This smoked crab cakes recipe takes classic crab cakes to a new place thanks to the use of a smoker. Classic ingredients and that great crispy outer coating are infused with the flavor of smoke.
I love crab cakes, and my husband loves smoking anything he can. Put those two things together, and you get a delicious crab cake recipe like you’ve never had before.
Smoked Crab Cakes Recipe
This was inspired by my other crab cake recipe on this site, and pairs well with this amazing sidedish recipe.
Ingredients
Several ingredients go into this recipe, but they’re all very simple. In fact, many of them are simply spices or other kitchen staples.
- Lump crabmeat, picked over for shells
- Milk
- Panko bread crumbs
- Salt and pepper
- Chopped celery ribs
- Chopped onion
- Garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
- Shrimp, peeled, deveined, and tails removed
- Heavy cream
- Dijon mustard
- Hot pepper sauce
- Lemon juice
- Old Bay seasoning
- vegetabl oil
See the recipe card at the end of the post for quantities.
Instructions
Although a few steps are needed to make this dish, when you break them down, you can see how simple they are. It’s a very straightforward recipe.
Step 1: Prep
Chope your vegetables and prepare the shrimp. If using fresh crab, soak it in a bow of milk for at least 20 minutes. If using canned lump crab meat, you can skip this step.
Step 2: Toast the Panko Bread Crumbs
Place half the panko in a small resealable bag and finely crush it with a rolling pin. Then transfer the crushed panko to a skillet and add the remaining uncrushed panko. Toast all the panko over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it’s golden brown. Then transfer it to a shallow dish and stir in salt and pepper to taste. Wipe out the skillet.
Step 3: Cook the Vegetables
Pulse the celery, onion, and garlic in a food processor until finely chopped. Then, transfer them to a large bowl. Melt butter over medium heat in the skillet you used to toast the panko. Add the vegetables, salt, and pepper. Then cook until the vegetables are softened and all the moisture has evaporated. Return the cooked vegetables to the bowl and let them cool to room temperature. Rinse and wipe the pan clean again.
Step 4: Strain the Crab
Drain the crabmeat in a fine-mesh strainer. Press firmly to remove all the milk, but be careful not to break up the crabmeat lumps.
Step 5: Create the Crab Cakes
Pulse shrimp in the food processor until they’re finely ground. Then, add cream and pulse to combine. Transfer the shrimp pure to the bowl with the cooled vegetables. Then, add mustard, hot pepper sauce, lemon juice, and Old Bay seasoning, stirring until combined.
Add the crab meat and gently fold it in with a spatula, being careful not to break up the crab meat. Then, divide the mixture into 8 balls and press them into patties about a half-inch thick.
Place the crab cakes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and cover them tightly. Then, refrigerate them for about a half-hour.
Step 6: Coat and Smoke
Coat the crab cakes in the panko, firmly pressing to ensure the panko sticks, but not pressing so hard the cakes are deformed. Then, place the crab cakes on a baking sheet and place them in the smoker. Smoke at 250 degrees for about a half-hour or until they reach 155 degrees.
Hint: Always use a light touch when forming and coating the crab cakes so they don’t break apart.
Substitutions
Don’t have the correct ingredients on hand or want to change something up? Here are some helpful tips for you to change this smoked crab cakes recipe.
- Canned Crab – If you don’t have fresh crab, you can use canned lump crab meat.
- Minced Garlic and Onions – If you don’t have fresh onions or garlic, you can use minced.
Variations
Want to personalize this smoked crab cakes recipe? Here are some of my tried and true tips for changing up this recipe.
- Extra Spicy – Add red pepper flakes to the panko for even more heat.
- Lobster – Substitute half the shrimp for lobster for an even richer flavor.
If you love recipes like this, you may also enjoy these smoked salmon cakes.
Equipment
You’ll only need a few simple pieces of kitchenware to make this recipe.
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Knife
- Cutting board
- Resealable bags
- Rolling pin
- Bowl
- Spatula
Storage
Store these crab cakes in the refrigerator in an air-tight container for 3 to 5 days. For longer storage, you can freeze them for up to 3 months. Wrap each crab cake individually in foil and then place them in heavy-duty freezer bags.
Tips
This is a fairly simple recipe, but it has several moving parts. These tips can help you ensure that you make the best crab cakes possible.
- Stir constantly when toasting the panko to be sure it doesn’t burn.
- Always use a gentle but firm touch with your crab meat to ensure it stays nice and lumpy.
- Be sure you let your vegetables cool completely before adding them to the shrimp puree so the cream doesn’t curdle.
More Crab Recipes
Do you like crab? Here are some recipes you may also like to try.
FAQ
Do you have questions about this smoked crab cakes recipe? Here are some of the most commonly asked questions about smoked crab cakes.
These will last for 3 to 5 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Wrap each crab cake individually in foil and then place them in a heavy-duty freezer bag.
Place each crab cake wrapped in foil on a baking sheet. Then bake them for 10 to 15 minutes at 325 degrees.
Smoked Crab Cakes
Ready to get cooking? Remember that you can print this recipe if you would like.
Smoked Crab Cakes
Equipment
- smoker
Ingredients
- 1 pound lump crabmeat picked over for shells
- 1 cup milk
- 1 ½ cups panko bread crumbs
- salt
- pepper
- 2 celery ribs chopped
- ½ cup onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and smashed
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 ounces shrimp peeled, deveined, and tails removed
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon hot pepper sauce
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- ¾ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
Instructions
- Get out and measure your ingredients.
- If your crabmeat has a mild odor of any kind, place inside bowl of milk and soak, totally covered, refrigerated for at least 30 minutes.
- Crush panko in resealable bag with rolling pin or mallet. Transfer crushed crumbs to skillet to toast, over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until nice golden color, less than 5 minutes. Dump crumbs on to shallow plate and add in ½ teaspoon of salt and ½ of pepper. Set aside.
- Place onion, garlic and celery into a food processor and blend for 7 or 8 pulses. Preheat skillet on medium heat and melt butter. Add vegetables to skillet with ½ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of pepper. Stir frequently until tender and most of the moisture has evaporated. About 5 minutes. Dump vegetables into a good sized mixing bowl.
- Gently press crabmeat against fine strainer to remove as much milk as possible without destroying any lumps of crabmeat. Discard milk.
- Add shrimp to food processor and pulse 15 times. Add cream and pulse 5 more times. Scrape down sides of processor bowl as needed.
- Add to bowl with cool vegetables. Add hot pepper sauce, lemon juice, mustard, Old Bay seasoning, and stir until incorporated.
- Add crabmeat and carefully fold until blended.
- Make 8 balls, about the same size, and place on baking sheet covered in parchment. Using a spatula press until patties are ½ inch thick. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least a half hour, if not a little longer.
- Press each crab cake firmly into panko crumbs until covered.
- Preheat smoker to 250 degrees.
- Smoke crab cakes for 30 minutes or 155 degrees.
- Serve.
- With aioli and lemon!
- Enjoy every bite!
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