Rachel Khoo: Shell out... a decadent feast for Christmas Eve

Having a Malay Chinese father and an Austrian mother, and living in Paris, I’m hardly a slave to tradition. However, when I want to be decadent I find my inspiration in France, the country that unashamedly embraces it. At Christmas the French have a knack for nailing the tone of traditions. And when it comes to Christmas Eve, like the Italians, they feast on fish. This Christmas Eve dish has decadence written all over it, yet as an antidote to the hearty gastronomic onslaught of Christmas Day, it is a light, punchy, palate-preparing ‘salad’. It might impact on your finances, but it promises to leave your figure intact.

Crab and lobster with shaved fennel and orange salad

Serves 4

Preparation time: 20 minutes

3 small fennels

1 orange, segmented

1 pink grapefruit, segmented

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 small bunch watercress

2 whole cooked lobsters, flesh removed from the shell

200g cooked crab meat, white and brown mixed (roughly 2 crabs, but save yourself the hassle and buy it ready to use)

For the dressing:

2 heaped tbsp chopped dill

4 tbsp Greek yoghurt

2 tbsp crème fraîche

Juice of ½ lemon

1 tsp red wine vinegar

1 tsp pomegranate molasses

Salt and pepper

Mix all the dressing ingredients together in a bowl. Top and tail the fennel, removing the tough outer layers. Halve it lengthways and cut out the tough core. Using a mandoline, slice thin shavings of the fennel into a salad bowl. Add the segments of orange and grapefruit. Season and drizzle with olive oil. Divide the watercress between four plates. Pile the fennel and citrus salad evenly on to each plate. Add chunks of the lobster and scatter the crab meat evenly between the plates. Dress with dollops of the dressing and season to taste.