Dip! Dip!

Today's topic is dipping sauces. Kate said today: "I wish we had a picture of last fest's dipping sauces." In fact, we do have such a picture! Did you think the sauces would escape the food cam? I dare say NOT! For the Fest of '07 we decided that it would be great to enjoy pure and simple cracked crab. To make it interesting we decided to whip up some dipping sauces to compliment the freshly boiled delicacy. Kate and I stayed up into the wee hours of the morn mixing up mustard-horseradish, red chili, soy-ginger, classic cocktail, and (Emeril's) spicy cocktail sauces. My parent's kitchen counter looked like an amateur chemistry lab, with Kate and I willy-nilly adding more hot sauce here, more more salt there. Aprons are really not that different than lab coats. With some spiky hair we could have looked like mad scientists! Muahahahhah!

We probably only had one dip of each sauce when crab dipping time came, but it was a fun prospect nonetheless. You hold up a succulent piece of crab on your fork and you prepare to dive it into a flavor. What will it be? I bet a hidden camera would show that we most often chose drawn butter or straight lemon. Why disturb what is already pure? No doubt, the best part of the sauces was making them. If I had to chose a favorite, I'd go with Emeril's-- it had just the right combination of heat and spice without drowning the flavor of the crab, which has a little something to do with how aggressively one dips one's crab-laden fork into the sauce.

This year we will have some interesting sauces! Accompanying the Crab Spring Rolls is a spicy peanut sauce. I already know how I will approach this. I will take my first bite of spring roll virgin-style: no sauce. Next I will ask myself, "How will it taste with the sauce?" Dip, dip. Bite. Hm.... tasty, yes. But necessary? Further dipped and non-dipped bites will be required to settle the debate. The other two dipping sauces might come as a bit of a surprise to you. They accompany the Thai Garlic Crab entree! The last time we had this dish we did not make the sauces. The recommended sauces are: Chinese style mustard sauce and ginger butter! I can't wait to try ginger butter. The mere mention of ginger butter makes me worry that people will be lining up outside 205 Appalachian Drive hoping to dip grilled crab with an essence of coconut milk, lemon grass, and cilantro into ginger butter. I want to get on the plane right now.

So, that's the scoop on dipping sauces, past and future. I will put a question to you: if you were making your own dipping sauce--the perfect compliment to crab--what would it be? Mine would definitely have a citrus component. Maybe for Crabfest V we could have a dip-off! (Paul, I have three words for you: DIP! Mary! DIP! See if you can conjure a memory). Sorry for that little inside joke. Alas, the hour is late and the mind is doing a little dipping of its own into some good memories. Crabfest eve is just two weeks away and I am anxiously awaiting dip lab. Ready your aprons!