Crab Salad Recipe

Easy and fast to prepare, check out our crab salad recipe for a healthy delicious homemade meal. Dinner can no longer be boring!

Crab salad is similar to chicken salad, but with a fresh seafood twist! If you are a seafood lover, this one’s for you! It’s an ideal summer dinner because it comes together in minutes, and you don’t have to do any cooking. That’s always a win in my, Rebecca of Good Things Baking.

It’s light, fresh, and the perfect answer to the “what’s for dinner?” question. The recipe is also easily customizable. You can add in different mix-ins to suit your preferences, and it’s also a great recipe to make and refrigerate several hours before serving.

And if you’re looking for something with lots of protein but not as much saturated fat as other meats, crab is the perfect option.

Ingredients Needed

• Crab meat — Use real crab or imitation crab meat. If opting for fresh jumbo lump crab meat, pick through it to make sure there aren’t any bits of shells still mixed in. If you want to use imitation crab, avoid the canned crab meat for this recipe as it is too small. You want to have bite-sized pieces of meat in your salad.
• Finely diced celery
• Mayonnaise
• Sour cream
• Freshly-squeezed lemon juice
• Dijon mustard
• Finely chopped fresh dill — If you aren’t a fan of dill, you can replace it with fresh tarragon instead.
• Chives
• Salt and freshly-ground pepper

What Is Imitation Crab?

Imitation crab is typically not made from real crab but usually composed of real white fish meat, typically Alaskan Pollock.

The white fish is minced and mixed with other ingredients like starch, sugar and sodium  to mimic the taste of real grab. It’s then painted with a thin coat of orange food dye to also look like crab.

It can usually be found with the fresh seafood in your grocery store. Most crab salad recipes use imitation crab because it’s inexpensive.

Seafood Salad | How to Make Crab Salad

Step 1 — In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients: mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, dill, chives, and salt and pepper.

Step 2 — Taste it and see if there are any flavors you’d like to adjust, like lemon, salt, and pepper.

Step 3 — In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the crab meat and celery, as well as any other mix-ins you’d like to include. (See mix-in ideas below.)

Step 4 —Pour about 1/2 of the dressing over the crab meat, and stir it just until coated.

Step 5 — Taste the salad to see if you’d like more dressing, and add more until you are happy with the flavors and texture.

Step 6 — Refrigerate the crab salad until you are ready to serve it.

Crab Salad Mix-Ins Ideas

Here are a few things you can mix into your crab salad to customize it to your tastes.

• Jalapeños — Slice or chop fresh jalapeños into very thin, small pieces.
• Fresh minced garlic — It makes everything taste better since it packs a punch of flavor!
• Chopped veggies — Avocado, cucumber, bell peppers, and red onions or green onions are all great mix-ins.
• Additional spices — I like keeping things simple but cumin and bay seasoning are extra ways to add more complex flavors to your salad.

Recipe Tips and Notes

• If using fresh jumbo lump crab meat, pick through it to make sure there aren’t any bits of shells still mixed in.
• Imitation crab also works well. Avoid the canned crab meat as it is too small. You want to have bite-sized pieces of meat in your salad.
• When making the salad dressing, don’t be afraid to taste and adjust as you go! It’s easier to add more of something than to cover up a flavor that’s too strong (like lemon juice). So, add the smaller amount of an ingredient, taste, then add more if you’d like.
• Make the dressing or complete salad ahead of time, then refrigerate it until serving.
• Keep in the fridge for up to 2 days.
• Serve alone over a bed of greens with Cloud Bread or as crab rolls, crab salad sandwich, crab salad dip or even a crab pasta salad.

How To Make Crab Rolls

• Toast a hoagie or round bun until it’s golden brown, then butter it generously.
• Line the bun with lettuce and mound on the crab salad.
• Place the other half of the bun on top and serve immediately.

Try to use a roll that is sturdy but soft. New England style split top buns are used for traditional crab or lobster rolls, but aren’t necessarily available in all grocery stores.

Appetizer Idea: Crab Salad Dip

You can use your crab salad as a dip! Chop the crab into smaller pieces before mixing, then serve it chilled with crackers or chips. It makes for a delicious side dish, especially at a party alongside easy crockpot meatballs.

Crab Pasta Salad

To make a crab pasta salad, simply double the dressing ingredients. Then, stir it into 1 pound of crab meat and 1 pound of cooked pasta.

Any shape of pasta will work. But crab pasta salad is best with a sturdier kind like penne, bowtie, or rotini work best since it makes for a very creamy dressing.

More Salad Recipes

Salads may have a boring reputation, but we beg to differ. There are so many fun ways to create a salad (and not to mention, it’s oh-so-healthy)! For more easy salad recipe ideas, check out a few of our favorites from the archives below —

• Best Chicken Salad
• Beetroot Salad With Goat Cheese
• Cranberry Orange Salad With A Cream Citrus Vinaigrette
• Asparagus and Poached Egg Salad

Don’t forget to share your crab salad with us on Instagram using the hashtag #sugarandclothloves. We always love seeing all of your creations! Looking for more quick and delicious recipes? Find them all right here!

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