Crab meat is delicious, versatile and widely available canned or fresh. Whether you have some leftover from a seafood feast or found a good deal on canned crab, you may be wondering what to make with it. From appetizers and main dishes to salads and more, crab works well in all kinds of recipes. Here are 25 of the best recipes to make with crab meat.
Crab is a tasty and luxurious type of seafood that can take your meals from boring to gourmet. However, you may not know the best ways to use up leftover crab from a restaurant meal or make the most of canned or fresh crab you have on hand. In this article, I’ll share 25 of my favorite recipes using crab meat so you can get inspiration for how to use it in delicious ways.
25 Recipes to Make with Crab Meat
1. Crab Cakes
Crab cakes are a classic way to use up crab meat. This recipe combines fresh crab with breadcrumbs egg, lemon juice and spices. Then the crab mixture is formed into patties and pan fried until golden brown. Enjoy these crab cakes on their own in sandwiches or alongside dipping sauces.
2. Crab Salad
For a light salad, mix crab meat with celery, onion and a mayo-based dressing. Season it with salt, pepper, lemon juice and Old Bay seasoning. Serve the crab salad over lettuce or scoop it into avocado halves.
3. Crab Dip
Crab dip is perfect for parties and potlucks This hot crab and artichoke dip combines crab with cream cheese, artichoke hearts and parmesan. Bake it until bubbly and serve with crackers or bread
4. Crab Rangoon
These crispy appetizers are filled with a combination of crab and cream cheese. Fried wonton wrappers give them a crispy exterior. Enjoy crab rangoon as finger food or serve them with duck or sweet and sour sauce.
5. Crab Soup
You can use crab to elevate seafood soups and chowders. This creamy crab bisque has a tomato base seasoned with Old Bay. Top bowls of this bisque with oyster crackers.
6. Crab Casserole
In this cheesy crab bake, lump crab meat is combined with cheddar, breadcrumbs, sherry and eggs. After baking, it develops a golden browned top. Serve crab casserole with salad and garlic bread.
7. Crab Stuffed Mushrooms
Give appetizer mushrooms a flavor boost by stuffing them with crab. Fresh mushroom caps are filled with a crabmeat stuffing with garlic, celery, panko and lemon juice. Then they’re topped with cheese and baked.
8. Crab Egg Rolls
For an upscale twist on egg rolls, use crab as the filling. Wrapped in egg roll wrappers and fried, these crab egg rolls are crispy outside with a savory crab filling within.
9. Crab Cakes Benedict
Elevate crab cakes by serving them on English muffins with poached eggs and hollandaise sauce for a crab cake eggs benedict. It combines the richness of crab cakes with a classic breakfast dish.
10. Crab Louie
This West Coast salad features crab meat topped with hard boiled eggs, tomatoes, avocados and an amazing dressing. To make a Crab Louie, mix the dressing, then pile salad ingredients atop lettuce.
11. Crab Frittata
Jazz up frittata with fresh crab meat. This crab frittata has a light egg base studded with veggies like zucchini, red peppers and green onions. Dollops of crab meat add extra richness.
12. Crab Alfredo
For a simple pasta dish, add crab to alfredo sauce. Combining crab with creamy, garlicy alfredo sauce makes a fast and impressive meal. Toss it with fettuccine or linguine.
13. Crab Cakes with Remoulade
Remoulade is a creamy, spicy sauce that pairs perfectly with crab cakes. Top crab cakes with this easy homemade remoulade sauce for added flavor and moisture.
14. Maryland Crab Soup
This classic East Coast soup features simple vegetables simmered in broth with crab meat. Finish Maryland crab soup with a splash of heavy cream or thicken with a roux.
15. Crab Empanadas
Empanadas are Latin American baked pastries. Fill empanada dough with a crab filling for a fusion appetizer. Bake crab and cheese empanadas until golden.
16. Crab Quesadillas
For easy crab quesadillas, spread tortillas with cheese then top with lump crab meat. Grill crab quesadillas until the cheese is melted and tortillas are lightly browned.
17. Crab Boil
A crab boil is a fun, hands-on seafood feast. Boil seasoned water with sausage and potatoes. Then add snow crab legs, shrimp, corn on the cob and seasonings to cook.
18. Coconut Curry Crab
Coconut milk makes a tasty base for crab curry. Sautee onions, ginger and garlic. Stir in coconut milk, crab and veggies. Season the curry with curry powder and lime juice.
19. Crab Ceviche
Marinating raw seafood in citrus creates ceviche. For crab ceviche, juice from lime and lemon “cooks” the crab, along with onion, peppers and cilantro. Chill it before serving.
20. Crab Fried Rice
Stir fresh crab meat into fried rice for an easy weeknight meal. This crab fried rice has a scrambled egg base with carrots, peas and green onions.
