Recipe For Crab Cakes

Maryland Crab Cakes with Quick Tartar Sauce

A Maryland staple, these crab cakes are made from fresh lump crab meat and just enough filler to bind the crabmeat together.

Prep: 30min

Total: 40min

Yield: Makes 6 large crab cakes

Serving Size: 2 crab cakes

Nutrition Facts: servingSize 2 crab cakes, calories 299, Fat 14 g, Carbohydrate 9 g, Protein 32 g, Saturated Fat 3 g, unSaturated Fat , Sugar 1 g, Fiber 1 g, Sodium 1141 mg, Cholesterol 275 mg

Ingredients:

• 2 large eggs
• 2½ tablespoons mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann’s or Duke’s
• 1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup finely diced celery, from one stalk
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
• 1 pound lump crab meat (see note below)
• ½ cup panko
• Vegetable or canola oil, for cooking
• 1 cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann’s or Duke’s
• 1½ tablespoons sweet pickle relish
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon minced red onion
• 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice, to taste
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instruction:

1. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean-up.
2. Combine the eggs, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire, Old Bay, salt, celery, and parsley in a large bowl and mix well. Add the crab meat (be sure to check the meat for any hard and sharp cartilage) and panko; using a rubber spatula, gently fold the mixture together until just combined, being careful not to shred the crab meat. Shape into 6 cakes (each about ½ cup) and place on the prepared baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. This helps them set.
3. Preheat a large nonstick pan over medium heat and coat with oil. When the oil is hot, place the crab cakes in the pan and cook until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Be careful as oil may splatter. Serve the crab cakes warm with the tartar sauce.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, relish, mustard, onion, and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
5. Make-Ahead Instructions: The crab cakes can be formed, covered, and refrigerated a day ahead of time before cooking. The tartar sauce can be made and refrigerated up to 2 days in advance.
6. Note: If you can only find jumbo lump crab meat, you may need to break the pieces up a bit. If the clumps are too large, the crab cakes won’t hold together well.
7. Note: The nutritional information does not include the tartar sauce.

Best-Ever Crab Cakes

Crab cakes are always in the appetizers sections of fancy seafood restaurants, and it’s too easy to make this restaurant-worthy recipe at home.

Prep: 10min

Total: 30min

Yield: 8

Nutrition Facts: calories 2092 Calories, Fat 174 g, Saturated Fat 19 g, Trans Fat 0 g, Cholesterol 656 mg, Sodium 3656 mg, Carbohydrate 35 g, Fiber 4 g, Sugar 3 g, Protein 93 g

Ingredients:

• 1/3 c. mayonnaise
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp. hot sauce
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 lb. jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over for shells
• 3/4 c. panko bread crumbs (or saltines)
• 2 tbsp. freshly Chopped Parsley
• Canola oil, for frying
• Lemon wedges, for serving
• Tartar sauce, for serving

Instruction:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together mayo, egg, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire, and hot sauce, and season with salt and pepper.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together crabmeat, panko, and parsley. Fold in mayo mixture, then form into 8 patties.
3. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, coat pan with oil and heat until shimmering. Add crab cakes and cook, in batches, until golden and crispy, 3 to 5 minutes per side.
4. Serve with lemon and tartar sauce.

Crab Cakes

While developing this recipe, we looked at some of the best crab cakes we’ve eaten to ensure your crab cakes will have great crab flavor without falling apart.

Prep: 1h10min

Yield: Makes 8 large crab cakes

Ingredients:

• 1 pound jumbo lump crab meat
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Old Bay
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• Canola oil, for frying (or any neutral high-heat oil)
• Lemon slices, for garnish

Instruction:

1. [{‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Prepare the crab: Transfer the crab meat to a large bowl and pick through it to make sure there are no pieces of shell. ‘}, {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: “Add the mayonnaise, lemon juice, Old Bay, and mustard. Gently stir to combine. Add the panko and gently stir again. Some of the larger pieces of crab meat will inevitably shred—that’s okay; just try to keep as many intact as you can. Cover and refrigerate the mixture for at least 1 hour, or up to overnight, in the fridge.”}, {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘When you’re ready to fry, use your hands to divide the crab mixture into 8 round patties (firmly packed, about 2 ½ inches in diameter). Set a medium skillet over medium heat, and add enough canola oil to reach a ¼-inch depth. When the oil is between 350°F and 375°F, you can begin to fry the crab cakes. (If you don’t have a thermometer, you can sacrifice a small piece of a crab cake and add it to the oil in order to see how hot your oil is.) ‘}, {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Fry the crab cakes: Fry the crab cakes in batches to avoid crowding the skillet. Add the first round to the pan and cook for 3 to 4 minutes per side, until the crust is golden brown. Try to jostle the crab cakes as little as possible (they’re delicate). To flip as carefully as possible, I like using a fish spatula in one hand and a slotted metal spoon in the other. When the crab cakes are done, remove them to a rimmed baking pan lined with paper towels or a wire rack if you’d prefer not to use paper towels. ‘}, {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Repeat with the remaining crab cakes. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.’}]

The Best Crab Cakes

When we set out to make the “best” crab cakes, opinions in the test kitchen were strong and varied. But we could all agree on plenty of fresh, high-quality crabmeat with very little filler. After some tinkering, we created these decadent cakes—generously sized and highly seasoned—with plenty of lemon juice, fresh herbs and spices. The jumbo lump crabmeat is front and center, so splurge on the best and freshest you can find.

Total: 0 1h10min0

Yield: 8 crab cakes

Serving Size: 1 of 8 servings

Nutrition Facts: servingSize 1 of 8 servings, calories 527, Fat 44g, Saturated Fat 9g, Carbohydrate 11g, Fiber 1g, Sugar 1g, Protein 22g, Cholesterol 138mg, Sodium 1084mg

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds fresh jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage
• 1 1/2 cups panko
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup chopped chives
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons seafood seasoning, such as Old Bay
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Juice and zest of 1 lemon, plus more lemon wedges for serving
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup chopped dill pickles (about 2 whole pickles)
• 1 tablespoon capers, chopped
• 1 tablespoon minced chives
• Juice and zest of 1 lemon

Instruction:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. For the crab cakes: Gently fold together the crabmeat, breadcrumbs, mayonnaise, chives, Dijon mustard, seafood seasoning, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper and the juice and zest of one lemon in a large bowl. Refrigerate the crab mixture for 15 minutes to firm up; this allows the breadcrumbs to absorb some of the liquid, helping the crab cakes bind together.
3. Meanwhile, make the tartar sauce: Combine the mayonnaise, dill pickles, capers, chives, zest and juice of 1 lemon in a medium bowl and mix until combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
4. Scoop heaping half cups of the crab mixture and pat into 2 1/2-inch wide patties. Lightly press them together so they do not fall apart while cooking. You should have 8 patties.
5. Heat 3 tablespoons unsalted butter and 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the crab cakes to the pan and cook until golden, about 2 minutes, then flip using a flat metal spatula. Continue to cook until lightly golden, about 1 1/2 minutes then transfer the pan to the oven. Cook until the crab cakes are completely heated through, about 10 minutes.
6. Serve the crab cakes with the tartar sauce and lemon wedges.

OUR FAVORITE CRAB CAKES RECIPE + DIPPING SAUCE

FAQ

Is it better to pan fry or bake crab cakes?

What keeps crab cakes from falling apart?

How to make Gordon Ramsay crab cakes?

What is the best type of crab for crab cakes?

What makes crab cakes taste good?