Moe Doiron/The Globe and Mail
Dredging these luxurious babies in flour before frying ensures they hold together in the pan, but if you're nervous, put the formed cakes in the freezer for 5 minutes before flouring and frying. Prep ahead and reheat in a 400 F oven for 10 minutes, if you don't want any distraction from the end zone.
Servings: 4 generously
Ready Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
1 pound fresh or thawed crab meat
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon finely chopped green onion (green part only)
1 tablespoon finely chopped celery
1 teaspoon grainy Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/2 cup mayonnaise, divided
Louisiana hot sauce or Tabasco, to taste
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup vegetable oil (approx.)
12 slider buns or dinner rolls
Method
Squeeze excess moisture from crab meat and discard. In a mixing bowl, combine crab, egg, green onion, celery, mustard, lemon juice, zest, salt and pepper. Gently mix in 1 tablespoon mayonnaise and several drops of hot sauce, to taste. Form into patties sized to fit your buns. Spread flour on a dinner plate and, working in batches, dredge cakes until lightly floured on all sides.
Heat about half the oil in a non-stick skillet over medium high. Fry cakes in batches until deep golden brown; about 6-8 minutes per side. If oil gets too dark or pan gets too dry, replenish. Meanwhile, mix remaining mayonnaise with hot sauce, going as spicy as you dare. Serve hot crab cakes in buns with spicy mayo and a little arugula, if desired.