Seafood is a necessary part of the diet of any person, everyone knows about their benefits. Unfortunately, the gifts of the oceans are not cheap, so many housewives actively use their substitutes. For example, instead of crab meat, you can add the same to salads crab sticks.

This original product is made from ground white fish meat. The sticks are a ready-made product that does not require heat treatment; many salads can be prepared on their basis today. Below are the most popular and affordable dishes.

Classic salad recipe with crab sticks and rice

Since sticks came to Russia from the East (Japan and China), the best "companion" for them is rice. This cereal is adored by the Japanese, it is considered very useful. That is why it (together with crab sticks) forms the basis classic salad below is his recipe.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks (or the so-called crab meat) - 250 gr.
• Sea salt.
• Canned corn - 1 can.
• Onions - 1-2 pieces, depending on the size.
• Chicken eggs - 3 pcs.
• Rice - 100 gr.
• Mayonnaise - to the taste of the hostess.

Cooking algorithm:

1. The first step is to boil chicken eggs and fig. Rinse the grits, bring water (1 liter) to a boil, put the washed rice, salt, stir, cook until tender. Secret: if at the end of cooking cereals add a little lemon juice, then it will acquire a beautiful snow-white color and slight sourness.
2. Cooking process - 20 minutes (with constant stirring). Drain in a colander with small holes, rinse, cool to room temperature.
3. Boil the eggs in water (salted) until hard boiled (10 minutes). Transfer the eggs to cold water to cool, peel.
4. Clean the crab meat from the film. Clean the turnip, wash.
5. You can actually start making the salad. For this crab sticks, onion and cut the boiled eggs (you can cut them into small cubes).
6. Open the canned corn, drain the water.
7. Put the ingredients in a large enough container. Before serving, the salad must be salted, then seasoned with mayonnaise or mayonnaise sauce.
8. Serve chilled. Such a salad can act as a side dish for meat, fish or be an independent dish.

Crab salad recipe with fresh cucumbers - photo recipe

The familiar and boring crab salad is easy to update by adding fresh vegetables to the ingredients. Fits great here fresh pepper, onion or cucumber.

It is with the latter that it is worth preparing crab salad in the first place. It turns out it is especially fragrant and juicy. It's also nice that the cucumber cubes crunch. This will surely appeal to children and other vegetable lovers.

Your mark:

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Quantity: 4 servings

Ingredients

• Crab sticks: 300 g
• Fresh cucumbers: 200 g
• Eggs: 4 pcs.
• Corn: 1 b.
• Mayonnaise: to taste

Cooking instructions

First you need to leave the crab sticks warm for a while so that they defrost. Or use this microwave oven. Then we release them from the packaging. For this salad, cut them into equal cubes.





Wash fresh cucumbers, cut off the stem and inflorescence. We cut them into cubes.



Pour the chopped cucumbers into the dishes for the crab sticks.



The eggs that we hard-boiled a little earlier will also be cut into cubes, like the previous ingredients.



Pour them into a bowl where we will mix our salad.



Add the last ingredient - corn. Drain all the juice from it first. Otherwise, the salad may come out too wet. After all, cucumbers will also give their juice.



Add mayonnaise.



Mix thoroughly, taste, and only after that it may be necessary to salt.



We shift the salad from the saucepan into a beautiful dish and put it on the table.

How to cook crab salad with corn

Canned corn is second only to rice in terms of compatibility with crab sticks. It sets off the fishy aroma of sticks, gives the salad a pleasant sweetness and juiciness. Here is one of the easiest salads to prepare, popular with Russian housewives.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks - 400 gr.
• Canned corn - 350 gr.
• Mayonnaise - 150 gr.
• Chicken eggs - 5 pcs.
• Onion (feather) - 1 bunch.
• Rice - 100 gr.
• Parsley - 1 bunch.
• Salt.
• Dill - 1 bunch.

Cooking algorithm:

1. Such a simple dish can be made without rice (less work) or with rice (more work, but also yield). Rinse the rice with water, dip in salted boiling water, cook until fully cooked (20 minutes or a little less). In order not to stick together and not burn, constant stirring is required.
2. Boil the eggs until fully cooked, state - hard boiled, time - 10 minutes. Drain water from corn. Rinse greens, dry.
3. You can proceed, in fact, to the preparation of the salad. First sticks, eggs cut into small or medium cubes. Chop greens.
4. In a deep salad bowl, mix corn, rice, chopped sticks, eggs. Salt, lightly season with mayonnaise. This should be done just before serving, sprinkle with chopped herbs.

