandarin dressing with hoisin, oyster sauce and vinaigrette.

“When people dine in a restaurant, they always order Caesar salad or garden fresh salad. The dressings are so rich. The Asian beef salad is a healthier alternative. It’s a yummy way to teach people how to eat healthy without sacrificing taste,” chef Ayson enthuses.

Another must-try is the oyster sampler. For only P385, diners get to enjoy Clawdaddy’s best oysters – oyster Rockefeller, oyster racca, French onion baked oysters, and garlic cheese oysters. For me, oyster racca is the best. This baked treat is topped with spinach, bacon, cream and Parmesan cheese. It melts in the mouth, creamy and oh, so yummy!

Barbecue is a sure hit as the meat is so tender and falls off the bone. Try the BBQ Caboodle-King Paddle for P998. It consists of barbequed baby back ribs, hickory BBQ chicken quarter, bountiful beef ribs with your choice of three sidings and served with watermelon slices.

Don’t leave the resto without trying the smoked baby back ribs (full/half at P698/P398, respectively). The pork ribs are smoked for four to six hours, while the beef takes 12 hours. The meat is slow-cooked and basted with Clawdaddy’s own BBQ sauce.

“It is marinated for 24 hours. The marinade is a mix of 12 to 14 spices. It’s a long process. No shortcut. It’s something we invest our time on to make it perfect. Slow-cooking is still the best way to cook,” notes chef Ayson.

Vegetarian diners are also welcome in this resto. Try the spinach and eggplant lasagna (layered pasta sheets with grilled eggplant and spinach in bechamel and pomodoro sauce), which goes well with Kurdi’s vegetarian pizza. This thin-crust veggie-lover’s delight is topped with bell peppers, button mushrooms, eggplant strips, fresh basil, black olives, arugula, mozzarella cheese and pesto.

Clawdaddy’s beer-battered calamari, on the other hand, is best eaten as is or with steamed rice as what most kids do. The sliced calamari is soaked in milk then dipped to a light beer batter before frying to make it light and crunchy. There’s no dip. You get so much flavor from the dish itself.

“Don’t overcook the squid or it gets rubbery. Deep-fry it for three to four minutes. If you undercook the squid, it gets malansa,” advises chef Ayson.

At Clawdaddy, they don’t cover the real taste of the food with dips and sauces. Chef Ayson has this knack for bringing out the natural flavor of the food items.

“Bringing out the natural flavor of, say, seafood is a challenge for any chef,” says Chef Ayson. “Just look for the best and freshest ingredients and you’ll never go wrong. Make it simple and keep it real.”

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Visit Clawdaddy Crabhouse and American Grill at the sixth level of The Ledge, Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Mandaluyong City; and Clawdaddy’s Great American Picnic at B6 Bonifacio High Street, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.