Fran’s Crab Cakes
The best there is!
My wonderful Mother would always whip up a batch of these Maryland-style crab cakes for special occasions and when we would visit. For parties she would make mini versions, but the best was the large dinner-size ones. Wonderfully indulgent! They are delicious and actually relatively easy to prepare. She always said the trick was to not handle them too much when mixing.
The recipe below has been slightly adapted from what my Mom wrote. I tried to make it a little easier to follow. In addition, I added in a version that substitutes Lion’s Mane Mushrooms for the crab meat and I honestly think even my Mom wouldn’t be able to tell the difference! The crab can also be swapped salmon, white fish or shrimp.
I hope you all enjoy it. I think of her everytime we make them. Grab a few friends, open some chilled white wine and say a toast in honor of my mother while you have some!
Fran’s Crab Cake Recipe
Makes: 6-8 large or 12-16 mini
Crabmeat Ingredients
For a vegetarian version see *Notes
1 lb. Lump Crabmeat or Lion’s Mane Mushrooms
1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
1 tbl Dijon Mustard
1 tbl Mayonnaise
1 large egg beaten
1 c soft bread crumbs (usually a hamburger roll works for this)
2 scallions, diced fine
1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp chopped capers
1 sheet of dried nori (for the vegetarian version)
Coating Ingredients
1.5 c Panko bread crumbs
1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning (or more to taste)
Forming the Crab Cakes
In a large bowl, crumble 1 cup of soft bread crumbs and mix in Old Bay Seasoning, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, beaten egg and scallions.
Let sit for a brief time, until soft bread crumbs absorb the ingredients.
Add crabmeat and mayonnaise and gently mix with your hands until mixture holds together to form a cake. Do not over mix or you will break up too many crab lumps.
Form the size cakes that you want and place on a wax-paper lined pan and place in the refrigerator for a minimum of 20 minutes. This helps crab cakes to bind.
Tip: When you are mixing crab cakes together, and they do not form cakes, add about 1/4 cup or less of dried bread crumbs as a binder.
Make the coating mix. I use a large dinner plate so that it is easier to coat the crab cakes. I also make an egg white wash mixed with a little water in a shallow bowl.
Then, I dip both sides of the crab cakes lightly in the egg wash and then in the coating mix. This helps the coating to stick.
Once the crab cakes are coated, you may return them to the refrigerator for 15 minutes to set and then either pan fry or bake (see below)
Cooking the Crab Cakes
The usual method is to pan-fry in 2 tablespoons of oil in a non-stick fry pan over medium high heat for about 4 minutes on one side and then turn and do 4 minutes on the other side, or until golden brown. I have also found that the oven method works, too. I preheat the oven to 425°. I coat a flat jelly roll pan or cookie sheet with sides with 2 tablespoons of oil, place the crab cakes on the pan and bake.
Regular size crab cakes take about 8 minutes on one side, turn and bake 8 minutes more or until golden brown. If you are doing appetizer size crab cakes, bake about 6 minutes on one side and 5 on the second side.
Serve with Cocktail sauce, lemon or for a California twist, mash one avocado with lemon and plain yogurt and serve as a sauce.
*Notes
If using Lion’s Mane mushroom, peel and shred the mushrooms into smaller bits and saute in a little oil to soften. Place in a large mixing bowl to cool. When combining with the main ingredients, also crumble into small flakes 1 sheet of dried nori. This will add a bit more “sea” flavor to the mushrooms.
