Crab cakes can serve as appetizer or main course

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Crab cakes can serve as appetizer or main course

Posted Jun 7, 2012
By Pat Trew

A crab cake is an American dish composed of crab meat and various other ingredients, such as bread crumbs, milk, mayonnaise, eggs, yellow onions, and seasonings. Occasionally other ingredients such as red or green peppers or pink radishes are added, at which point the cake is then sautéed, baked, or grilled and then served. Crab cakes are traditionally associated with the area surrounding the Chesapeake Bay, in particular the state of Maryland and the city of Baltimore.

The two most common styles of Maryland crab cakes are known as Boardwalk and Restaurant. Boardwalk crabcakes are typically breaded and deep-fried, and are often filled with stuffing of various sorts and served on a hamburger bun. Restaurant crab cakes, which are sometimes called gourmet crab cakes, are often prepared with no filler, and are composed of all-lump crab meat served on a platter or open-faced sandwich. Many restaurants that offer Maryland crab cakes will offer to have the cakes fried or broiled.

Meat from any species of crab may be used, although the meat of the blue crab, whose native habitat includes the Chesapeake Bay, is traditional and considered the best tasting. In the Pacific Northwest and Northern California, the endemic Dungeness Crab is a popular ingredient for crab cakes, and the cakes are prepared at many well-established restaurants throughout the region.

Crab cakes are popular along the coast of the Mid-Atlantic States, the Gulf Coast, the Pacific Northwest, and the Northern California coast, where the crabbing industry thrives. Crab cakes vary in size from no bigger than a small cookie to as large as a hamburger. They are sometimes served with a sauce, such as a remoulade, tartar sauce, mustard, or ketchup.

Recipe for crab cakes

These crab cakes are delicious and can be served either as an appetizer or a main course.

Although the ingredients are very basic, they taste quite rich. If you plan to serve them as a main course, keep the rest of the meal simple.

In working out this recipe, I discovered that the best crackers to use are those called Club crackers, Toppables or butter crackers. The name varies with the brand.

This type of cracker adds more flavour than plain soda crackers, and, because they are not highly seasoned, their own taste doesn’t over power the other ingredients.

You’ll need about 15 crackers, finely crushed, for the recipe.

CRAB CAKES

1 tbsp. olive oil or vegetable oil

1/4 cup celery, finely diced

3 slices onion, finely diced

1/3 cup mayonnaise ( I used low-fat mayonnaise and it was fine)

1/8 tsp. dry mustard

1/4 tsp. paprika

a tiny sprinkle of garlic powder

120 gm can of crabmeat, drained and rinsed

2/3 cup plus 1 tbsp. of finely crushed cracker crumbs such as Club or Toppable crackers

1 1/2 tbsp. olive or vegetable oil for cooking the crab cakes

In a non-stick medium frying pan, heat the first amount of oil.

In this, cook the celery and onion just until the onion is transparent. Remove the pan from the heat, but don’t wash it. You’ll use it again to cook the crab cakes.

In a medium bowl, combine the cooked celery and onion with the mayonnaise, seasonings and crab.

Stir in 1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp. of the cracker crumbs. Mix just enough to combine the ingredients.

The crab mixture is moist and messy, so wear latex gloves for the next step.

Spread the remaining 1/3 cup of cracker crumbs on a large plate.

Using a 1/4 or 1/3 cup measure, scoop out enough mixture for each crab cake. Shape the crab mixture into 10 small cakes for appetizers, or into 6 cakes 2- 3″ round for a main course. The crab cakes should be just under 1″ thick.

Cover both sides of the crab cakes with the crumbs, and set them aside.

In the same frying pan that you used for the celery and onion, heat the 1 1/2 tbsp. oil over medium-low heat.

Use a spatula to transfer the crab cakes to the pan so that they don’t fall apart The larger ones particularly have a tendency to do this.

Cook on medium-low until the bottom of the crab cakes is golden brown. Turn them over, and continue cooking until the second side is nicely browned. Watch that they don’t burn.

This makes 10 appetizer servings, or 6 main course servings, enough for 2-3 people.

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