This no-fuss crab cake recipe has lots of flavor (and lots of crab) in every bite. Crab patties are pan-fried until crispy on the outside and tender inside.
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You’ll LOVE These Crab Cakes Because…
- They’re easy to make with lump crabmeat or canned crab.
- Each bite is meaty and flavorful with bright herbs and a zesty citrus twist.
- They have a perfect crisp golden brown finish from a quick pan-fry.
- These crab cakes are great as appetizers, side dishes, or the main course.
Choosing Crab for Crab Cakes
For the best flavor, use fresh crab meat or lump crab meat (often sold in a jar near the seafood counter). Lump crab has bigger pieces, but canned crab works too.
No matter which you use, pick through the meat first and remove any shell bits or cartilage.
Other Ingredients
- Seasoning: Dijon mustard, a hint of Worcestershire, and Old Bay seasoning. Fresh herbs add great flavor.
- Breadcrumbs: I use very little filler, just enough to bind it together. Panko with a little bit of mayo is my favorite choice for the best texture. You can replace the breadcrumbs with crushed saltine cracker crumbs.
Crab Cake Variations
- Add 1 to 2 tablespoons finely diced red bell pepper or green onions.
- Add a pinch of cayenne or Cajun seasoning for gentle heat.
- Try mini crab cakes for appetizers and shorten the cook time.
How to Make Crab Cakes
- In a large bowl, whisk mayonnaise, egg, mustard, and Old Bay seasoning.
- Add the remaining ingredients (recipe below). Toss very gently so you don’t break up the crab too much. Form into patties.
- Chill crab cakes and cook them in a large skillet until lightly browned.
Serve with a squeeze of lemon juice and your favorite dipping sauce. Try homemade tartar sauce, remoulade sauce, or garlic aioli.
Storing, Freezing, and Reheating
- Fridge: Store cooked crab cakes in an airtight container and refrigerate up to 3 days.
- Reheat: To make them crispy again, reheat them in a dry saute pan on medium heat or in the air fryer.
- Freeze: Freeze cooled crab cakes for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge for the most even results, then pan-fry or air fry to reheat.
Leftover crab cakes can be chopped and added to a crab salad, or mixed into a cheesy crab dip.
What to Serve with Crab Cakes
Did you make these easy Crab Cakes? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound lump crab meat
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 large egg beaten
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- ½ cup Panko bread crumbs unflavored
- 1 ½ tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt or to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- ¼ cup canola oil
- lemon wedges for serving
Instructions
- Check the crab meat for any hard and sharp cartilage, remove, and discard.
- In a bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, beaten egg, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and Old Bay seasoning.
- Add crab meat, bread crumbs, parsley, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Gently fold to combine, being careful not to break up the crab.
- Gently press to shape into 6-8 crab cakes using ⅓ cup each, then place on a plate. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Heat the oil in a large nonstick over medium heat. Cook the crab cakes 3-5 minutes per side or until golden brown.
- Serve immediately with tartar sauce and lemon wedges.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Main Course, Seafood
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Just watched your hash brown breakfast casserole video. I would love to try it, but can’t seem to find the recipe.
Can you help me?
You can find the Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole Recipe here.
Can you substitute salmon for the crab?
Hi Diana, we have a delicious salmon patties recipe that would be delicious for that. If you try salmon in this crab cakes recipe let us know how it turns out!
Trying this recipe at my sons request for crab cakes. It looks awesome after combining ingredients. Refrigerate them till morning for his dinner on Sunday. I am sure he will love them. They look to be super moist. Also very meaty
We’re going to try your recipe, but will add some finely chopped celery for some crunch. They sound wonderful!
Celery sounds like a wonderful addition Kathleen! I hope you adore the crab cakes!
it look delicious and i must say i am going to make this for my wife tonight. Thanks for the lovely idea.
I hope your wife loved them!
Where do you find crab meat thats reasonably priced?
Hi Elle, we have found it at a decent price at our local grocery store.
What brand do you recommend for those that don’t have access to fresh crab meat?
If you have a favorite I would go with that one. Otherwise, I just try to purchase high-quality crab meat for this recipe since it’s the primary flavor. Enjoy Portia!
Everything looks so delicious.
It is so tasty Peggy, enjoy!
What’s with all the recipes with canola oil? It’s the worst oil you can put in your body! I would use olive oil or butter
You can certainly use another type of oil if you’d prefer. I choose canola oil due to the high smoke point and the neutral flavor.
This is the best crab cake recipe I have ever tried! These turned out better than any I have ever gotten in a restaurant. We use a little less lemon zest, because we don’t usually use lemon on our seafood very often, and a full tablespoon made it a bit too lemon-y for us. Otherwise, it was absolutely PERFECT. I didn’t save or print the recipe, because I thought it would be just another one like the rest. I searched and searched until I found it again, because it definitely is NOT like all the rest. This is the BEST!
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe Kelly! You have made my day!
Holly I’m thankful for you and your recipes. The recipes are delicious and mouth watering.Thank You for your time and your work on the recipes.
Thank you for your kind comment Don, I’m so glad you’ve found some great recipes to enjoy!
Being a DC seafood snob- I make it a sport to eat crab cakes whenever on any menu. What you have shared here reminds me of a very very talented chef that left Baltimore and moved to Key West FL to share his crab cake there too- and it was a huge hit.
This recipie is right up there gurl- If not very very close!
I ate it standing up in the kitchen while I fried the rest.
I made my own version of a jalapeño mayo instead of tarter- yumms.
For a home fry/try- this IS hands down a keeper. Bravo.
As they say: rotation rotation rotaion!
Thanku-
I love the idea of a jalapeno mayo, sounds perfect! So glad you loved them and thank you for your kind words!
This recipe is easy and SO delicious! I don’t usually put much, if any, lemon on my seafood, tho, so I’ll be putting a little less lemon zest in next time. But they tasted amazing! And this is such an easy recipe, without a ton of filler. This is my new go-to recipe for crab cakes. :D
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe Kelly!
You mentioned cilantro and lemon in the description, but listed basil in the ingredients and instructions…
Sorry for the confusion, I’ve used both cilantro and parsley in this recipe with great results. Either will work.
Great recipe! Love the developed flavors!
Thank you Django!
Excellent recipe!!! I am a huge fan of going out for crab cakes BUT NOW…..fo get about it! (said like my Italian Uncle) Love all the ingredients and it was easy. Thank you for your mad skills and I will be taking full credit Kidding, have already shared your site!
I am so glad you loved them Lannette, we love these crab cakes too!
Can these be baked in the oven, if so what temp and how long. Thanks
I haven’t tried baking these. I’d suggest trying at 375°F for 25-30 minutes (and flip half way through cooking). Let us know how it goes!
What a lovely recipe! Made these as my husband loves crab and have tried several blah recipes out there! I made half of the recipe crab half of it substituting canned pink salmon as some prefer salmon to crab. They were wonderful with perfect balance of seasoning to meat. Definitely a keeper, the other crab cake recipies got tossed! Thank you for a great meal, made your tarter sauce and cucumber dill salad as well! 5☆’s
I am so glad you loved them! That sounds like a great addition Janis!
Great recipe. Easy to make and moist and delicous crab cakes! I substitute yogurt for the mayo.
So glad you enjoyed them Joel!
I would probably be the only one to eat these..can the left over cakes be frozen either before cooking or after?
Yes, the crab cakes can be frozen before cooking for about 1 month. I would recommend defrosting them before cooking.
My husband loves crab cakes, and I have been looking for a recipe ~ this looks perfect! Thank you! And thanks for all of the wonderful recipes you post! :)
You’re welcome Diana! Enjoy!