The Little Big Cup Arnaudville Crab Cakes Recipe
The Little Big Cup in Arnaudville is a culinary destination that blends the food traditions of the Caribbean and Cajun Country, the respective cultures of its two founders.
Crispy, savory crabcakes, seasoned just right with a little liquid crab boil
When Sanjay Maharaj opened The Little Big Cup with his then business partner Kevin Robin in 2012, the duo envisioned a coffee shop where the Arnaudville community could gather. The space would include a kitchen to be used as a catering space. In time, the concept grew and evolved, and The Little Big Cup morphed into a popular Cajun restaurant that keeps locals and visitors alike coming back again and again. Maharaj (born in the Caribbean islands Trinidad and Tobago) and Robin (a native of Arnaudville) couldn’t have come from two more distinct places, but their cultures combined seamlessly.
“I have always been passionate about food and the stories it tells,” says Maharaj. “Kevin would comment how our cultures had so [many] similarities. We spent countless hours in our grandfathers’ supermarkets serving the public and building bonds with them. This childhood experience inspired our journey and built a tremendous foundation to build our business.”
Maharaj credits his ex-partner with The Little Big Cup’s décor and many of the menu concepts, praising Robin’s vision, hard work and dedication. While Maharaj is now the sole owner, he continues to honor their respective culinary legacies.
“Food is such a huge part of the Cajun and Caribbean cultures,” says Maharaj, who says both he and Robin spent hours in the kitchen with their mothers and grandmothers learning how to cook with simple ingredients. “I remember the aromas and flavors of my mother’s kitchen was my first lesson in how food could evoke memories and emotion and bring family and friends together.”
Before calling Louisiana home, Maharaj lived in New York where he worked in finance. He cites swimming, family time and world travel as foundational pastimes in his youth that are still mainstays in his adult life. Added to that now, however, is photography. Maharaj admits to being the guy at the table taking quick snaps of the food before everyone digs in.
“Growing up, journeys around the world further exposed me to diverse culinary traditions, all which were the centerpiece in bringing people together,” says Maharaj. “The concept of The Little Big Cup has wonderfully turned out to be a ‘Cajun eatery’ where families and friends get together to laugh, celebrate and enjoy food — exactly what my memories were as a child.”
Crab Cakes
Prep time: 45-60 min
Cook time: 8 min
Yield: 12-16 crab cakes
Our kitchen manager [suggests] gently folding the crabmeat into the mixture to keep the lumps intact. Then chill the formed cakes before frying to help them hold their shape.
Filling
1 can backfin crab meat
1 egg
¾ cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons liquid crab boil seasoning
1 tablespoon dry crab boil seasoning
½ cup parsley, chopped (reserve some for garnish)
½ cup green onion, chopped
1 cup bread crumbs
2-4 ounces clarified butter (or more as needed)
Additional ingredients
Eggplant, sliced
- In a mixing bowl, add crab meat, egg, mayonnaise,
liquid and dry crab boil seasoning, parsley and onion and combine. Form mixture into patties
and set aside. - Heat 2 ounces clarified butter in a frying pan. Coat eggplant slices in bread crumbs and fry in butter until golden and crispy. Set aside. If using the same pan, discard butter and wipe out the pan. Heat 2 ounces clarified butter in a frying pan. Coat each crab cake patty on both sides in bread crumbs.
- Fry in clarified butter until bottom of crab cakes starts to brown, then flip and repeat.
- For each serving, place two slices of eggplant side-by-side on a plate. Add a crab cake on top of each slice of eggplant. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and drizzle clarified butter from pan on top.
Meet the Chef | Sanjay Maharaj
• MOST MEANINGFUL ITEM IN KITCHEN: In my kitchen currently is my ex-partner’s grandfather’s old boudin/sausage maker from the ‘60s. Every time I look at it, I reflect on how, even though food is evolving through research and technology, in the past, your heart and soul and hard work went into making and crafting food.
• MUSIC TO COOK BY: I am an ‘80s child, so ‘80’s music definitely is always in the background as I try to follow my mother’s footsteps in the kitchen and even when I turn the dishwasher on (I hate doing dishes!).
The Little Big Cup
149 Fuselier Road • Arnaudville • 337-754-7147 • thelittlebigcup.com • @TheLittleBigCup