White, yellow and green colors lettuces look very bright, festive, spring-like!

Delicious crab salad with cabbage

Russian housewives, unlike Japanese ones, actively use ordinary white cabbage combined with crab sticks. Indeed, these two products complement each other, cabbage makes the salad more juicy, and sticks give the dish a pleasant fishy flavor. In addition, the cost of the initial ingredients is quite low, so even students can cook it.

Ingredients:

• White cabbage - 200-300 gr.
• Crab sticks - 200 gr.
• Onion (small head) - 1 pc.
• Canned corn - ½ can.
• Lemon - ½ pc.
• Salt.
• Mayonnaise sauce (mayonnaise) - a few tablespoons.

Cooking algorithm:

1. For this salad, you do not need to boil vegetables, so you can start cooking almost before eating. Chop the cabbage, ideally into thin strips (novice housewives will have to practice, experienced ones have already mastered this rather complicated technological process). The thinner the cabbage is cut, the sooner it will release the juice, and moreover, the dish looks more appetizing.
2. Cut the sticks crosswise or into medium-sized cubes.
3. In a deep salad bowl, put chopped cabbage, chopped sticks, half a can of corn.
4. Peel the onion, rinse under the tap, cut into cubes, their size depends on the skill and desire of the hostess. You can scald it with boiling water, then its sharp taste will disappear.
5. Take half a lemon and squeeze the juice into a salad bowl, or sprinkle the prepared ingredients. Lightly salt, mix gently, add mayonnaise.

You can immediately salt the chopped cabbage, crush it a little. Then it will be more tender and juicy, and at the end of cooking it is no longer necessary to add salt.

Crab salad with tomatoes

Cheese and tomatoes are two products that go well together. But experimenting housewives have found that crab sticks can make a “pleasant company” for this couple. A little effort, a minimum of products and a wonderful salad becomes a real decoration of the dinner.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks (crab meat) - 200 gr.
• Tomatoes - 300 gr. (4-5 pieces).
• Hard cheese (such as "Dutch") - 250-300 gr.
• Garlic - 2 cloves.
• Mayonnaise (to the taste of the hostess).

Cooking algorithm:

1. Tomatoes must be washed. Peel the garlic, rinse, squeeze it into mayonnaise, let it brew a little.
2. You can start preparing the salad: it is better to use a glass salad bowl, because the salad looks very nice “in section”.
3. Cut tomatoes and sticks at the request of the "cook" - into small cubes, straws. Grate the cheese using a grater with medium holes.
4. Place half of the crab sticks in a glass salad bowl, grease with garlic mayonnaise. Top with a layer of tomatoes, mayonnaise, a layer of cheese.
5. Then once again repeat the crab sticks, a layer of mayonnaise, tomatoes, a layer of mayonnaise. The top "cap" of the salad should be made of cheese.
6. It is good to decorate such a salad with fresh herbs - parsley, dill or onion feathers.

Salad with crab sticks and cheese

Crab sticks are a unique product, they go well with many vegetables, eggs and cheese. Below is one of the easiest recipes to prepare, a novice hostess will also get yummy.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks - 240 gr.
• Hard cheese (such as "Dutch") - 200 gr.
• Chicken eggs - 4-5 pcs.
• Salt.
• Garlic - 1-2 cloves (depending on size)
• Corn - 1 can.
• Mayonnaise.

Cooking algorithm:

1. First you need to boil the eggs - you need to put them in boiling water, slightly salted, so that they do not burst.
2. The cooking process is 10 minutes, then they are quickly lowered into ice water, this helps when removing the shell. Clean, cut.
3. Cut the so-called sticks into plates. Grate the cheese.
4. In a deep bowl, mix the sticks, boiled eggs, corn, cheese. Salt lightly.
5. Peel the garlic, rinse, pass the slices through a press into mayonnaise.
6. Dress salad with mayonnaise-garlic dressing. Let it brew (up to 15 minutes).

