Crab Cake Sandwich

Crab cakes are one of the great regional specialties of coastal communities like Florida and Maryland, but you don’t need to live near the water to enjoy them. We use canned crabmeat for these crab cake sandwiches so that you can serve them any time, anywhere—no trip to the ocean required.

Spiked with green onions, sweet red pepper and a little cayenne, the crab cakes have a ton of flavor. They’re lightly breaded and cooked in butter (always a good move), and cook up in no time. Serve the crab cakes on soft brioche buns with a homemade remoulade—a tangy, mayo-based sauce—plus fresh tomato, lettuce and red onion. Add a side of spiced sweet potato fries or homemade potato chips, and you have the makings of a fine lunch, brunch or dinner.

Ingredients for Crab Cake Sandwiches

• Seasoned bread crumbs: Seasoned bread crumbs are available in grocery stores, but you can also use up leftover bread by making them at home.
• Green onion: Finely chopped green onion adds savory depth to the crab cakes.
• Red pepper: Finely chopped red bell pepper brings color and crunch to the crab mixture. You can use yellow or orange peppers as a replacement, but green bell peppers have a different flavor, so skip them.
• Binders: A lightly beaten egg and reduced-fat mayonnaise help hold the crab mixture together so you can shape it into patties.
• Lemons: Fresh lemon juice adds zing to the crab cake mixture.
• Seasonings: Garlic powder and cayenne add punch.
• Crabmeat: Pasteurized canned crabmeat is easy to find and is a good option for these cakes; however, you can use any other types of crab, including back-fin meat or fresh lump crabmeat. Whatever you choose, make sure there’s nothing but crab, water and salt on the label.
• Butter: Unsalted and salted butter work equally well here. Use whatever you have.
• Brioche buns: Brioche is a yeasted bread enriched with milk and butter, so it’s soft and sweet. Lightly toasted, it makes a glorious base for these crab sandwiches.
• Lettuce: For the best sandwich, use a variety of butter lettuce like Boston or Bibb. You could also make the sandwiches with romaine, iceberg or loose-leaf varieties.
• Tomato: If tomatoes aren’t in season, you could always skip using them on your sandwiches. If they are in season, look for perfectly ripe heirlooms or juicy red slicers.
• Remoulade: This tangy, creamy condiment combines mayonnaise (regular or reduced-fat), chopped dill pickle, finely chopped green onion, minced garlic, Creole mustard, stone-gound mustard, lemon juice, Louisiana-style hot sauce, paprika and black pepper.

Directions

Step 1: Make the crab cake mixture

In a large bowl, combine the green onions, red pepper, lightly beaten egg, reduced-fat mayonnaise, lemon juice, garlic powder and cayenne with 1/3 cup of bread crumbs, then fold in the crab.

Editor’s Tip: Blend the ingredients gently to avoid overworking the crab cake mixture.

Step 2: Form the patties

Place the remaining bread crumbs in a shallow bowl. Divide the crab mixture into six portions. Gently coat the portions with bread crumbs and shape them into 1/2-inch-thick patties.

Step 3: Cook them in butter

In a large nonstick skillet, heat the butter over medium-high heat. Add the crab cakes and cook them until they’re golden brown, three to four minutes on each side.

Step 4: Make the remoulade

In a bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, pickle, green onion, garlic, Creole mustard, stone-ground mustard, hot sauce, lemon juice, paprika and black pepper until they’re blended.

Step 5: Build the sandwiches

On each bottom bun, layer a crab cake with lettuce, tomato, onion and remoulade. Replace the tops. Serve the sandwiches with lemon wedges, if desired.

Crab Cake Sandwich Variations

• Try another sauce: Remoulade is a tangy, spicy, salty flavor bomb that pairs beautifully with sweet, tender crab, but you can serve these sandwiches with herbed aioli (with minced parsley, tarragon and chives) or with homemade creme fraiche in place of the mayo. A grainy mustard vinaigrette would work, as would mayo mixed with your favorite chili crisp.
• Gussy up the toppings: Instead of tomato, try a little shaved fennel salad, slivers of cornichons, or slices of easy pickled vegetables or simple pickled celery. You could also add a little pile of celery leaf and parsley, lightly dressed with a vinaigrette.
  
• Use alternative bread: Brioche matches the crab’s sweetness, but potato rolls, Japanese milk bread, sturdy English muffins and toasted sourdough bread are other options.
• Put an egg on it: Make open-faced brunch crab cake sandwiches with a poached or fried egg on top.

How to Store Crab Cake Sandwiches

Store leftover crab cake sandwiches in an airtight container in the fridge for a day. For extended storage, store everything separately. Store the brioche buns at room temperature, and store the leftover crab cakes in glass, snap-top containers in the fridge. To prevent the patties from getting soggy, refrigerate the remoulade sauce separately in a smaller container or screw-top jar.

How long do crab cakes and remoulade last?

Because they have a crisp crumb coating, crab cakes taste best when they’re fresh from the pan. If you have leftovers, eat them within four days. The remoulade will last up to a week.

How should you reheat crab cakes for sandwiches?

One of the best ways to warm up and recrisp crab cakes is to bake them on a lined baking pan in a 325°F oven for around 10 minutes. You can also heat them in a skillet over medium-low heat.

Crab Cake Sandwich Tips

Why did my crab cakes fall apart?

When crab cakes fail to hold together, it can mean that they were a little dry. If your first cake feels a bit crumbly as you shape it, return it to the bowl with the rest of the crab mix, and add another tablespoon or two of mayo, or another lightly beaten egg. If the cakes aren’t holding up in the pan, lower the heat, make sure not to press on the cakes with the spatula, and only flip them once.

What else can you serve with crab cake sandwiches?

Crab cake sandwiches are nice alongside simple, crunchy vegetable dishes, such as salads made with radicchio or frisee, lightly roasted asparagus with lemon, stir-fried green beans or roasted herb and lemon cauliflower. French fries, potato salad or your favorite coleslaw recipes are also welcome.