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If you’re looking for an authentic Maryland crab cake recipe, this is the one to make. Crisp and golden on the outside and packed with sweet lump crabmeat inside, these crab cakes taste just like the ones you’d get on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
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’re all loyal devotees. We even have a running rule: never order crab cakes outside of Maryland. It’s partly a joke, but it comes from growing up on the real deal, where sweet lump crabmeat is the star and filler is kept to a bare minimum. That’s exactly how I make these Maryland crab cakes at home, with just enough binder to hold them together and let the crab shine.
“This is the best crab cake recipe I’ve ever tried! Absolutely delicious and loaded with all crab, hardly any fillers.”
What You’ll Need To Make Maryland Crab Cakes
- Eggs: Help bind the crab cakes so they hold together when cooked.
- Mayonnaise: Adds moisture and richness to the crab cakes. Use a good-quality brand like Hellmann’s or Duke’s for the best flavor.
- Flavorings: These classic Maryland seasonings enhance the sweet crab without overpowering it.
- Celery (optional): Adds a bit of crunch to the crab mixture—nontraditional but a nice touch. Skip it if you’re a purist.
- Fresh Lump Crab Meat: Look for it fresh in the seafood department, not canned—see “Buying Crabmeat” below for what to look for.
- Panko breadcrumbs: Just enough to help bind the mixture while keeping the crab cakes light. Unlike traditional breadcrumbs, panko creates a delicate texture without weighing the crab cakes down.
- Vegetable oil: For pan-frying the crab cakes until crisp and golden brown.
- Quick Tartar Sauce: A quick mix of mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, sweet pickle relish, red onion, fresh lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Buying Crabmeat
The quality of the crabmeat makes all the difference in this recipe. Look for fresh, refrigerated crabmeat sold in plastic containers in the seafood department, or ask at the seafood counter. If fresh isn’t available, pasteurized refrigerated crabmeat, such as Phillips, is a good alternative. Avoid shelf-stable canned crabmeat.
Choose lump crabmeat rather than jumbo lump. Jumbo lump is more expensive and best saved for dishes where the large pieces can shine on their own. In crab cakes, those oversized chunks can actually make the mixture harder to hold together. Backfin crabmeat is a good substitute, but avoid claw meat, which has a stronger flavor and finer texture that won’t give you the same classic Maryland-style crab cake.
Before mixing, gently pick through the crabmeat to remove any bits of shell or cartilage, taking care not to break up the lumps.
How To Make Maryland Crab Cakes
Make the binder: Whisk together the eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, Worcestershire, Old Bay, salt, celery, and parsley in a large bowl. Make sure everything is evenly mixed; once the crab goes in, you’ll want to handle it as gently as possible to keep the lumps intact.
Fold in the crab and panko: Add the crab meat and the panko. Gently fold the mixture together until just combined. Be careful not to overmix—the goal is to keep the crab in generous pieces rather than shredding it into small flakes.
Shape and chill: Form the mixture into six cakes, then place them on a baking sheet and refrigerate for at least an hour to help them firm up. Don’t skip this step—it makes a big difference in helping the crab cakes hold their shape when cooking.
Cook the crab cakes: Heat a large nonstick pan over medium heat with a thin layer of oil. Once hot, add the crab cakes and cook until golden brown on both sides, flipping carefully with a thin spatula. They’ll pop and sizzle, so watch for splatters.
Make the tartar sauce and serve: While the crab cakes cook, whisk together the quick tartar sauce and chill until ready to serve. Plate the crab cakes with the sauce on the side and enjoy!
Make-Ahead, Storage & Freezing
You can shape the crab cakes up to 24 hours ahead, cover tightly, and refrigerate until ready to cook. The tartar sauce can also be made up to 2 days in advance. Leftover cooked crab cakes will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
To freeze, store uncooked crab cakes for up to 3 months, then thaw overnight in the refrigerator before cooking. Reheat cooked crab cakes in a 350°F oven until warmed through to help keep them crisp.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I bake or broil these crab cakes? You can, but I don’t recommend it. Pan-frying gives these crab cakes the crisp, golden crust and rich flavor that make them truly special. Baking or broiling will cook them through, but the texture won’t be nearly as delicious. If you’ve gone to the trouble of buying good crab meat, I think it’s worth spending a few extra minutes pan-frying the cakes.