How to make crab bean salad

Interestingly, instead of canned corn, many housewives just as well use ready-made beans packaged in cans. And the most skilled cooks prefer to cook beans (or beans) for salad on their own. Admittedly, this will take a lot of time.

Ingredients:

• Finished canned beans- 1 bank.
• Crab sticks (or meat) - 200-240 gr.
• Salt.
• Greens - a bunch of dill, parsley.
• Chicken eggs - 3 pcs.
• Mayonnaise (can be replaced with mayonnaise sauce).

Cooking algorithm:

1. Pre-boil fresh eggs (cooking time until hard-boiled - 10 minutes). Ready eggs cool, peel. Cut into cubes (large or medium - as desired).
2. Remove crab sticks from packaging, cut each into cubes or slices.
3. Rinse the greens, dip in ice water for 10 minutes, dry. Drain water from beans.
4. Put the cooked ingredients into a deep beautiful salad bowl - eggs and plates of crab sticks, add beans and very finely chopped greens there. Salt, season with mayonnaise.

A salad that uses red beans looks especially beautiful. On top, additionally decorate the salad using greens or cherry tomatoes, cut into 2 or 4 parts.

Salad "Red Sea" with crab sticks

Another dish, based on crab sticks, consists of affordable products, is easy and quick to prepare. It received the name "Red Sea" because of the color of the main ingredients - sticks, tomatoes and bell peppers, also red.

Ingredients:

• Crab meat (or sticks) - 200 gr.
• Juicy, ripe tomatoes - 3-4 pcs.
• Red (bulgarian) pepper - 1 pc.
• Garlic - 1-2 cloves.
• Hard cheese - 150-200 gr.
• Mayonnaise sauce (or mayonnaise).
• Salt.

Cooking algorithm:

1. You don’t need to pre-cook (fry, boil) anything for a salad, so you can start cutting food right before lunch or dinner.
2. Wash the tomatoes, remove the stalk, cut with a very sharp knife in the form of a long thin straw.
3. Wash the bell pepper, remove the "tail" and seeds, also cut into strips.
4. Then carry out the same operation with crab sticks: peel off the packaging, cut into pieces.
5. Grate cheese (you can choose large or medium-sized holes).
6. Peel the garlic, rinse, crush with a knife, salt to release more juice, move with mayonnaise.
7. In a glass salad bowl, mix the products, season with garlic-mayonnaise sauce, do not add salt.

crab salad recipe with pineapple

It would be nice to use real crab meat for the next salad (canned). If finances are tight, you can replace with ordinary crab sticks, they also go well with pineapples.

Ingredients:

• Sticks - 1 pack (200 gr.).
• Mayonnaise sauce (unsweetened yogurt, mayonnaise).
• Hard cheese - 200-250 gr.
• Onion - 1-2 pcs.
• Canned pineapple pieces - 1 can
• Chicken eggs - 4-5 pcs.

Cooking algorithm:

1. Such a salad looks gorgeous in the form of layers, so the products need to be prepared and then placed in a deep salad bowl.
2. Boil chicken eggs for 10 minutes (hard boiled), cool, cut the whites into cubes, mash the yolks with a fork in a separate plate.
3. Drain the pineapple filling.
4. Grate cheese (grater with small or medium holes).
5. Cut the peeled and washed onion into thin half rings, scald, rinse with water.
6. Put sticks on the bottom of the salad bowl, coat with mayonnaise. Then - squirrels, chopped onion half rings, pineapple cubes, grated cheese. Between the ingredients is a layer of mayonnaise.
7. Decorate the top of the salad with mashed yolk, add a little greenery, your favorite parsley or, for example, dill.

Important: the salad does not need to be salted, on the contrary, thanks to pineapples, it will have a slightly sweet original taste.

How to make crab salad in layers

The same salad can be served in two different ways, the household will not even believe that this is the same dish. The first time you can mix all the ingredients and just season with mayonnaise (sauce).

The second time, you can lay the same products, prepared and chopped, in layers in a salad bowl, each spreading lightly with mayonnaise. Here is a recipe for one of the stick-based salads that looks amazing and tastes amazing.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks - 200 gr.
• Mayonnaise.
• Apple (sweet and sour) - 1 pc.
• Salt.
• Chicken eggs - 4 pcs.
• Fresh carrots - 1 pc.
• Cheese (ideally hard varieties) - 150 gr.

