🧈🧀 Butter Cheese Crab Recipe + Guide 🦀
By admin / November 2025
If you enjoy rich, creamy flavours with a hint of savoury sweetness, then Butter Cheese Crab will quickly become your new favourite. At Justs Seafood Restaurant in Taman Impian Emas, Johor Bahru, our chefs combine fresh live mud crab with butter, cheese, and fragrant curry leaves to create a luxurious dish that feels like a celebration in every bite.
🌟 Why Butter Cheese Crab Is So Popular
Butter Cheese Crab is one of those modern seafood creations that Malaysians instantly fell in love with. It has the same comforting richness as butter crab, but with an extra layer of creaminess from the cheese. The result is a smooth, velvety sauce that clings to every part of the crab shell — perfect for dipping, scooping, and wiping clean with bread or rice.
Compared to spicy dishes like Chili Crab or aromatic options like Kam Heong Crab, Butter Cheese Crab focuses on creamy indulgence with a gentle savoury taste that both adults and children enjoy.
🦀 Ingredients You’ll Need
For 2–3 servings:
🐚 Seafood
- 2 medium-sized mud crabs (螃蟹), cleaned and chopped into pieces
🧈 For the Butter Cheese Sauce
- 80–100 g butter
- 3–4 slices processed cheese or 40–60 g grated cheese (Cheddar or similar)
- 200 ml evaporated milk or full cream milk
- 2–3 tbsp cooking cream (optional, for extra richness)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 small onion or shallot (finely chopped)
- 1–2 sprigs curry leaves
- 1–2 fresh bird’s eye chillies (optional, for mild heat)
- 1 tsp sugar
- Salt to taste
🔥 For Pre-Frying the Crab
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 tbsp cornflour (optional, light dusting before frying)
👨🍳 Step-by-Step Cooking Method
- Prepare the crab: Clean the mud crabs, remove gills and unwanted parts, crack the claws gently, and cut the body into sections. Pat dry with a paper towel.
- Lightly fry the crab: Heat oil in a wok. Lightly dust the crab pieces with cornflour (optional) and fry until the shells turn bright orange and the meat firms up slightly. Remove and set aside.
- Melt the butter: In the same wok or a clean pan, melt the butter over low to medium heat. Add garlic, onion, and curry leaves. Stir-fry until fragrant and the edges of the curry leaves become slightly crisp.
- Add milk and chillies: Pour in the evaporated milk or full cream milk. Add bird’s eye chillies if you like a little heat. Keep the flame low and stir gently to avoid curdling.
- Incorporate the cheese: Add cheese slices or grated cheese into the milk mixture. Stir continuously until the cheese melts and the sauce becomes thick, smooth, and creamy.
- Season the sauce: Add sugar and a pinch of salt. Taste and adjust the seasoning until you get a balanced savoury, slightly sweet profile.
- Coat the crab: Return the fried crab pieces into the pan. Toss gently so that each piece is well coated in the butter cheese sauce. Let it simmer for about 3–5 minutes to allow the flavours to fully absorb into the crab meat.
- Serve immediately: Once the sauce is thick, glossy, and clinging beautifully to the crab, turn off the heat. Transfer to a serving plate and drizzle any remaining sauce on top.
👩🍳 Chef’s Tips from Justs Seafood
- Low and slow heat: When working with milk and cheese, keep the heat low to prevent the sauce from splitting or curdling.
- Choose the right cheese: Processed cheese slices melt easily and give a smooth texture, while grated Cheddar adds a deeper cheesy flavour. You can also mix both.
- Use fresh mud crab: At Justs Seafood, we only use live mud crabs so the sweetness of the meat balances the richness of the butter and cheese.
- Adjust richness: If you prefer a lighter sauce, use more milk and less cheese. For a truly indulgent version, add a bit of cream at the end.
🍽️ Perfect Pairings with Butter Cheese Crab
Butter Cheese Crab is rich and creamy, so pairing it with the right side dishes helps balance the meal:
- Steamed white rice or garlic fried rice
- Fried mantou buns to dip into the sauce
- Lightly stir-fried vegetables such as kailan or baby bok choy
- Peppery Fish Maw Soup to add warmth and contrast
- Crab Vermicelli if you’re planning a full crab-focused feast
💛 Why Customers Love Our Butter Cheese Crab
Many regulars at Justs Seafood Restaurant describe our Butter Cheese Crab as “super creamy” and “perfect for sharing”. It is a favourite choice for birthdays, celebrations, and family dinners because it is not too spicy and feels luxurious without being overwhelming. The sauce is often the star — customers love pouring it over rice or dipping mantou to enjoy every last drop.
❓ FAQs About Butter Cheese Crab
🧀 1. Is Butter Cheese Crab spicy?
No, Butter Cheese Crab is naturally mild and creamy. We sometimes add a few chillies for aroma and a light kick, but you can request it without chilli if you prefer.
🦀 2. What type of crab do you use?
We use live mud crab (螃蟹) for Butter Cheese Crab. The meat is firm, sweet, and absorbs the butter cheese sauce very well.
👶 3. Is this dish suitable for children?
Yes, Butter Cheese Crab is very popular with families and children because it is rich, cheesy, and not overly spicy. Just let us know your preference when ordering.
🍤 4. Can I order Butter Cheese Prawns instead?
Yes, if you enjoy this flavour but prefer prawns, you can ask our team about Butter Cheese Prawns or other similar dishes available at Justs Seafood.
🍽️ 5. What other crab flavours go well in a combo?
Butter Cheese Crab pairs well with Marmite Crab, Salted Egg Crab, and Black Pepper Crab if you want a variety of tastes on the table.
🏝️ Enjoy Butter Cheese Crab at Justs Seafood Restaurant
Ready to try our signature Butter Cheese Crab? Visit Justs Seafood Restaurant at Taman Impian Emas, Johor Bahru, and enjoy freshly cooked mud crab prepared in a rich, creamy butter cheese sauce by our experienced chefs.
Discover more crab specialties like Chili Crab, Kam Heong Crab, Marmite Crab, and Salted Egg Crab on our crab dishes section.