Why are my crab cakes falling apart? Crab cakes usually fall apart if they aren’t chilled before cooking, are flipped too soon, or don’t have enough binder to hold them together. Be sure to refrigerate the shaped crab cakes for at least an hour before cooking, and wait until the first side is nicely browned before flipping. A thin fish spatula makes turning them much easier.
Crab cake Recipe Video Tutorital
Crab Cake Recipe (Maryland Style)
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 flat-leaf parsley
- 1 lb 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 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice, to taste, from 1 lemon
- 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.
Notes
- 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.
- The nutritional information does not include the tartar sauce.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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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What To Serve with Crab Cakes
I love serving these crab cakes with homemade tartar sauce and a few lemon wedges, but cocktail sauce is delicious too. For a classic seafood spread, add peel-and-eat shrimp, hush puppies, coleslaw, or cornbread. If you’re keeping things simple, a green salad or some roasted vegetables make lovely sides.
More Crab & Seafood Recipes You’ll Love
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These are absolutely wonderful! We cannot wait to make them again!
I’ve made these multiple time to rave reviews. We have company coming tomorrow and I’m making them again. Is there a side dish that you recommend other than corn?
Thank you. And, great interview on Powell’s Books!
Thank you, Renee! I think these go really well with any simple green vegetable, like these green beans or the butter braised Brussels sprouts in my cookbook — and definitely cornbread.
Hi Jenn,
These delicious crab cakes have thrilled guests on many occasions. All raves all the time. Guests are coming this weekend and I’m wondering if you recommend any specific side dishes to go with these? I serve them without a roll. Your corn muffins sound tempting but are they too sweet for this? Anything else? They may bring a tossed salad so that’s out. The roasted carrots in your book sound delicious too.
Hi Renee, so glad you like these crab cakes! The corn muffins would go nicely here and I don’t think they’re too sweet to be a natural pairing. The carrots would also be nice as would the French Green Beans with Shallots. Also, I have a feature on the website– for all main dishes, I suggest one or two sides that I think would pair nicely with them. To see what I’ve suggested, scroll to the top of the recipe page and, immediately under the recipe title, you’ll see a bar with several options, one of which says “pair with.” If you click on this, you’ll see the sides I’ve suggested.
If I cook them in the oven how long it will take and what temperature?
Hi Nancy, I’d suggest you use a combination of baking and broiling; bake them in a 350-degree oven on a lightly greased baking sheet for about twenty minutes, or until hot (and it’s not necessary to flip them). Then I’d slide them under the broiler for about a minute to get them golden brown on top. Enjoy!
OK. That does it. Best crab cakes since my trip to Maryland in 1976 (so many tries to get the perfect taste, alas). Now I HAVE to buy your book.
5 stars for EVERYTHING I tried that you posted.
And I am picky. Not to mention obsessed with cooking. Thank you Jenn!!!
I purchased fresh lump crabmeat and used your recipe. Fabulous, tastes like my Moms did years ago!
Followed your recipe without any deviation and it was a huge hit! Thank you for sharing!!!
Ok this sounds devine!
Wondering if I could substitute fresh grilled Salmon in place of crab meat? I rarely come across any decent crab…
Thanks Mel!
Hi Michele, I’d use this recipe instead for salmon.
Thank you Jen!
Your Salmon Cakes look just as devine…I could eat the whole plate 😁
All of your recipes and cooking tips are so wonderful. Thanks for all of the info and the time you use to prepare such lovely food.
I’ll review this every time you post it Jen. It’s my absolute go to recipe for any kind of “seafood” cake. I don’t use Old Bay… that’s the only difference. Well, depending on the palates these will be served to, I might add some finely chopped onions. Otherwise, this recipe works great as is for crab, flounder, cod, pollock, and salmon.
Another outstanding recipe, Jennifer. Great job!
Just wanted to say that I’ve been making this recipe for about a year now. With the exception of one modification, I follow your instructions to the last detail (which is unusual for me), and I get the best crab cakes ever. I make them for special occasions and for dinner guests. I’ve had compliments like “these are better than in any restaurant” and “these are the best I’ve ever tasted.” It’s a perfect recipe. (My one modification is to use 1/2 mayo and 1/2 greek yogurt. I do this only bc I don’t like mayo. I also do a different sauce for the same reason.) Thanks for another great recipe!