Hairy Crabs at Peony Jade

At last. Hairy crabs, I finally have had a taste of you. My maiden hairy crab feast was at Peony Jade, where the annual seasonal hairy crab promotion is currently running till November 30, 2013.

First question I asked as a noob newbie: so what’s the difference between hairy crabs and the other crabs?

A: Besides the presence of hair on their furry claws, hairy crabs are prized for their golden roe, not so much for the meat in their skinny little legs.

蟹粉小笼包 ($18++ for 3)
steamed ‘xiao long bao’ with hairy crab golden roe

I don’t get to eat xiao long bao anymore because there’s always pork in it, even for those so-called “crabmeat xiao long bao”. So I was real happy that the version here only contained pure hairy crab roe, yay! While this was technically not a xiao long bao (not much soup in it), the roe packed dumpling was delicious!

玉河畔金杯西京蟹粉 ($38++)
steamed scallop with hairy crabmeat, egg white and spinach broth

I was most looking forward to this since on paper, it sounded like something I’d like. The actual dish was rather forgettable though; I clearly need to manage expectations, huh.

盐焗大闸蟹 ($68++)
sea salt baked hairy crab in golden pillow

Look at this adorable crab-shaped handcrafted bread!

Lifted the top and I saw one whole hairy crab sitting there, waiting for me to eat it haha. This was my favourite for a couple of reasons: it’s fun to abandon table etiquette and just dig in with our hands; more importantly, the mantou-ish bread was a wonderfully soft and crusty base on which to spread the rich and creamy roe!

Hello, cholesterol! I see you’ve hit sky high!

蟹粉虾丸 ($16++ for 3)
deep fried prawn ball with hairy crab meat

Fried food always taste good! But I’ll forever think that it’s a shame to deep fried fresh seafood.

XO酱大闸蟹上海年糕 ($56++)
wok fried shanghai nian gao with hairy crab in xo sauce

Not a fan of starchy stuff so we picked out the crab and left the glutinous rice cake alone, oops.

粒粒飘香大闸蟹肉炒饭
wok tossed fragrant rice with hand peeled crabmeat

So far, the dishes mentioned can be found on the ala carte menu. Peony Jade also provides two set menus: hairy crab set menu a ($98++ per person) which includes the wok tossed fried rice you see below, …

姜茶汤丸伴猫山王麻糬
boiled hot ginger tea with glutinous rice dumpling accompanied with maoshan wang durian mocha

… and the premium hairy crab set menu b ($128++ per person), where you can end off the meal with a dessert set of durian mocha and hot ginger tea, the latter which I love as it’s incredibly strong and spicy with just a mere hint of sweetness! Best ginger tea I’ve ever had so far, period.

My thanks to Joy for the invitation!

Peony Jade @ Keppel Club
Bukit Chermin Road, Keppel Club
6276 9138