Cooking algorithm:

1. Eggs will require the most time for cooking - they need to be salted with water, boiled for 10 minutes, cooled, peeled. Separate from each other by cutting into different containers, proteins and yolks.
2. Chop the sticks into strips.
3. Wash the apple, cut into strips.
4. Peel, wash, grate the carrots (grater with large holes).
5. Put in a salad bowl in turn - sticks, apples, proteins, yolks, carrots, cheese. At the same time, grease each layer with mayonnaise.
6. Sometimes you can find the same recipe, only instead of mayonnaise, unsweetened yogurt is offered. Then the dish becomes truly dietary.

Delicious salad with crab meat and mushrooms

The original recipe suggests using crab sticks and canned champignons. A rather rare combination, but why not try to conduct a creative experiment in the kitchen and surprise the household.

Ingredients:

• Sticks - 200 gr.
• Champignons - 400 gr.
• Onion - 1 pc.
• Pepper, salt, vinegar.
• Chicken eggs - 5-6 pcs.
• Carrots - 2 pcs.
• Vegetable oil for frying.
• Mayonnaise.
• Greens for decorating the dish.

Cooking algorithm:

1. According to this recipe, the onion needs to be pickled. To do this, cut it into strips, put in a porcelain bowl. Salt, add sugar, pour apple (ideally) vinegar.
2. Stew carrots in oil until soft, cool.
3. Remove the packaging from crab sticks, cut into plates or cubes.
4. Boil the eggs for 10 minutes in salted water, remove the shell, cut into cubes.
5. WITH canned champignons drain the fill, cut into slices.
6. Mix the prepared products in a deep bowl, then carefully transfer to a beautiful salad bowl.
7. The dish is ready, you can invite relatives and friends to taste the new original salad!

Crab salad with apples

For a salad that contains crab sticks, rice and corn are most often chosen as “partners”. But, if you add just one apple, then the taste of the dish will change dramatically. The salad will be more tender, dietary.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks - 240-300 gr.
• Rice (long grain) - 150 gr.
• Corn - 1 can.
• Sweet and sour apple - 1-2 pcs.
• Chicken eggs - 4 pcs.
• mayonnaise and salt.

Cooking algorithm:

1. The first step is to boil the rice: rinse it, dip it in salted boiling water, cook for 15-20 minutes (until cooked), stir all the time so as not to stick together. Drain the water, rinse the rice, leave to cool.
2. Boil eggs - 10 minutes, also cool, peel.
3. Cut sticks, boiled eggs and apples in the same way - into strips.
4. In the same container, add rice, corn kernels.
5. Season with mayonnaise, salt a little.
6. A little green turn regular salad into a masterpiece of culinary art, which will undoubtedly be appreciated by friends and colleagues.

Spicy salad recipe with crab sticks, cheese and garlic

The so-called crab meat or its analogue, crab sticks, is a neutral product, it does not have a pronounced taste and aroma. That is why garlic is often found in salad recipes, it gives flavor and spice to the dish.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks -340 gr.
• Corn - 1 can.
• Eggs - 4-5 pcs.
• Greens (dill) - 3-5 branches.
• Hard cheese - 200 gr.
• Garlic - 3-4 cloves.
• Mayonnaise.
• Salt.

Cooking algorithm:

1. Boil fresh eggs (the norm of time is 10-12 minutes). Cool, clean.
2. Cut eggs, cheese, sticks into cubes.
3. Squeeze garlic into mayonnaise, leave for 10 minutes to infuse.
4. Mix all chopped ingredients in a salad bowl, add corn and chopped dill.
5. Gently mix, then season with mayonnaise, a little salt.
6. The light aroma of garlic stimulates the appetite, and therefore the salad disappears in the blink of an eye.

Healthy crab salad with carrots

Naturally, crab meat is much more useful than sticks called crab, but it is quite expensive. On the other hand, completely different products (more affordable in price and availability) help to make the salad useful. For example, a salad recipe with canned corn and fresh carrots.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks - 1 pack.
• Canned milk corn - 1 can.
• Boiled eggs - 4-5 pcs.
• Carrots - 1-2 pcs.
• Mayonnaise.
• Sea salt.

