These delicious sweet crab cakes come out super crispy in the air fryer. Serve them with fresh lemon wedges, tartar sauce or make a creamy chipotle sauce for dipping.
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Why You Will Like This Recipe
Does anyone else’s family serve appetizers on Christmas Eve night? Mine does and I’m usually scrambling to find something to bring at the last minute that doesn’t require a lot of ingredients. I was looking for something different to bring and these crab cakes are it. They can be made in the air fryer or oven depending on what you prefer.
You can mix the ingredients ahead of time in a bowl and let them rest in the fridge overnight tightly wrapped. When you are ready to serve, take them out and form the patties, then bake or air fry.
For more air fryer recipes be sure to check out Bacon Wrapped Chicken Breasts, Everything Bagel Chicken Tenders, Air Fryer Chicken Quesadillas, and Air Fryer Chicken Cordon Bleu.
What Ingredients do I need?
In this section, you can find substitutes or suggestions for certain ingredients. I also will try and list out what the ingredients' purpose is for.
- Egg - 1 large egg
- Mayonnaise - I like the Sir Kensington Brand - You can find this at Target
- Scallions - freshly chopped or freshly chopped chives
- Old Bay Seasoning - or Cajun seasoning is fine
- Crab Meat - 1 pound of fresh lump crab meat, jumbo lump - I get this at Costco (No canned crab!)
- Panko Bread Crumbs - This is the only carb in the recipe. To make it low carb pulverize some Pork Rinds in a food processor.
- Lemon wedges and Freshly chopped parsley for serving
- Serve these crab cakes with some fresh 3 Ingredient Tartar Sauce!
How to make Air Fryer Crab Cakes
For the crab cakes: Whisk together the egg, mayonnaise, scallions, seafood seasoning, 1 teaspoon salt and several grinds of black pepper in a large bowl.
With a rubber spatula or large spoon, very gently fold the crab and panko into the mixture. Try to avoid breaking up lumps of crab as much as possible.
Cover the crab mixture with plastic wrap and allow to rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day. This will allow the panko to absorb more liquid and help bind the crab cakes together better.
Just before cooking, divide the crab-cake mixture into 4 portions. Lightly compact each portion to form a patty (about 3 ½ inches in diameter) with your hands to ensure they hold their shape while cooking and place onto a large plate.
Preheat the air fryer to 375 degrees F and spray the basket with cooking spray. Place the crab cakes into the basket and spray the tops with cooking spray. Cook until deep golden brown and crisp, flipping halfway through and spraying again with cooking spray, about 16 minutes.
Storage for Leftovers
If there happen to be any leftover crab cakes please store them in air-tight containers or find a way to keep them sealed tight in the fridge.
Make Ahead
Crab Cakes can easily be made ahead of time. Prep them the day before and make sure they're sealed tightly in the fridge before placing them in the air fryer.
Recipe FAQS
I have two air fryers. The Cosori 4 Qt Air Fryer and Ninja Woodfire Grill which is an outdoor air fryer. It’s pretty awesome! It has 5 different functions on it.
Some air fryers require preheating and some do not. Be sure to check your air fryer manual. Mine does not require preheating. If the food ever burns or doesn’t cook properly this could be why the recipe didn’t work for you.
One of the reasons why air fryers are so great is because food doesn’t need a lot of oil. Especially frozen food. Just a small amount is fine or use Cooking Spray.
Air Fryer Recipes to Try
If you’ve tried this Air Fryer Crab Cakes or any other recipe on the site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out. Snap a picture and upload it to Pinterest.
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Air Fryer Crab Cakes
- Prep Time: 16min
- Cook Time: 16min
- Total Time: 42min
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Easy
- Method: Air Fryer
- Cuisine: American
Description
These delicious sweet crab cakes come out super crispy in the air fryer. Serve them with fresh lemon wedges, tartar sauce or make a creamy chipotle sauce for dipping.
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup low-fat mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
- 2 teaspoons seafood seasoning, such as Old Bay
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 pound fresh lump or jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage
- ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
- Nonstick cooking spray, for the air-fryer basket and crab cakes
- Lemon wedges, for serving
Instructions
- For the crab cakes: Whisk together the egg, mayonnaise, scallions or chives, seafood seasoning, 1 teaspoon salt and several grinds of black pepper in a large bowl.
- With a rubber spatula or large spoon, very gently fold the crab and panko into the mixture. Try to avoid breaking up lumps of crab as much as possible.
- Cover the crab mixture with plastic wrap and allow to rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day. This will allow the panko to absorb more liquid and help bind the crab cakes together better.
- Just before cooking, divide the crab-cake mixture into 4 portions. Lightly compact each portion to form a patty (about 3 ½ inches in diameter) with your hands to ensure they hold their shape while cooking and place onto a large plate
- Preheat the air fryer to 375 degrees F and spray the basket with cooking spray. Place the crab cakes into the basket and spray the tops with cooking spray. Cook until deep golden brown and crisp, flipping halfway through and spraying again with cooking spray, about 16 minutes.
Notes
My Personal Points: 5
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 153
- Sugar: 4
- Fat: 8
- Saturated Fat: 1
- Carbohydrates: 14
- Fiber: 0
- Protein: 6
Jennifer c Blair says
Very good, will make them again!!
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