Don’t you hate it when you go to a restaurant, order an expensive plate of crab cakes, to only realize that they probably used more bread crumbs than crab meat? These crab cakes don’t use fillers or bread crumbs, they emphasize the crab meat. you can be certain that your crab cakes will be bursting with sweet crab flavor and texture.
These crab cakes get a bit of heat by adding Harissa. Harissa is a North African hot red paste whose main ingredients are chili peppers (often smoked or dried) and garlic. It is a standard ingredient of North African cuisine. It’s not a crazy hot paste, but if you’re unsure, take a taste and adjust how much you’d like to use if you find it too spicy.
Crab cakes are fairly simple to make as long as you start with good quality real lump crab meat. Crab cakes are only as good (or bad) as the crab you use. I personally don’t have a problem with canned crab meat, but if you prefer, using freshly picked crab meat is certainly an option.
This recipe has just a handful of ingredients; lump crab meat, egg, scallions, mayo, harissa. pepper and butter for skilleting the cakes in. Plus lime wedges for garnish and to provide a hit of citrus.
Tips for making crab cakes
(1) If you have time, refrigerate them for at least 1 hour before cooking. This will help them maintain their shape when cooking.
(2) A non-stick skillet works best. Resist the urge to move or mess with the cakes while they are cooking or they will break into a hash-brown-like mess. Still delicious, but not exactly what we’re going for.
(3) If the crab meat pieces are too large, use your hands to break them up a bit, otherwise the crab cakes won’t hold together well and will fall apart during cooking
What is a good sauce for crab cakes?
Tartar Sauce is always a welcome addition for seafood. This easy tartar sauce recipe takes just minutes to prep and is perfect for crab cakes but also for any other fish dish you may have!
Tartar Sauce Recipe
1 cup full fat mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
1 teaspoon Dijon or Stone Ground mustard
1 tablespoon minced sweet onion
2 tablespoons lemon juice, or to taste
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl until fully combined. Serve with crab cakes.
Harissa Crab Cakes
Ingredients
- 8 ounces lump crab meat If the crab meat pieces are too large, use your hands to break them up a bit, otherwise the crab cakes won’t hold together well.
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons scallions (green onions) chopped
- 1 1/2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon harissa
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 1 tablespoon butter
- lime wedges for garnish
Instructions
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Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together egg, mayonnaise, Harissa, and scallions.
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Squeeze out all water from the crab meat (important!)
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Gently stir the crabmeat into the mayo/harissa mixture.
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Form crab mixture into 4 patties, about ½ cup each and place on prepared baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (refrigerating them is optional, but it does help the patties hold together).
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Heat butter in a non-stick skillet over medium heat.
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Place patties in skillet, and cook until golden brown, about 5 to 6 minutes on each side.
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Resist the urge to move or mess with the cakes while they are cooking or they will break into a hash-brown-like mess. If this happens, well the crab hash is still tasty!
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Serve immediately, with lime wedges for a little garnish and hit of citrus.
If you make this, be sure to share it with all the fans!
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