Air Fryer Crab Cakes is a delicious crispy crab cake recipe with a moist center that the whole family will love. They are great as a main dish, appetizer, or make crab cake sandwiches on a bun with sauce for lunch!

Featured image for Air Fryer Crab Cakes.

If you are looking for a good crab cake made in the air fryer, then you have come to the right place! These Air Fryer Crab Cakes are made with fresh crab meat and just enough filler ingredients to hold them together.

Up close image of air fryer crab cakes garnished with chives on a white plate

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❤️ Why you'll love it
🥘 Ingredients
🔪 Instructions
🥄 Equipment
🥫Storage
📖 Variations
💭 Tips
🙋 Alternate Cooking Methods
📚 Related Recipes
🍽 Serve with...
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

❤️ Why you'll love it

Less mess: no grease splatters making a mess on the stovetop!

Little filler: there is more crab meat compared to filler in this delicious crab cakes recipe!

Easy air fryer recipe: making these crab cakes in the air fryer is super easy and will become your favorite seafood air fryer recipe!

Remoulade sauce in a mixing bowl. — Bonus recipe for remoulade sauce! This is one of my favorite sauces to top this crab cake recipe.

🥘 Ingredients

Large eggs

Mayonnaise: use full fat mayonnaise, I prefer Dukes or Hellmann's.

Dijon mustard: dijon is a creamy mustard that is made with black mustard seeds and a little spicier than yellow mustard.

Hot sauce: use your favorite hot sauce

Seafood seasoning: I prefer old bay seasoning but feel free to use your own favorite brand.

Fresh Lemons: for the binding sauce and to garnish cooked crab cakes.

Fresh lump crab meat: buy this in a refrigerated section of the grocery store; I like to buy high-quality jumbo lump crabmeat.

Saltine crackers: these are crushed and mixed with the wet ingredients to help create a binder that holds the crab cakes together.

Green onion: used as garnish

Creole or Cajun seasoning: my preference is Tony Cachere's Creole seasoning

Paprika: sweet or smoked paprika will work, depending on your preference.

Fresh garlic

Fresh ginger

Sour cream

Nonstick cooking spray

Crab cake ingredients. — Ingredients for air fryer crab cakes

Binding ingredients for crab cake mixture. — Ingredients for air fryer crab cakes

🔪 Instructions

For the remoulade

In a small mixing bowl, add the sour cream, creole seasoning, paprika, garlic, ginger, and mustard and stir to combine. Place remoulade in the fridge to chill while you prepare the crab cakes.

For the crab cakes

In a medium bowl, crack and whisk the egg using a hand whisk. Whisk in the mayonnaise, mustard, hot sauce, old bay seasoning, and lemon juice until well incorporated.
Place the cracker crumbs and crab meat in a large bowl, tossing to combine. Stir in the egg mixture until combined. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. This allows the cracker crumbs to soak up the egg mixture making it easier for the cakes to bind together.
With a ¼-quarter cup scoop, scoop equal portions of crab mixture and shape into a ball.
Place the crab cakes on parchment paper lined air fryer basket. Spray tops of crab cakes with cooking spray.
Air fry crab cakes at 375 degrees f for 12-15 minutes or until outside of the crab cakes look crispy and turn golden brown. Flip the crab cakes halfway through cooking and spray again with cooking spray.
Remove the crab cakes from the air fryer basket and cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Crabmeat mixture before shaping into cakes.

🥄 Equipment

Air fryer

Parchment paper liner: to line the air fryer when cooking.

Large scoop: use a ¼ cup sized scoop to portion the crab cake mixture

Small turner: to flip crab cakes

🥫Storage

Refrigerate: store leftover crab cakes in an airtight container in the fridge up to 4 days.

Freeze: you can freeze uncooked crab cakes in the freezer in a freezer safe container up to 3 months. To cook frozen raw crab cakes, place in the air fryer as directed and cook 5 min longer than suggested cooking time.

Reheat: reheat thawed leftovers in the air fryer at 350 degrees for 5 minutes.

Uncooked crab cakes in air fryer basket lined with parchment paper.

📖 Variations

Add ¼ cup finely diced green or red bell pepper to the crab cake mixture
Substitute seasoned bread crumbs for the saltine crackers
Imitation crab can be substituted for lump crab meat
Leave out the hot sauce and add a few splashes of worcestershire sauce instead.
Make mini crab cakes using ⅛ cup of crab meat mixture and serve as an appetizer instead of a main dish.

💭 Tips

For crispy crab cakes, you can flatten the cakes instead of leaving them in a ball. If leaving the crab cakes rounded, they will stay moist in the center more than the flattened crab patties.

🙋 Alternate Cooking Methods

Oven baked crab cakes: place crab cakes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Spray top of cakes with cooking spray and bake in 350 degree oven for 25 minutes, until golden brown.

Pan- fried crab cakes: I recommend flattening the cakes if pan frying, to ensure the cakes are cooked through on the inside without burning on the outside. Place in a large skillet over medium high heat with a tablespoon of olive oil. Fry on each side for 5 minutes on each side, until golden brown.

A stack of Air Fryer Crab Cakes garnished with chopped chives on a white plate.

My family loves this Crab Rangoon appetizer recipe!

These keto salmon patties are another great seafood dinner recipe.

This Crab and Swiss Quiche makes an elegant weekend brunch.

🍽 Serve with...

Serve these homemade crab cakes with lemon wedge, remoulade sauce, tartar sauce, or your own favorite sauce.

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