Long summer days by the ocean shore, the sun setting down over fishing boats bringing in the catch of the day, loud seagulls flying around hoping for a snack, it all screams freedom, happy days and a Crispy Simple Crab Cake Recipe .
It’s impossible for me to spend a day at the beach and not crave fresh seafood; to me that’s simply he essence of summer in a beach town.
Most days I make a bowl of salsa fresca with the tomatoes i pick that day, and pretty much put it on top of all my food, from breakfast to dinner, including this super easy wild caught extra crispy simple crab cake recipe. I do switch the scallions in the salsa fresca recipe with 1 clove of grated garlic, because according to my taste buds seafood calls for garlic and there’s simply no way around it.
These are mostly crab meat with a little bit of leftover mashed potatoes as a binder, a little seasonings and some cilantro to tie them nicely with the salsa fresca. The crispness comes from a few panko crumbs pan seared in a hot cast iron skillet. Perfection !
This simple crab cake recipe is definitely all about the freshness of the crab, with a little kiss of garlicky salsa. Needles to say we just love these on a hot summer day ! I bet you will to 🙂

- 16 oz wild caught crab meat -cooked & drained well
- 1 1/4 c leftover mashed potatoes -seasoned to taste & cooled
- 1 large egg
- 2 cloves large garlic -grated
- 1/2 c cilantro -roughly chopped
- 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 1 c panko bread crumbs
- the zest from 1 organic lime
- 1/4 c olive oil or coconut oil
- 2 limes -halved
- 2 c of this salsa fresca - replace the onion with 1 grated garlic clove
- In a large bowl gently mix together the crab meat, mashed potatoes, egg, cilantro, lime zest, paprika and garlic. Form 10-12 crab cakes out of the mixture and set them on a plate. Season each side with a pinch of the black pepper.
- Gently coat each crab cake in some of the panko bread crumbs and refrigerate for a couple of hours. When ready to eat heat up a shallow cast iron skillet or griddle on medium flame with 1 tbsp of the oil. Just enough to coat the bottom nicely. Sear each crab cake for a couple of minutes on each side until crispy and golden. Keep in mind that everything inside this cakes is already cooked, we just want to warm them through and get a crispy texture.
- Serve hot with the Salsa Fresca on top and garnished with the limes.
Crab Cakes:
Exactly the kind of recipe I love. All fresh ingredients written with integrity and simplicity. I’m a creative home chef and eater. Reading and cooking this was inspiring and felt respectful of my individual tastes. We all enjoyed it sooo much!!