The Weekly Feed: Pinchy Edition

Dish of the Week: Soft shell crabs
Where: Proof

It has been soft shell crab season for a few weeks now. Most of them are coming up from North Carolina at present, but the Maryland ones should be in season soon. One of the best versions around town is at Proof. Chef Haidar Karoum serves them fried with a cucumber slaw and a creamy chili garlic dressing. Karoum has a great ability to seamlessly adapt Asian flavors into more modern interpretations without making them seem kitschy or hackneyed. This dish is a perfect example. The cucumber slaw is a quick sweet pickle with jalapeño, reminiscent of the pickled vegetables found on banh mi sandwiches. The dressing hints at sriracha. With a nice French baguette, this dish would make a superlative banh mi.

If you're looking for other fresh soft shell options, you can check out the soft shell crab salad at Mio during lunch, which features crispy artichokes. Or pick up a sandwich from Gillian Clark's General Store in Silver Spring (just watch out for the slightly hard ones).

Fresh, live soft shells are also popping up in markets, though if you're squeamish go for the frozen ones or you'll have to ... cut their faces off while they're still alive. But to quote DCist's former beer writer Eric Denman, "If she can watch you cut the face off a crab and doesn't leave, she is probably the one."