Thai style crab cakes

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/16/dining/16mini.html?hpwBy MARK BITTMAN
Published: September 11, 2009

I LEARNED how to make good crab cakes 20 years ago from Johnny Earles, a chef and friend in the Florida Panhandle. When I say ?good,? I mean crab cakes made predominantly from crab, seasonings, a tiny bit of mayo as binder (you need something) and not much else. And for a long time I barely tinkered with the recipe. Why would I? Everyone loved it.
6 medium raw shrimp, shelled, washed and deveined

1 teaspoon nam pla (fish sauce)

1 pound fresh lump crab meat, picked over for cartilage

1 egg

1/4 cup chopped scallion

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 fresh chili, preferably Thai, minced

1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 to 3 tablespoons bread crumbs, preferably fresh

About 1/2 cup all-purpose flour for dredging

Peanut or vegetable oil as needed

Lime wedges for serving.

1. Pur?e shrimp in a food processor (smaller is better) until you have a smooth paste, or chop and mash by hand. Add fish sauce. In a bowl, mix the shrimp pur?e, crab meat, egg, scallion, cilantro, chili, ginger and salt and pepper; add just enough bread crumbs to stiffen mixture a bit. Refrigerate mixture until you are ready to cook; it will be easier to shape into cakes if you refrigerate it for 30 minutes or more.

2. Season flour with salt and pepper. Film bottom of a large skillet with oil and place over medium-high heat. Shape crab meat mixture into cakes 1 inch thick and as wide as you want. Dredge each in flour, and cook, adjusting heat as necessary and turning once (very gently), until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes a side. Serve with lime wedges.

Yield: 4 servings.