Cooking algorithm:

1. Everything is extremely simple. Peel the carrots, rinse from dirt, chop into very thin strips or grate.
2. Boil chicken eggs, grate.
3. Throw the corn on a sieve.
4. Cut sticks into slices.
5. In a container, mix the components of the salad, pour mayonnaise, mix again.
6. Now arrange in bowls or in a salad bowl, sprinkle with herbs.

Unusual Korean crab salad

"Carrot-cha" is a well-known product, popular in the East. In this form, the favorite vegetable is good on its own, as a snack and as part of various dishes.

Ingredients:

• Crab sticks - 200-250 gr.
• Carrots in Korean - 250 gr.
• Boiled eggs - 3 pcs.
• Fresh cucumber - 1 pc.
• Corn - ½ can.
• Mayonnaise (or mayonnaise sauce) - 1 pack.

Cooking algorithm:

1. Cut carrots into small enough pieces, cucumbers and crab sticks into strips, boiled eggs into cubes.
2. Drain ½ can of corn in a colander.
3. Mix everything, sprinkle with salt, mayonnaise, mix again.
4. Sprinkle the salad with fresh herbs (chopped finely), the dish of the day is ready!

How to cook a salad with crab sticks and chicken

Another recipe suggests combining crab sticks and chicken together. Chefs take into account the fact that there is nothing from real crabs in sticks, and a modern product is made from ground fish.

Ingredients:

• Sticks - 100 gr.
• Boiled chicken meat - 100 gr.
• Canned corn - ½ a regular can or a small can.
• Boiled chicken eggs - 3-4 pcs.
• Greens are fresh.
• Salt (you can take sea salt), mayonnaise.

Cooking algorithm:

1. Boil chicken fillet (half breast) with onions, salt, seasonings.
2. Cut the chicken sticks and meat into strips.
3. Throw the corn on a sieve.
4. Boil eggs (10 minutes), cool. Then chop them and onion feathers.
5. Simply mix the products in a salad bowl, add salt, mayonnaise (or unsweetened yogurt), mix again.

Households can try for a long time to guess what ingredients are used in this salad, except for onions and corn.

Delicate crab salad with avocado

Many housewives successfully use rare vegetables and fruits, such as avocados, in cooking. It spices up the familiar.

Ingredients:

• Avocado - 1 pc.
• Fresh cucumber - 1 pc.
• Crab sticks - 200 gr.
• Hard cheese - 100-140 gr.
• Lemon juice - 1-2 tbsp. l.
• Garlic - 1-2 cloves.
• Oil (preferably olive)
• Sea salt to taste.

Cooking algorithm:

1. This simple salad is prepared just before serving, wash the avocado and cucumber, peel and chop.
2. Cut crab sticks into slices or cubes, grate cheese or cubes.
3. Refueling - olive oil, lemon, salt, crushed garlic and herbs. Pour over the mixed ingredients with aromatic sauce and serve.

Crab sticks, like a universal soldier in the kitchen, go well with vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, and even chicken. Salads with chopsticks are tasty and fragrant, but they look just gorgeous.

We are waiting for your comments and ratings - this is very important for us!

Crab sticks have become a truly national product as soon as they appeared on the shelves of our stores. Salads with them were even supplanted for a while famous Olivier and fur coats with holiday tables. But, despite this, some housewives have a question whether it is necessary to cook crab sticks for salad and other dishes, and if necessary, how to do it correctly.

Let's try to understand this issue.

Do I need to cook crab sticks for salad

Crab sticks - in fact, they are an imitation of crab meat. This product is made from processed fish protein - that same mysterious word "surimi" on all packages of crab sticks, as well as minced meat of the most inexpensive white fish. The color of the product is given by food coloring. The production process involves several stages of processing and preparation, giving out the final result of a product that is ready for use.

Crab sticks do not need to be cooked additionally. They are completely ready for use. If you bought frozen sticks, then you just need to defrost them.

Do I need to cook crab sticks for stuffing

Some types of crab sticks unwind very well. Smart cooks took advantage of this property and came up with many recipes where some kind of filling is wrapped in an unfolded crab stick. But not all sticks turn out to be neatly unfolded even in a well-thawed form. Such species should be dipped in salted boiling water for several minutes.

