Cooking and dressing crab is not a job for lazy cooks, so if you blanch at the thought of boiling the crustacean before scraping out the contents and removing all traces of shell from the meat then you should probably turn the page now. If, however, you'd like to broaden your repertoire or simply hone your skills, this is one for you. Live brown crabs are readily available from good fishmongers, and while this recipe mostly follows a traditional path the fact the crab is served warm sets it apart from the typical way to serve dressed crab.

Brown crab and cheddar gratin

Serves 4

4 brown crabs (about 1kg each)

10g parsley

1 shallot

50g soft butter

5g mustard

1 lemon

50g cheddar

40g fresh white breadcrumbs

Set the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas mark 4.

Bring a large pot of water to the boil and season it with plenty of salt – the objective is to mimic the salt-to-water ratio of the sea.

Place the crabs in the freezer for 30 minutes before cooking each one in the boiling water for 10 minutes. Once cooked allow them to steam dry and cool slightly.

Next place the crab on a board with its top shell facing down and its underside facing you. Break the legs and claws from the crab and smash the shells to reveal the white meat. Do this as cleanly as possible to minimise the amount of shell within the meat. Pick the white meat from the shells, trying not to break it up too much, and place it in a small bowl.

Once all the meat is removed from the shells place a knife in between the crab's top shell and body and twist the blade to release the shell from the body. Discard the body and feathery gills (known as the dead man’s fingers). Now scoop out the brown meat from the sides of the back shell and place it in the bowl with the white meat. Clean the back shells with warm water and set aside.

Season the crab meat lightly with salt. Chop the parsley and shallot finely and stir them into the meat along with the butter and mustard. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice into the crab mixture.

Now fill each crab shell with the crab meat. Grate the cheese finely and mix it with the breadcrumbs, then place the mixture on top of the crab meat. Place the crab shells on a baking tray in the oven for eight minutes until golden brown and heated through and serve.