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Maryland Crab Cakes

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on October 9, 2012

Time

45 minutes, plus 1 hour chilling

Yield

Serves 4

Maryland Crab Cakes

Ingredients

14 saltines 1 pound lump crabmeat (see note), picked over for shells3 scallions, minced2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened2 tablespoons mayonnaise 1 large egg yolk 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 2 teaspoons hot sauce 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Before You Begin

Jumbo lump crabmeat is available at the fish counter of most grocery stores. If you can't find it, you can use pasteurized lump crabmeat.

Instructions

  1. MAKE CRAB MIXTURE Process crackers in food processor until finely ground. Dry crabmeat well with paper towels. Using rubber spatula, gently -combine crabmeat, ¼ cup cracker crumbs, scallions, melted butter, mayonnaise, egg yolk, mustard, hot sauce, and Old Bay in large bowl.
  2. SHAPE CAKES Divide mixture into 4 equal portions and shape into tight, mounded cakes. Press top of each cake in remaining crumbs. Transfer crumb side down to large plate and refrigerate, covered, for at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours.
  3. BROIL CAKES Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat broiler. Grease 8-inch square area in center of rimmed baking sheet with softened butter. Transfer crab cakes to prepared baking sheet, crumb side down. Broil until crab cakes are golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.
Maryland Crab Cakes

Maryland Crab Cakes

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

45 minutes, plus 1 hour chilling

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

14 saltines
1 pound lump crabmeat (see note), picked over for shells
3 scallions, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons hot sauce
1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1 lemon, cut into wedges

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

14 saltines
1 pound lump crabmeat (see note), picked over for shells
3 scallions, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons hot sauce
1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1 lemon, cut into wedges

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

14 saltines
1 pound lump crabmeat (see note), picked over for shells
3 scallions, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons hot sauce
1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1 lemon, cut into wedges

Test Kitchen Techniques

Why This Recipe Works

To get our Maryland Crab Cakes to form without adding too much binder, we dried the crabmeat with paper towels, which allowed us to use fewer crushed crackers. We found that broiling the crab cakes on a greased baking sheet allowed us to brown the cakes without flipping them.

Before You Begin

Jumbo lump crabmeat is available at the fish counter of most grocery stores. If you can't find it, you can use pasteurized lump crabmeat.

Instructions

  1. MAKE CRAB MIXTURE Process crackers in food processor until finely ground. Dry crabmeat well with paper towels. Using rubber spatula, gently -combine crabmeat, ¼ cup cracker crumbs, scallions, melted butter, mayonnaise, egg yolk, mustard, hot sauce, and Old Bay in large bowl.
  2. SHAPE CAKES Divide mixture into 4 equal portions and shape into tight, mounded cakes. Press top of each cake in remaining crumbs. Transfer crumb side down to large plate and refrigerate, covered, for at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours.
  3. BROIL CAKES Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat broiler. Grease 8-inch square area in center of rimmed baking sheet with softened butter. Transfer crab cakes to prepared baking sheet, crumb side down. Broil until crab cakes are golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.

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