Expert - Andrey Mosov, Head of the Roskontrol Expert Direction.

Is there crab in crab sticks?

No. Both sticks and crab meat in packs are just imitations of it. This can be understood immediately by the price. A standard package of crab sticks (200-250 g) is sold from 40 rubles. And the same amount of real crab meat - from 900 rubles. The main ingredient of the sticks is minced surimi, the content of which is from 25 to 60%. Together with it, the composition contains water, starch, vegetable oil, egg white, salt, sugar and natural or identical food additives (thickeners, flavors, dyes, flavor enhancers).

Surimi itself is prepared from white fish with a minimum fat content: mackerel, pollock, hake, blue whiting. In fact, surimi is a concentrated protein from fish meat, obtained from fresh fillets, cleaned of blood, fat and enzymes.

The more stuffing, the better the texture and taste of the sticks. On the packaging of the correct crab sticks, it must be written that this is an “imitation”.

How are they prepared?

White fish fillets are crushed and washed for a long time under cold water - until only undissolved proteins remain. Further, all moisture is removed from this mass. The output is a tasteless mass, to which salt, spices and sugar are added. As well as preservatives (sorbic acid - E420, pyrophosphates - E450), glutamic acid, phosphates, carrageenan thickener - otherwise the product will not be stored. After that, red stripes are created on the meat using dyes E160c (paprika extract) or E120 (carmine or cochineal extracted from insects). They can also add a special bleach to make the meat look more attractive, titanium dioxide. By the way, E120 can cause allergies in some consumers.

After painting, crab sticks pass through the hob, the temperature of which reaches 100 ˚C.

How much can be stored?

After opening the package, the sticks live in the refrigerator for a maximum of 24 hours. Actually, the shelf life of crab salad with mayonnaise does not exceed a day. Then you can get poisoned.

Is there any benefit?

Yes. They contain sodium, calcium, phosphorus, iron, potassium, zinc, iodine. Moreover, crab sticks are rich in vitamins B₁ and B₂. Surimi contains methionine, which improves the process of wound healing and has a positive effect on fat metabolism. Crab sticks are low-calorie - they contain no more than 100 kcal per 100 g of product. Approximate protein content - 6 g, carbohydrates - 10 g. But they cannot be considered an equivalent replacement for fish in the diet due to the large number of additives.

Impurities that are added to crab sticks are less useful: egg powder increases the proportion of protein in the product, and starch allows you to increase the volume and elasticity of crab sticks.

Do you need to boil before eating?

No. This is a ready to use product. Additional heat treatment can spoil the taste, because the sticks have already gone through it before.

Is crab meat safe?

A recent examination (see table) of crab meat showed that in all tested samples of popular brands (Vici, Russian Sea, Meridian / Snow Crab, Santa Bremor, D (Dixie) in one or another To a lesser extent, there are food additives such as dyes (carmines, paprika extract), stabilizers (sodium polyphosphate, E450, E452), emulsifier (E471), flavor enhancers (monosodium glutamate) and a moisture-retaining agent (polyphosphate).

All products are safe, but in some cases they have drawbacks.
Provided by NP "Roskontrol"
The product that received the lowest rating from the organization.

But at the same time, all samples, according to the examination, are safe in terms of microbiological indicators.

The presence of these additives does not mean that the manufacturer has violated the law. But experts are convinced: the less additives in the product, the better it is. In addition, the choice "by composition" depends on how important the presence or absence of these ingredients is for the manufacturer.

Despite the availability and low cost of crab sticks, there are numerous recipes for this product, and it must be admitted that they are very attractive and, most importantly, delicious. Most simple recipes- this is a huge number of salads with crab sticks. For example, the familiar salad with crab sticks and corn. Not a single modern feast can do without it. But dishes from crab sticks are not limited to salads. There are very interesting recipes Judge for yourself: crab stick roll, stuffed crab sticks, crab stick cutlets, fried crab sticks, crab stick tartlets, battered crab sticks, etc.

Due to their original and not very bright taste, crab sticks go well with most products, which allows chefs to invent various dishes even more actively. For example, crab sticks with cheese, pita bread with crab sticks, tomatoes with crab sticks, rice with crab sticks, squid with crab sticks and others have appeared.

