Easy Imitation Crab Cakes Recipe (20 Minutes)

This amazing Imitation Crab Cakes Recipe results in succulent and perfectly spiced mock crab cakes! Ready in 20 minutes, these are made with simple ingredients and don't have a lot of filler. My family was blown away by these restaurant-quality crab cakes because they taste so fancy.

Quick to prepare and cook, you can serve these right from the stove or place in a bun to make a tasty sandwich. While this recipe is now written using imitation crab because it's affordable and easy to find, you can also make the same crab cakes with canned crab if you prefer. (In fact, that's the version you'll see in the photos throughout this post!)

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• 🩵 About This Recipe
• What readers are saying...
• 🧂 Gather Your Ingredients
• 📝 More about Imitation Crab
• 🔪 Let's Make this Imitation Crab Cakes Recipe!
• 💡 Expert Tips and Tricks
• ❔ Choosing The Best Kind Of Crabmeat
• ❔ FAQs
• 📝 Substitutions and Variations
• 🦀 Types of Crab Meat 
• 🥡 Storage and Reheating
• ⏳ Make Ahead Instructions
• 🍴 What To Serve With This Dish
• 🦀 More Recipes with Imitation Crab
• 😋 More Easy Seafood Recipes You'll Love
• 📋 Recipe Card
• 💬 Reviews and Comments

📝 More about Imitation Crab

I personally use imitation crab more often than I use canned or fresh. While it isn't quite the same as real crab, in many recipes it's a really close second and it really is so much more affordable!

What is imitation crab? Imitation crab, also known as crab stick, krab, or seafood stick, is a designed to mimic the flavor, texture, and appearance of real crab meat.

Imitation crab is made from a mixture of white fish (often Alaskan pollock) or other seafood, along with starch, flavorings, and additives.

The fish or seafood is minced and combined with other ingredients such as wheat starch or potato starch to help bind everything together. Artificial flavorings and colorings are added to simulate the taste and appearance of real crab.

Does imitation crab taste like real crab? While imitation crab does mimic the flavor and texture of crab fairly well, it generally has a sweeter taste and a slightly firmer texture compared to real crab meat.

💡 Expert Tips and Tricks

• Some people are allergic to shellfish, so you need to be watchful if this is the first time you are introducing crab to your kids. (And of course, you only want to try this if you are willing to share your seafood from now on!)
• If you are using fresh lump crab meat, look through it a bit before using it in this recipe to remove any stray shells.
• Be gentle when combining the crab with the other ingredients to keep as much of the crab meat lumped together as possible.
• If you are making more crab cakes than will fit in your skillet, when the first batch is done, place them on a baking sheet and put them in the oven warmed to about 200 degrees F to keep them hot while your next batch is cooking.

❔ Choosing The Best Kind Of Crabmeat

It make take some trial and error to find a good brand that has consistently good fresh crabmeat at the price point you want. Here are some things to look for:

• Make sure the product is mostly chunks of the crab itself. A small amount of additives/preservatives is normal, but if there's too much, you may not be getting your money's worth.
• Of course, the crab shouldn't smell bad or have an off-color to it. If the product smells heavily of salt or other chemicals, this is a bad sign. Go for crab that smells fishy and natural.
• You can mix types of crab meat to stretch your dollar farther. You can even mix real crab with imitation crab to get the taste of traditional crab cakes without breaking the budget!

If you want to try another delicious recipe that uses crab, check out these crab ravioli. You won't be sorry you spent time making them when you taste how amazing they turn out!

❔ FAQs

📝 Substitutions and Variations

• While these homemade crab cakes are already quite flavorful, you can play around with additional spices to add into the mixture to switch things up!
• You can substitute roughly chopped cooked shrimp (or even chopped cooked scallops) for the base.
• Add in some finely chopped bell peppers, celery, or scallions for extra texture and taste.
• Serve these crab patties as they are or slap them on a bun; chipotle mayo or tartar sauce for crab cakes would be delicious.
• Try Cajun seasoning instead of Old Bay seasoning to change up the flavor profile a bit. (This is especially good with the imitation crab cakes.)
• An easy way to vary this recipe is to serve it with a sauce or dip. Something as simple as mustard or a delicious Thai-style sweet chili sauce can change everything!

🦀 Types of Crab Meat 

• Jumbo Lump - this is the most expensive because there is not much of this type of meat on a crab. However, it is also the most substantial!
• Lump - this is less expensive than the jumbo lump crab meat, but still really substantial and good in crab cakes.
• Backfin - this crab meat is a bit flakier than the lump types. It's from the body of the crab and so there is more of it on each crab and hence it's less expensive.
• Claw - this is the least expensive of the real crab options. The taste of claw crab meat is a little stronger and most people prefer either the jumbo lump, lump, or backfin crab meat for a good crab cake.
• Imitation Crabmeat - this is the least expensive option. With food being so expensive these days, I'm more likely to choose this option.

🍴 What To Serve With This Dish

Though these delicious and easy pan fried crab cakes will surely be the star of whatever meal you're serving, here are some great ideas for a supporting cast of tasty sides!

• Cilantro Lime Dip - Delicious served with tortilla chips and margaritas, or use as a flavorful topping on fish, chicken, or burgers!
• Quinoa Chickpea Salad - Nutritious and delicious, this dish can be served as a side dish or a light meatless entree.
• Parmesan Dill Dinner Biscuits - Delicious whole wheat dinner biscuits jazzed up with dill and parmesan cheese, perfect as starters or companions to just about any entree!
• Chipotle Lime Cole Slaw - Wowee! This easy cole slaw has SO much flavor, you won't believe your taste buds!
• Hearty Homemade Corn Chowder - Cozy up to a big bowl of this homemade corn chowder! Easy to make with either fresh or frozen corn, it's a great year-round soup!

🦀 More Recipes with Imitation Crab

If you're looking for a few more recipes that use imitation crab, you might want to try this imitation crab dip, or even this imitation buffalo crab dip. Or check out this air fryer imitation crab rangoon recipe, or this creamy, chunky deli seafood salad!

For a chilly afternoon, try this imitation cream of crab soup. Yum!

📋 Recipe Card

Update Notes: This post was originally published in August 2013, and was republished with tips, step by step photos, and a recipe change in August 2026.