12 Crab Cake Recipes, From Baltimore-Style to Blue Crab Beignets From regional favorites to inventive interpretations, make the most of sweet, tender crabmeat. By Jodie Kautzmann Jodie Kautzmann Jodie Kautzmann is an editor, baker, and confectioner with more than 15 years of experience in content creation, recipe development, and pastry production. She's obsessed with the fine details and ingredients that take dishes from tasty to outright otherworldly. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Published on August 30, 2026 Add Us On SAVE ALL RECIPES NEW! Save as a collection on MyRecipes Close Credit: Jennifer Causey Making your own crab cakes might sound intimidating, but this popular dish is actually easy to pull off at home, regardless of which coast your crabmeat comes from. Here are our favorite crab cake recipes to inspire you — from classic Maryland-style crab cakes to Padma Lakshmi’s spicy Keralan-inspired crab cakes with mint chutney — as well as faux crab cakes and crab balls. Love these recipes? Join MyRecipes — your personal home for recipes — to easily save and organize your favorites, plus thousands more, in one convenient place. 01 of 12 Keralan Crab Cakes with Mint Chutney Charles Thompson Padma Lakshmi’s South Indian take on an American classic brings hot green chiles, shredded coconut, and dried mango powder to the crab cake mix. Serve with fresh mint chutney, which comes together almost instantly in the blender. Get the Recipe Save 02 of 12 Blue Crab Beignets Greg DuPree Beignet batter thinly coats a creamy, warm crab filling with a crispy, light crust in this savory recipe from The New Orleans Kitchen coauthors Jamie Feldmar and Justin Devillier, chef-owner of La Petite Grocery in New Orleans. Get the Recipe Save 03 of 12 Crispy Crab Cakes with Tomato Butter Jennifer Causey Bound with chopped whitefish rather than breadcrumbs and coated in panko, these crispy crab cakes from the late chef Patrick Clark pack a little heat from the combination of fresh jalapeño and cayenne pepper. The fiery factor is amplified by an aromatic tomato sauce with even more jalapeño goodness. Get the Recipe Save 04 of 12 Louisiana Lump Crab Cakes Denny Culbert The key to New Orleans chef Melissa Martin’s fantastic crab cakes is using leftover boiled shrimp as a binder instead of breadcrumbs. This recipe yields eight — make a big batch and pop them in the freezer for whenever the mood strikes. Get the Recipe Save 05 of 12 Baltimore-Style Crab Cakes Greg DuPree “This is the best crab cake recipe you will ever find,” says Andrew Zimmern. “If you don’t overmix and don’t pack your mounds too tightly, you will experience pure, unadulterated crab cake heaven.” The recipe comes from his best friend’s wife and includes minimal filler ingredients, putting the focus on the buttery crabmeat. Get the Recipe Save 06 of 12 Crab Cakes with Lemongrass Mayonnaise Michael Weschler Infused with ginger and lemongrass, Hans Röckenwagner’s homemade mayonnaise does double duty here: It acts as a binder in the herb-flecked patties and as a condiment for the just-fried cakes. Quick-pickled honeydew melon balls served alongside bring a fresh tang. Get the Recipe Save 07 of 12 Maryland-Style Crab Cakes Fredrika Stjärne “I can’t overemphasize how important it is to use fresh, carefully processed meat from blue crabs,” says chef Spike Gjerde of Baltimore’s Woodberry Kitchen about this recipe, which is heavy on glorious hunks of crab and light on breadcrumbs. Get the Recipe Save 08 of 12 Crab Cakes with Horseradish Cream Karen Mordechai Crab is the true star of these golden cakes, mixed with only enough breadcrumbs and mayonnaise to hold their shape. The creamy horseradish sauce comes together with three ingredients for the perfect accompaniment. Get the Recipe Save 09 of 12 Spicy Crab Cakes with Mango Puree Dana Gallagher Iron Chef and James Beard Award winner Ming Tsai adds zing to his crab cakes by including sambal oelek in both the patties and the accompanying mango sauce. A handful of microgreens on the plate offsets the richness of the fried cakes. Get the Recipe Save 10 of 12 Crisp Crab Cakes with Chipotle Mayonnaise Seth Smoot Chef Preston Clark uses pureed fish to bind his crab cakes for deep seafood flavor, adding jalapeños and cayenne to the mix for a spicy bite that plays perfectly with the creamy, smoky chipotle mayo served on the side. Get the Recipe Save 11 of 12 Crabless Cakes with Hearts of Palm and Corn Con Poulos Shredded hearts of palm are remarkably crab-like in these fish-free cakes. They’re combined with onion, corn, and red bell pepper, seasoned with Dijon mustard and Old Bay, and bound with vegan mayonnaise and breadcrumbs — then pan-fried to a delicious crisp. Get the Recipe Save 12 of 12 Crab Balls with Grapefruit Salad Tina Rupp Legendary chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten rolls crab balls in panko and sesame seeds, then fries them until golden. They’re paired with a tart salad of grapefruit segments tossed in ginger syrup with minced Thai chile. Get the Recipe Save Explore more: Ingredients Seafood Shellfish Crab Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit