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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Comments
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I have made this recipe several times now and it always turns out perfect. I was nervous about the crab cakes falling apart when I put them in the fridge but no worries – after an hour or more in the fridge they stayed together when I fried them. This is one of those recipes my husband says can never be experimented with or changed.
Hi,
This looks good. If I have 2 lbs of crab meat, should I double all the other ingredients?
Thanks!
Yep – hope you enjoy!
Have made numerous crab cake recipes.This recipe,first time making this one.Chilled them for hours and they didn’t form into shapeable patties.Fell apart into many pieces.Were very wet.I don’t like too much filler but this was definitely a lack of enough filler or 2 eggs is one too many.
Hi Jeff, Sorry you had a problem with these holding together! The nature of crab meat makes the crab cakes a little delicate, but they should hold together. It may be that your crab lumps were too big. I know it’s a shame to break up lump crabmeat, but I do find that smaller lumps hold together better.
I added three pieces of chopped cooked bacon. It was great! Didn’t do the tartar sauce.
Tried the crab cake recipe but did not make the tartar sauce. The crab cakes were easy to make and were very good. Fried them in oil in a cast iron skillet and they browned up perfectly. They looked as good as they tasted. I used “expired” Old Bay so that that spice was probably a bit understated but I don’t think it hurt the taste too much. I’d give it 5 stars but I rarely rate anything “perfect”. This was close.
My wife is from Delaware and she is not shy at critiquing my crab cakes. I made her this recipe for her birthday, and she said, hands down, these were the best she’s ever eaten. My family and I agreed. I recommend using whole grain dijon mustard, as my wife thinks the turmeric in ground dijon makes the cakes bitter, and I think she’s right. Also, follow the recommendation to break up the lumps with jumbo lump crab meat to keep the cakes from falling apart. I added just a splash of sweet pickle juice to the tartar sauce to bump it up, and it worked. You were right about the French green beans with shallots as an accompaniment. Perfect!
Can i use canned crab meat instead of fresh crab meat? I wasn’t able to find fresh crab meat. If so, should I use 1 lb total as stated in the recipe?
Hi Myrna, these are definitely best with fresh crab meat but canned will work (and yes, you’ll need 1 pound). Hope you enjoy!
I used canned crab meat as well if it wasn’t for the saltiness it would have been perfect I would suggest leaving the salt out if using meat from the can. It would be good to put this as a note in the recipe.
Hi Jen, I’ve tried this recipe using fresh crab meat from Costco & they were superb! but I can’t find them nowadays where we are so can I use canned crabmeat instead? if so, would I need to adjust the amount of crab meat versus fresh crab meat? the canned ones I have are 170 grams each.
Thank you!
Hi Tory, these are definitely best with fresh crab but canned will work. And I believe you’ll need to use just under 3 cans. Please LMK how they turn out!
Love it and wouldn’t change a thing, just wondering if you can add some shrimp to the crab cakes, or is that just too much?
Thanks,
D
Hi Darla, glad you like these! I’ve never put shrimp in these so I can’t say for sure, but I think it would work. I would just make sure that you keep the ratios the same (so cut back on the crab and replace it with the same amount of shrimp). Please LMK how they turn out if you try them!
Best crab cakes we’ve ever had; the crab is really the star, as it should be. This is my new go-to recipe for crab cakes.