Halabos na Curacha

The simplest way of cooking seafoods such as crabs, shrimps and of course the curacha is by halabos or hilabos which is cooking it by just a small amount of water with a little salt. You can taste the natural flavor of seafood by cooking it that way specially the curacha which is already tasty and full of flavor by itself without using a lot of seasonings. Actually we just in tried to cook this halabos na curacha because I can’t think of a quick recipe to cook this. There aren’t many recipes of curacha you can find so I think this is the best I could think of. I was planning to make a ginataang curacha with string beans and squash but my dear wife insisted to cook halabos.

If you ever wonder what is curacha, it is a Chavacano delicacy and found only in Zamboanga (within the Philippines of course). You will also find it strange looking because of the shape which resembles a lobster and crab that you will think it’s a crossbreed. It has also other name such as redfrog crab or spanner crab because it really looks like a red colored frog when you see it crawl. Another noticeable characteristic is the color reddish pink which looks like it is already cooked. But the color will become more intense when it’s cooked, the shells are bright red.

Print Recipe

How to Cook Halabos na Curacha

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time25 minutes mins

Course: Seafood Recipe

Cuisine: Filipino

Servings: 4 servings

Author: Manny

Ingredients

• 1 kilo curacha redfrog crab or spanner crab
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 1 Tbsp. sea salt or rock salt
• 1 cup sprite or 7-Up

Instructions

How to cook Halabos na Curacha:

• Wash the curacha in running water and use toothbrush to clean the shells if necessary. Drain.
• Put the curacha in a cooking pot or medium size wok. Sprinkle with salt, pour the sprite or 7-up and butter.
• Bring to a boil than simmer until the curacha is cooked and almost all the liquid has evaporated.
• Transfer to a serving dish and serve.