I am searching for the best crabcake recipe for some crabmeat I bought today. Prior attempts based upon Internet searches have been OK but not great. I have lots of fresh herbs in my garden if necessary. Oregano, Thyme, Basil, Shiso, Parsley, Rosemary, Cilantro, Chives, and Scallions. Any ideas?
This is a former clientās recipe:
2 lbs. jumbo crab meat
1/2 c. diced celery
1/2 c. lg. diced onion
1/2 c. diced pimento
6 slices stale bread, without crust, soaked in water & squeezed dry
1 extra lg. egg
4 T. Old Bay seasoning
1/2 t. Curry powder
1 tbsp. herb seasoning
SAUCE:
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1 tsp. spicy brown mustard
Salt & pepper to taste
Remove shell from crab meat, being careful not to break the lumps, saute celery and onion in butter. Mix seasoning mix, sauce, bread and egg together. Toss crab meat with seasoning. Add celery, onion and pimento, toss. Add sauce mixture and toss. Scoop 4 ounce portions onto greased sheet pan. Press into cake form, broil until golden brown (about 6 to 8 minutes). Makes 12 crab cakes. To serve 6.
I have done similar but started with cubed white bread, softer the better as it almost dissolves when cooked.
For me, great means adding as little to great crab so it holds together while cooking. Some binders including egg mayo, and maybe breadcrumbs (I usually have panko in house) I want some Worcestershire sauce in the background along with some old bay seasoning. Parsley or green onions along with some red pepper for color work for us.
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This is the recipe we used at the seafood restaurant I worked at years ago. Not many ingredients, lets the crab take center stage.
1 lb lump crab
1 egg
3/4c mayo
1T chopped parsley
Dash of cayenne pepper
Dash of Old Bay
Dash of Dry Mustard
3 shakes of Worcestershire sauce
Breadcrumbs
Combine first 8 ingredients, roll in breadcrumbs and fry on medium heat. Works best if they chill in the fridge a few hours before cooking.
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This. Iām in the Mel and Rob camp, just enough to hold it together; may need some bread crumbs in the mix and I like more than a dash of Old Bay, but you can always sprinkle it on at the table.
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Same here, I prefer minimal binding agents and focus on the crab. Excellent suggestions and Iām going to incorporate tweaks to existing recipe. Will report back.
Separate question (apologies in advance for thread drift): what do people think about using other types of crab (e.g. snow, king, dungeness) for cakes, and what other methods do you like to use? I have only tried snow crab meat in cake fashion which worked okay. I have a combination of frozen king crab part and legs, looking for new ideas besides butter and lemon. I have made a remoulade sauce for dungeness crab meat and use various vegetables as the platform for staging crab and sauce.
I really like this recipe: Steven's Guide & Recipe to Perfect Crab Cakes | Tom Douglas Restaurants
In the online recipe he calls for 2 tablespoons of a crab cake mix. No idea what that is. In his book āI Love Crab Cakesā the recipe does not call for that. So just omit the 2T. mixā¦ the rest of the recipe is verbatim from his book.
For me it has all the right herbs, minimal binder to let the crab shine, and I like the panko crust. I also love the cooking technique of starting on the stove and then moving to the oven. They are always perfect.
Note: I highly recommend not skipping the chill time in the fridge.
The chill step really helps. At the restaurant I worked at the crab cakes that rested in the fridge for an hour or two worked just fine but the ones that rested in the fridge overnight always cooked up way better and easier.
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The crab cake mix can be found on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Rub-Love-Crab-Douglas-Ounce/dp/B000VBSKL4 There are a bunch of ingredients. Old Bay is probably a reasonable baseline for the spice mix.
from Maryland here where they take crab to an art form. The best Iāve ever made was the Faidley recipe you can find on the internet. It comes from an old Baltimore restaurant in the Lexington Market. There are different recipes depending on which part of Maryland you are from. The Baltimore versions have always been my favorites. (Donāt buy swimmer crab, must be blue crab from the Chesapeake, NC, or LA)
My favorite crab cake recipe is from Donald Linkās excellent cookbook āReal Cajunā. Similar concept to others mentioned above - very little binder, and in fact in his recipe he talks about the cakes nearly falling apart when you plate them, which is my experience. Iāve given up all other recipes after making these a few times.
All I can say is the fewer ingredients the better. You want the crab to be front and center not all the binders. Cakey crab cakes suck IMO. Crushed saltine crackers do the trick without being obtrusive.
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Scott:
Do you think the ratio is correct of 1 lb crab to 4 cups breadcrumbs?
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I donāt have precise measurements, so this is my best estimate:
1 lb. Dungeness meat
2 egg whites, whipped to soft peaks
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tbsp. dijon mustard
2 small shallots, minced
1/4 cup parsley, minced
juice from half a lemon
salt and pepper
1 cup Panko, with more for dredging the outside
I sweat the minced shallot in butter, let it cool, and add it to the rest of the ingredients. Form the cakes, refrigerate thoroughly, then coat them again in panko before pan frying in olive oil and butter.
Uhhhhhh no.
One could do that and it would still be good but I think you could get away with 1 egg and 1/4 cup mayo. Probably less panko too.
shrug emoji
Like I said, estimates. I donāt use yolk in these, as Iāve found they can add an āegginessā to them more than Iād like. The mayo has plenty of fat.
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If youāre a glutton for punishment, I enjoyed this recipe from Thomas Kellerās Ad Hoc cookbook.