Maryland Crab Cakes with Quick Tartar Sauce
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A Maryland staple, these crab cakes are made from fresh lump crab meat and just enough filler to bind the crabmeat together.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
When you live in Maryland, eating Chesapeake blue crabs and crab cakes is practically a religion—and, in my family, we are all loyal devotees. Every summer, we hit all of our favorite crab shacks, from local joints all the way to the Eastern shore, where you can look out over the bay and put your feet in the sand.
I’d never attempt making steamed blue crabs at home. Live crabs, giant steamers—yikes! But I do often make crab cakes, which are just as delicious and easier to prepare (not to mention eat). The key is using fresh lump crabmeat and just enough filler to bind the crabmeat together. I love them with tartar sauce, but you could also serve them with lemon wedges or cocktail sauce. Don’t forget the peel-and-eat shrimp, hush puppies, and cornbread.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Maryland Crab Cakes
It’s very important to use fresh, good-quality lump crab meat. Look for fresh-off-the-boat crab meat, which is sold in a clear plastic container, usually resting on ice in the seafood department. It’s expensive, but one pound is enough to make six generous crab cakes (or 12 mini ones).
If fresh lump crab meat is not available, the second-best option is refrigerated crab meat, such as Phillip’s, which is readily available year-round. Avoid shelf-stable canned crab meat, which contains additives that affect the taste and texture of the meat. (For a less expensive alternative to crab cakes, or when fresh crab meat is not in season, try fresh salmon cakes.)
Note that celery is not traditional in Maryland crab cakes, but I love the little crunch it adds; feel free to leave it out if you’re a purist.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Make the Crab Cakes
To begin, combine the eggs, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire, Old Bay, salt, celery, and parsley in a bowl.
Mix well to combine.
Add the crab meat (be sure to check the meat for any hard and sharp cartilage) and panko.
Gently fold the mixture together until just combined, being careful not to shred the crab meat.
Shape into 6 large crab cakes (about ½ cup each) and place on a baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. This is really important to help the crab cakes set.
Preheat a large nonstick pan to medium heat and coat with oil. When the oil is hot, place crab cakes in the pan and cook until golden brown, about 3 to 5 minutes.
Flip and cook 3 to 5 minutes more, or until golden. Be careful as the oil may splatter.
Make the Tartar Sauce
Combine the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, sweet pickle relish, red onion, lemon, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
Whisk well, then cover and chill until ready to serve.
Video Tutorital
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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.
Ingredients
For the Crab Cakes
- 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
For the Quick Tartar Sauce
- 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
Instructions
For the Crab Cakes
- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean-up.
- 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.
- 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.
For the Quick Tartar Sauce
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Note: The nutritional information does not include the tartar sauce.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 2 crab cakes
- Calories: 299
- Fat: 14 g
- Saturated fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 9 g
- Sugar: 1 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 32 g
- Sodium: 1141 mg
- Cholesterol: 275 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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The poster is right use just enough filler to hold together And This May be a good or even a great recipe, but Is not a true Maryland recipe, Marylanders do not waste the extraordinary natural flavor of crab cakes with sauces, tarter of anything else, nor do they put celery, pinko bread crumbs, or Dijon mustard in their them
I’ve been craving crab cakes ever since returning from my vacation at the Maryland shore. This recipe was just perfect! I left out the salt, though. The salt in the Old Bay was enough for me. I had no idea they were so easy to make. Thank you!
Excellent
I made these crab cakes for my Sister-in-law last Christmas (it was requested). I followed the recipe except for the Dijon mustard, which I don’t like, so I don’t keep it on hand. They turned out GREAT! They held together very well, the refrigeration step helps with that. They tasted excellent! I got rave reviews, thanks for such an easy recipe.
The best crab cake recipe I’ve made! It’s now my go to recipe.
Utterly delicious and just about perfect! However there’s a slight variation I’ll offer here for anyone who might be interested, that more closely follows the famously magnificent local house made tradition for crab cakes down here on Maryland’s Lower Eastern Shore. Our Somerset County is the home of Crisfield the “Crab Capital of the World.” Anyway…Just substitute original flavor Ritz crackers finely ground to dust, ideally using a mortar and pestle, for the yummy and trendy Panko breading (which is also excellent). The particles of Ritz dust are too small for any identifiable texture of filler, so they do nothing but hold the cake together, almost as if using self-rising flour. Also, if one has eaten a lifetime of local crab cakes here on the Shore, the subtle Ritz flavor imparts that last little bit of “Downey Ocean, hon” authenticity. I need to note that Ritz is not “better” than Panko but rather merely different, with each wonderful in their own way. It might even be that with enough experimentation the difference comes down to how well each variety goes with whatever else will fill the plates for a particular meal. I’ll be using this Panko recipe again and again because it’s the ONLY one I’ve found online that comes up to the default or baseline recipe I’ve used for years, from an ancient cookbook by the legendary Mrs. Kitching of Smith Island on Tangier Sound. Thank you Jenn Segal!
I am making these to enjoy for dinner and to freeze for another time, how would you suggest heating these from a frozen state?
Hi Kristen, I haven’t frozen these, so I can’t say for sure, but I’d suggest reheating them in a 350°F oven for about 15 min. Enjoy!
Despite committing many recipe crimes: (1) didn’t have celery (2) didn’t have Old Bay (3) substituted Greek yogurt for mayo (4) used imitation crab…
These were STILL amazing! I can’t imagine how good they must taste with all the right ingredients.
Thank you so much!
Hi there,
I will be making these as an appetizer. If my dinner guests arrive at 7pm, how early can I pan fry these?
Thanks!
Zed
Hi Zed, I’d say 30 minutes before and keep warm in a low oven. Hope everyone enjoys!
Hello Jenn,
I follow your recipe except for not adding the celery, but my crab cakes turns out really salty. Do you know why and how to fix it? I still have 6 uncooked crab cakes. Thank you for your help.
Hi Kelly, Sorry to hear these are too salty for you! I think the best way for you to salvage them is to recombine the remaining crab cakes in a bowl and add more of all the other ingredients with the exception of the salt and Old Bay seasoning. Hope that helps!
Hi Jenn. I did like what you told me and it came out pretty good. Thank you so much for your help. I was o happy to see you replied.