The Best Recipes In The World: Mario Batali's Spaghetti with Crab, Saffron, and Chiles

Mario Batali's Spaghetti with Crab, Saffron, and Chiles

MAKES	3 TO 6 SERVINGS
TIME	15 MINUTES

This dish hails not from Sicily or Liguria, but from the gifted minds of Mario Batali and Mark Ladner, executive chef at Del Posto in New York.

	Salt to taste 1 pound linguine or other long pasta ½ teaspoon minced red habanero chiles 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons chopped roasted cipollini onions ½ teaspoon saffron threads 1 pound fresh lump crabmeat, picked over for cartilage 3 teaspoons diced seeded jalapeno 1 heaping tablespoon minced fresh cilantro
1.	Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add salt, and cook the pasta until it is tender but not mushy, about 10 minutes.
2.	While the pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce. Put a large saucepan over a medium heat, add the habanero, 2 tablespoons of the oil, and the onions, stirring frequently. Then add the saffron and 3 tablespoons of the pasta water, stir, and add the rest of the olive oil. Add the crabmeat, stir, then immediately remove the pan from the heat. Add the jalapeno and stir.
3.	Drain the pasta, reserving about a cup of the pasta water, and toss it with the crab sauce. (If the mixture is dry, add a little more of the pasta water.) Add the parsley, toss again, and serve.