21. Crab Corn Chowder
Add sweet crab meat to corn chowder for bonus flavor. This creamy chowder gains richness from pureed potatoes and half and half.
22. Crab Cobb Salad
The classic Cobb salad comes to life with fresh crab meat. In addition to lettuce, tomatoes, bacon and egg, sprinkle chunks of crab for a tangy main dish salad.
23. Avocado Toast with Crab
Top trendy avocado toast with crab salad. Mash avocado over toast and add lemon-dressed crab salad for an elegant breakfast or light meal.
24. Crab Ceviche
For crab ceviche, marinate chopped raw crab in citrus juice and toss with cucumber, red onion, cilantro and chili peppers. The citrus “cooks” the crab for no-cook ceviche.
25. Crab Pizza
Pile fresh crab meat on pizza along with artichokes, spinach and Asiago cheese for a gourmet pie. Drizzle the crab pizza with lemon and chili oil after baking.
As you can see, crab can be used in everything from dip and soup appetizers to salads, pizza, pasta and more. I hope these 25 recipe ideas give you inspiration to use up canned or leftover crab meat. With its sweet, briny flavor, crab can instantly make meals more delicious. So next time you have extra crab on hand, try whipping up crab cakes, chowder, curry and more.
The Actual Best Crab Cake Recipe (From a Maryland Native)
Here in Maryland, crab cakes are a culinary staple. You’ll find them at just about every local restaurant or steakhouse, and of course, some are better than others. The worst ones are full of filler, fried, and dry. The best ones? They are loaded with crab meat, baked or broiled to perfection, and perfectly light and moist. This is exactly how I designed my own crab cake recipe!
Maryland Blue Crab is the star of this recipe (as it is in my Maryland crab soup). We’ll accent it with just a squeeze of lemon, Old Bay (of course!), and a bit of parsley. Keeping the ingredients simple is key here–there’s no need for a ton of flavorings when the crab tastes this good.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Very little filler! My crab cake recipe is made with mostly meat to allow the crab flavor to really shine! All of the additions support and add flavor to the meat, rather than overwhelm it.
- Authentic, Maryland-style recipe. We are known for our blue crab dishes (and our peach cake!) here in Maryland. As a native Marylander, I’m so proud of this recipe!
- Baked, not fried. This keeps the crab cakes lighter and more moist.
- Can be prepped in advance and baked later, if you prefer to make them one day and bake the next.
Besides the crab, my crab cake recipe uses just 10 additional ingredients. The crab is absolutely the star though!
- Lump crab meat. Jumbo lump blue crab meat is my preference for crab cakes, though you can also use lump or backfin crab meat if you absolutely cannot find jumbo lump. I talk more about this in the FAQ section below.
- Old Bay. You simply cannot make Maryland crab cakes without Old Bay! This seasoning is a staple in my cream of crab soup and just about every other Maryland crab recipe. It can be found on Amazon if you don’t have it in your local grocery store (I linked to it in the recipe card)
- Parsley. Fresh or dried will work. I include measurements for both, since fresh parsley is actually less potent than the dried version.
- Mustard. Today we’re using prepared yellow mustard. Just a teaspoon! Dijon mustard would also work.
- Filler. This helps to bind the crab cake together. I recommend plain panko or crushed saltines, though I find panko is a bit crispier. You could use breadcrumbs (I’ve even used my own breadcrumbs from sourdough bread), but I prefer the moister results that I get when using panko or saltines.
SAM’S TIP: Make sure to pick through your crab meat before using for any bits of shell.
This is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe and video please scroll down to the bottom of the post.
EASY Crab & Shrimp Bisque Recipe for Busy Weeknights! ⏰
FAQ
What does crab meat go with?
Crab roll, crab toast, crab melt, beignets, stuffed mushrooms, a dip or spread, crab rangoon, salads, filling for a roulade, omelettes, pasta, sushi…
What to do with crab meat besides crab cakes?
- 01 of 23. Crab and Shrimp Étouffée. …
- 02 of 23. Seafood Boil with Cajun Seasoning. …
- 03 of 23. Garlic Crab Pasta. …
- 04 of 23. Cioppino with Fennel and Saffron. …
- 05 of 23. Blue Crab Beignets. …
- 06 of 23. Crab Salad Sandwich. …
- 07 of 23. Crispy Crab Cakes with Tomato Butter. …
- 08 of 23. Cold Crab Spaghetti.
What do I do with leftover crab meat?
- Smoke your Crab. For a different approach to your crab leftovers, try smoking them. …
- Add it to a pasta. Crab meat is a well known topping for pasta and can create a well rounded dish when added to. …
- Make a dip. …
- Seafood Charcuterie. …
- Crab Stuffing. …
- Make it a salad. …
- King Crab Meat Recipes. …
- Crab Rolls.