Everyone knows that there is no crab meat in crab sticks. But they are so skillfully prepared from surimi minced fish, and at the same time they turn out so appetizing that they deservedly received the name. Delicious crab sticks have become the basis of many dishes due to their ease of use in cooking and excellent taste. Crab stick appetizer is a great quick and original solution for any table. Crab sticks do not need heat treatment, however, some recipes provide for their frying. Crab sticks in batter or just fried crab sticks are proof of this, and they turn out great.

Try for yourself how quickly and easily you can cook any dish of crab sticks. The recipes for these dishes are varied and numerous. For example, cook any salad with crab sticks, you can come up with a recipe yourself, since this product responds to any culinary innovations. And one more thing: take a look at the photos of crab stick dishes. Their photos are so colorful and appetizing that it is impossible to pass by these recipes.

The main advice if you cook crab sticks is that the recipe with a photo should become your guide in the kitchen;

High-quality sticks easily unfold into leaves, do not crumple or tear, even slightly springy;

Buy crab sticks from well-known large manufacturers, they do not use artificial dyes and have the most natural, and therefore useful composition components;

Crab stick dishes are served with sparkling and dry white wines;

The calorie content of a natural product does not exceed one hundred calories per hundred grams of crab sticks, so dishes from them are considered dietary;

If among the composition of the components on the packaging of the sticks “surimi” does not appear at all, then you must understand that these crab sticks are made from soy protein or starch. You will not be poisoned by them, but there is no special benefit there, and their taste will cause you conflicting feelings;

Take a look at the shape of the sticks: if they are wrinkled or cracked, then the technology was most likely violated during their production, or they were stored incorrectly;

Do not be lazy to check the expiration dates and storage conditions. Chilled sticks are stored at temperatures from minus 1 to plus 5 degrees.

Crab sticks in Russia fell in love almost immediately. Most likely, the main role here was played by the fact that they can be cooked quickly: after all, this is not even a semi-finished product, but a completely ready-to-eat product.

Mostly, salads are prepared from crab sticks - and our hostesses liked to cook salads back in “Soviet” times, and with whole basins, but there are many other dishes that are also prepared quickly and taste good. Of course, the name of the product, “crab” sticks, also had a certain impact on consumers, but it was like that at the very beginning.

What are "crab sticks"

Now it’s already clear to everyone that crabs have absolutely nothing to do with it, but they are already used to the product, they learned how to cook a lot delicious meals, especially since the price of sticks is low, and the shelf life is long. After all, we are used to eating sausage without meat, so why not eat crab sticks without crabs?

Crab sticks are sold today in any store, and although not all buyers look at the composition of this product when buying, still many people have doubts and questions. Consumers are interested in what crab sticks are made of, whether their use is harmful, and of course, which manufacturers' products should be bought and which ones should be discarded. You can find out about the nutritional value of crab sticks if you still look at the back of the package - and absolutely everything should be listed there.

History of crab sticks

Who and when invented crab sticks? Of course, the Japanese did it - after all, they always come up with a lot of new and interesting things, and then the whole world uses it and wonders: wow! Crab sticks, in general, were invented by the Japanese a long time ago, at the beginning of the 12th century. More precisely, then the Japanese began to make white minced meat from fish, calling it “surimi”.

The then semi-finished products were prepared from surimi: koloboks, sausages, etc. These foods were then fried, boiled or baked using their own Japanese seasonings. Most of all, the people loved "kamaboko" - dense fish balls.

Time passed, and the Japanese began to try to export this product, but the market did not accept it. In Western countries, it has been said that surimi balls are like soap-flavored rubber, and even dogs won't eat them.

And so, in the 70s of the XX century, everything quickly changed, and dramatically: the product from surimi became loved by consumers of the entire civilized world. What is the secret of such phenomenal success?

The fact is that it was at this time in the food industry different countries food additives began to be widely used: dyes, flavors, flavor enhancers and other fruits of scientific achievements. And then the surimi product, previously understood only by the Japanese, turned into exotic “crab” sticks for consumers in many countries - an imitation of crab meat. In America, Europe and Russia, crab sticks are especially popular, but in Japan everything is calm, as before - of all products made from surimi, crab sticks account for only 10%.

