Crab & Watermelon Salad

Crab and Watermelon Salad, The 2nd Floor, Dallas

As summer heats up this recipe from Executive Chef J Chastain at The 2nd Floor, Dallas, Texas will cool you down and satisfy your taste buds. The Second Floor shares its name with its location in The Westin Galleria in North Dallas. This stylish eatery offers contemporary American food with a sophisticated ambiance. With a minimalist dining room, a chic bar and a menu that ranges from Truffles and Eggs to pizzas to Scottish Salmon and a Valrhona Chocolate Bomb, covering breakfast, lunch and dinner – there is something for everyone.

About the chef: beginning his restaurant career at age 15 as a waiter, J Chastain discovered right away that he was better suited in the kitchen instead of the dining room and from then on, he never left working in the kitchen. With a Bachelor’s degree in Hotel Restaurant Management from The University of North Texas and an Associates’ degree in Culinary Arts from Johnson and Wales University, Chastain confidently leads the massive kitchen at The Second Floor at the Westin Galleria.
He has worked under some of the country’s most accomplished chefs and spends most of his time at work, doing everything from scheduling to menu development. He demands a lot from himself saying that when it comes to his work, he is always “striving for quality, drive, and resourcefulness.”
Though it happens rarely, when he’s outside the restaurant, Chastain loves drinking great beer and wine, restoring old cars and off-road biking.

The 2nd Floor
13340 Dallas PKWY
TX, 75240
972 450 2978
 

Crab and Watermelon Salad is served at The 2nd Floor for $16.

This recipe makes 4 restaurant servings.

Crab and Watermelon Salad Ingredients:
¼ watermelon, washed and rind removed
12 oz. fresh jumbo lump crabmeat
16 oz. fava beans, blanched in salted water and shelled
4 oz. really good extra virgin olive oil
4 tsp. chopped thyme and parsley
¼ head freshly shaved fennel
2 oz. micro greens or other mild lettuce
Sea Salt, Black Pepper and Sugar to taste

Steal This Recipe® Step by Step Instructions:
Put the watermelon through a juicer or blend it and strain to remove pulp. You will need approximately 12 oz. of juice.
Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and sugar depending on how ripe the watermelon is. Chill this mixture.
Mix the fava beans in a mixing bowl with 1/3 of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Divide into 4 chilled salad bowls in a small pile in the center of the bowl.
Mix the crabmeat in a mixing bowl with 1/3 of the olive oil, the chopped thyme and parsley, and season with salt and pepper. Divide into the 4 salad bowls and place on top of the fava beans.
Mix the fennel and the micro greens with remaining olive oil.
Season to taste and top off crabmeat with this salad.
Pour chilled watermelon juice around the outside of the salad and serve.