This recipe was first prepared some 20 years ago and is still an award-winning recipe – it won first place at the ARC Gateway Foundation’s 2008 Crab Cake Cook-off. This benchmark recipe is one of which most other crab cakes are measured by. Most crab cakes are made with mayonnaise. In my recipe, I have replaced the mayonnaise with heavy whipping cream and eggs combined. The secret is in the perfect blending of the ingredients, delicate handling of the freshest jumbo lump crab, and using just enough bread crumb to hold their shape. Oops, the secret is out! Great placed right on the griddle with a little canola oil. Try dusting them with breadcrumbs and frying! Terrific with Tartar or Rémoulade Sauce.
Irv’s Coastal Crab Cakes
- 4-5
Ingredients:
1 pound fresh jumbo lump blue crab
4 tablespoons red sweet pepper, diced fine
4 tablespoons red onion, diced fine
2 tablespoons Coleman’s dry mustard
1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
1 tablespoon Louisiana hot sauce
2 ounces heavy whipping cream
1 egg
½ cup Italian-style breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions:
Remove any cartilage from the crabmeat. Do not break up lump crab. Place picked crabmeat in a large-size mixing bowl. Heat small-size sauté pan over medium heat and add butter. When butter begins to bubble, add the diced peppers and onions and sauté until tender, about 2 minutes.
Transfer sautéed peppers and onions to a plate to cool. In a separate medium-size mixing bowl, whisk the egg to blend, then add the whipping cream, Old Bay seasoning, Louisiana hot sauce, dry mustard and cooled peppers. Whisk together. Pour this mixture over the crabmeat and delicately toss to blend evenly. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the mixture and gently toss again to blend.
Let mixture sit for 30 minutes for breadcrumbs to absorb the wet mixture. Form into delicate mounds of 3- or 4-ounce patties. To cook, preheat a sauté pan or griddle on medium heat. Add 3 tablespoons oil and a small piece of butter. Combine flour and salt and pepper mixture, then lightly dust the crab cakes. Sauté about 3 minutes on each side until gold brown and firm.