Probably, in the 12th century, much better quality fish was used to make surimi, and it was certainly environmentally friendly. However, today surimi is not made from the best types of fish: it is usually haddock, blue whiting, pollock, hake, perch and other white fish. The fish fillet is washed, ground, and then, to remove excess moisture, it is passed through a centrifuge.

It turns out a light mass, to which salt, sugar and starch are added - this is surimi. I must say that Russian food industry enterprises rarely prepare surimi themselves: they buy it abroad - in Canada, the USA, Argentina and other countries, and crab sticks are prepared on the spot.

Many other ingredients are added to surimi: vegetable oil, vegetable and egg protein, purified water, starch, stabilizers, flavors, thickeners, flavor enhancers, dyes - for example, carrageenan or carmine, so that the sticks have an attractive red color. It turns out that only 45% of minced fish remains in the product - at best, since usually there is no more than 25% of it, which is considered a completely normal ratio. The product packaging does not indicate the percentage of ingredients at all, but you still need to read the composition. Today, consumers already know that the ingredients that appear first on the list make up the bulk of the product, so if the word "surimi" is first, then the sticks are of acceptable quality and they can be bought.

If this word is in second place, the amount of fish in the product is minimized, and when it is not on the list, then there is no fish at all, but there is only starch, soy protein and various substitutes. Such sticks are hardly worth buying, of course, if you are not completely indifferent to what you eat.

As for the quantity food additives, then you can’t get away from them - without them there are simply no crab sticks. Another thing is that Russia still allows those harmful additives that have long been banned in countries that care about the health of their citizens. Additives such as E450, E420, E160, E171, which can cause allergies and chronic diseases, have long been banned in the EU countries, and they are actively used in our country.

Many manufacturers and even experts try to convince the consumer that chemical additives in a small amount will not harm health. Perhaps, if you do not take into account that we constantly buy products in our stores, in which there are more than enough such substances, and crab sticks are added to almost all salads, replacing other ingredients with them - because it turns out cheaper.

In any case, the purchase decision is made by the consumer, but there is one more thing to remember. The microbiological contamination of the product is much more dangerous than the content of "chemistry" in it, especially since crab sticks are most often not subjected to heat treatment before use. So it is better to buy products from well-known manufacturers in vacuum packed than cheaper bulk options.

How to choose crab sticks

What crab sticks are worth buying? Of course, you need to pay attention to appearance: sticks should be neat and beautiful, look appetizing, be juicy and elastic, similar to crab meat. Dry, frozen and devoid of elasticity, the sticks are not worthy of attention, like those sold from the freezer, where the temperature is below -18 ° C, since their taste qualities and, moreover, any value are completely lost.

You can not freeze crab sticks again: such a product can be determined by the presence of ice and snow in the package, and also refuse to buy. The sticks should be evenly and neatly colored on one side, and all information about the manufacturer, expiration date and storage conditions should be written on the package.

Crab sticks: harm or benefit

Count crab sticks useful product not worth it: all vitamins, minerals and healthy fats disappear when cooking surimi, only fish protein remains. And yet, their dishes remain popular. One of these dishes is crab sticks “under a fur coat” (although usually herring is cooked “under a fur coat”).

It is necessary to hard-boil 5-6 eggs and separate the whites from the yolks. Grate the whites and lay in an even layer in a deep plate, lay finely chopped onion on top and processed cheese, grated on a fine grater. grated butter(50 g) lay on the cheese, and cover with a layer of light mayonnaise on top. Cut the sticks into thin circles, and then unfold to make “noodles”, and lay them on the mayonnaise in an even layer. Top - grated green apple, another layer of mayonnaise and grated egg yolk.

Crab sticks and children

And about something else.

Some parents are very pleased when their young children eat crab sticks just like that, for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and even love them more than sweets. It is known that the child's body is more susceptible to "chemistry", and gets used to it faster, so it turns out something like a food addiction. This applies not only to crab sticks, but also to all products that contain chemical food additives.

Parents believe that if pediatricians do not specifically warn them about this, then there is nothing to fear. It is worth remembering that doctors are mainly engaged in the treatment of diseases, but parents should deal with the health of children. So it’s better for adults to eat crab sticks themselves if they want, and for kids to cook dishes from real fresh fish.