Crab Cakes

Great recipe! I had about a 1/2 lb of FL Stone Crab that I’d cracked and frozen, so I cut the recipe in half. I skipped the Worcestershire and salt, cut the Old Bay and Mayonnaise to about 3/4, and kept everything else the same. I put it in the freezer for about 15 min, then in the fridge for a 1/2 hour. I made 4 patties and brushed each side with olive oil and cooked with our range’s air fryer setting for 20-25 minutes at 400, till they started to crisp. Perfect consistency, not at all bready.

Fell apart too easily. Next time I’ll add panko to the mix and not just as a coating.

Really liked. We chose to bake instead of fry.

If I make with higher quality crab, use big chunks of crab and less sauce in the mix. And less old bay. Needs BIG BIG chunks of crab.

I used fresh blue crabs that had been swimming the morning before I cooked these, and these crab cakes were among the best I've ever had. I didn't have worcestershire sauce on hand, so I swapped low sodium soy sauce. Still superb. I paired with a lemon aioli modified from Catherine Saint Louis's almond flour crab cake recipe, where I subbed in store-bought mayo instead of whipping up the homemade version and added a dash of cayenne.

Because of the many comments about cooking method, I decided to try and compare two — pan fried in butter, and air fried. The air fryer version was far superior, imo. (390 for 10 minutes.). They held together better and the outside was brown but not of a different texture from the inside, as was the case with the pan fried batch. I highly recommend air frying. Easier, cleaner, and superior texture.

Omitted the Old Bay and the salt. Delicious! Really need to chill the mixture for a couple hours so it holds together in patties.

Made this with Dungeness crab. Can you believe we had leftover crab from NYE dinner? Only had a bit more than 4oz crabmeat so adjusted quantities accordingly, though left out the Old Bay (didn't have any) and added a pinch of chili/lime from Trader Joe's. It was wonderful (we also had dolmas to start and steamed broccoli and leftover Champagne.

I halfed this recipe because I was just using leftover Dungeness Crab, which rarely makes it after a crab night to be included in a recipe the next day, And is not cheap to buy picked. I took other reviewer’s suggestions including using about a third of the Old Bay and eliminating salt. That allows the sweet and natural flavor of the crab to come through. I also added red pepper and celery (both finely diced) which added quite a bit, including nice color!

This may be a dumb question, but how would this work with fish instead of crab (for a shellfish averse eater)?

Very closee to the recipe we use here in Baltimore, but use saltines to replace bread crumbs and panko. Also air frying is a modern option vs fry/broil and it works great.

I use less mayonnaise, about 1/4 cup, and add a little garlic - just one clove, a tablespoon of onion and a little lemon zest, along with a bit less Worcestershire sauce. If I am frying it, it's either ghee or bacon fat. No added salt, if you're using Old Bay, which is as already salty.

I make the cakes and put them on parchment paper on a cookie sheet, cover it lightly with plastic wrap and chill them for about an hour before putting them in the pan with hot oil - this really keeps the crab cakes from falling apart when they hit the oil, and makes it quite a bit easier to turn them over.

This is not a good recipe for crab cakes. It covers up the taste of the crab meat. A good crab cake is all about the jumbo lump crab meat you use. Everything else should enhance the crab cake. Only use 1 egg, mayonnaise, saltines crunched fine and a little melted butter. 1 pound of jumbo lump crab meat makes 4 crab cakes. Use fresh Maryland Jumbo lump crab meat if you can get it.

This is the basic recipe my mother (and I have used) since I can remember my first crab cake. BUT, for those of us who eschew mayonnaise? Miracle Whip gives it the zing my taste-memory requires.