Smoked Crab Cakes
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These crab cakes are packed with flavor and smoked to perfection, making them a household staple all year round.
Paired with a gochujang remoulade and a zucchini corn succotash, the combination of all three is a game changer.
The ingredients list may look daunting, but don’t let that put you off. There are some big flavors going on here, and the meal comes together in no time.
Smoked Crab Cakes
Ingredients you’ll need
For the crab cakes:
- Crab – I used canned crab claw meat.
- Celery
- Parsley
- Garlic
- Mayonnaise
- Worcerschire sauce
- Dijon mustard
- Ritz crackers – or saltines. They act as a binder.
- Seasoning blend- garlic powder, onion powder, coriander, celery seeds, celery salt, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper
For the succotash:
- Sweet corn – I keep it simple and use a can of sweet corn, but use fresh or frozen, if that’s what you have.
- Zucchini
- Celery
- Parsley
- Cherry tomatoes
- Salt and pepper
- Good quality olive oil – if there is one thing I were to recommend, it would be to invest in a good quality olive oil. It makes a world of difference in flavor.
For the remoulade:
- Lemon
- Worcestershire sauce
- Mayonnaise
- Garlic
- Dijon mustard
- Gochujang – typically, a remoulade calls for hot sauce. However, I have found that gochujang adds a really nice flavor that pairs well with crab cakes. If you have never used gochujang before, it is a thick, red chili paste fermented in soybeans that gives off a spicy, umami flavor.
- Chives
- Seasonings – garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper to taste.
Equipment you’ll need
- Smoker – I used the Camp Chef Woodwind Pro. This smoker is perfect for so many reasons. One of the main reasons is that it holds a consistent temp throughout the cook. You can also adjust the level of smoke, making it more or less smoky in flavor, depending on what you desire.
- Pellets – I used the Camp Chef Premium Hardwood Pellets competition blend.
- Knife – for dicing.
- Baking tray – as much as I would love to toss the crab cakes directly onto the smoker, it would end in disaster. So, in an effort to save myself from crab cakes falling through the grates, I place them onto an oiled baking tray and smoke them directly on that.
- Heat Protecting gloves – this goes without saying: don’t touch a hot pan! However, it is the one thing I always forget to bring outside with me.
- Can opener
- Mixing bowls
- Better smoke flavor with the Smoke Box
- Improved seal and build quality
- Expand functionality with Sidekick
- Smoke box could be bigger and easier to clean
How to make Smoked Crab Cakes on a Pellet Grill
1. Crab cakes
Place the crab meat, celery, parsley, mayonnaise, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon, crushed crackers, and seasonings into a bowl and give it a good mix to combine.
To shape the crab cakes, take a portion of the crab mixture, roll it into a ball, and gently flatten it on an oiled baking tray.
You can adjust the size or thickness of the crabcakes to your liking. Repeat this process for the remaining crab cake mixture.
2. Fire up the smoker
Fire up your smoker to 350°F.
For this cook, I used the Camp Chef Woodwind Pro with Camp Chef Premium Hardwood Pellets.
When you’re ready to smoke the crab cakes, transfer the entire baking sheet directly onto the smoker!
You want the crab cakes to be a perfect golden brown, which will take 15-20 minutes. Â
3. Succotash
While this may not be a traditional succotash recipe, it is truly delicious.
Since this will be placed on top of the crab cakes, you want to ensure that everything is chopped to about the same size as the corn.
Add the corn, parsley, zucchini, tomatoes, and celery to a bowl, add olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and give it a good mix. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
Set this aside or refrigerate until you’re ready to plate.
4. Remoulade
Add the lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, mayonnaise, minced garlic, Dijon mustard, Gochujang, chives, salt, and pepper to a bowl and mix well. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
Set aside or refrigerate until ready to use.
5. Assemble
Spoon a generous amount of remoulade onto a plate. Gently set the crab cake next to it. Finish by adding a spoonful of the succotash on top.
Serve & enjoy!
Smoked Crab Cakes
Ingredients
- 16 oz crab claw meat canned is fine
- ¼ cup celery finely diced
- 1 tbsp parsley fresh, finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 3 tbsp mayonnaise
- â…“ tsp Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ tsp Dijon mustard
- 6 crackers or saltines crushed into crumbs
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- â…› tbsp coriander
- â…› tsp celery seeds
- ¼ tsp celery salt
- â…› tsp cayenne pepper skip if you don't want spice
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp salt
Zucchini corn succotash
- 1 cup sweet corn
- 1 cup zucchini small dice
- 1 tbsp celery small dice
- ½ tbsp parsely fresh, finely chopped
- ¼ cup tomatoes small dice
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Remoulade
- ½ lemon juice only
- â…› tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- ½ tsp garlic minced
- ½ tsp Dijon mustard
- ¼ tsp Gochujang
- 1 tbsp chives finely diced
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Fire up the smoker to 350°F.
- Add all the ingredients for the crab cakes to a bowl and give it a good mix.
- Roughly divide the mixture in the bowl into six portions. Take one portion, and form it into a ball, then flatten it on an oiled baking tray. Repeat the process with the remaining mixture.
- Place the crab cakes on the tray into the smoker for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
Zucchini corn succotash
- Add all the ingredients to a bowl and mix to combine. And salt and pepper to taste.
- Put to the side or refrigerate until use.
Remoulade
- Add all the ingredients to a bowl and mix to combine. And salt and pepper to taste.
- Put to the side or refrigerate until use.
Assembly
- Spoon a generous amount of remoulade onto the plate.
- Place a crab cake next to the remoulade
- Spoon a decent amount of the succotash on top of the crab cake. Serve and enjoy.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximation only. If you’re worried you could always add a side of kale.
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