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Crab cakes with homemade dill tartar sauce
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Crab Cakes with Homemade Tartar Sauce

These crab cakes are packed with rich flavour, and make an amazing appetizer or a main if served with a light green salad. This makes a lot of crab cakes, so cut the recipe in half if you’re only serving a small crowd.

Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Keyword Crab
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Resting Time 30 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 20 crab cakes
Author Fraiche Nutrition

Ingredients

Crab Cake Ingredients:

  • 2 lbs. rock crab drained in a sieve
  • 2 tablespoons finely diced chives
  • ¾ cup mayo
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • ½ cup finely diced red onion
  • ½ cup loosely packed chopped fresh dill plus extra for garnish
  • 3 tablespoons chopped capers
  • 3 cups panko divided
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 eggs beaten
  • neutral oil for frying ie: avocado or canola

Tartar Sauce Ingredients:

  • ¾ cup good quality mayo
  • ¼ cup finely chopped dill pickles
  • ¼ cup finely chopped red onion
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • ¼ cup freshly chopped dill
  • 1 teaspoon drained capers chopped

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl combine the crab, chives, mayo, dry mustard, red onion, dill, capers and 1 cup of panko and mix thoroughly. Add salt and pepper to taste then mix in the eggs until combined.

  2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the 2 cups of panko on a large plate. Using a large (size 8 or ½ c.) ice cream scoop or your hands, form each crab cake and carefully place it onto the plate of panko, gently pressing some panko on the top of the cake. 

  3. Using a metal spatula, carefully lift the crab cake onto the prepared cookie sheet and repeat until all of the mixture is used up. Refrigerate the crab cakes for 30-60 minutes.

  4. Meanwhile, prepare the tartar sauce by combining all of the ingredients together in a small bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

  5. Line a large plate with paper towel. Add oil to a large frying pan until it is ½” deep. Heat over medium-high heat and fry the crab cakes in batches, careful not to over crowd the pan (we used a large pan and cooked 4 at a time), until the crab cakes are golden on each side. Remove from the pan with a metal spatula and repeat with the remaining crab cakes. Serve immediately with the tartar sauce and fresh dill as a garnish if desired.