July 14, 2024
Vegan Crab Cakes with Dill Remoulade
These vegan crab cakes are so delicious, you’ll question if they’re actually plant-based! They’re crunchy on the outside, yet moist and bursting with flavor on the inside! Paired with my dill remoulade, these crabless cakes make for the perfect appetizer or main that’s sure to please seafood lovers and vegans alike!
Table of Contents
why you’ll love this recipe jump to recipe video step-by-step instructions tips and faqsVegan Crab Cakes
Craving seafood but sticking to a plant-based diet? These vegan crab cakes are the perfect solution! They’re crispy on the outside, moist and flavorful on the inside, and paired with a delicious dill remoulade. Whether you’re vegan or simply looking to try something new, these crabless cakes are sure to impress. Grab a drink and let’s get to cookin’!
Why You’ll Love These Vegan Crab Cakes
- Flavorful and Delicious: The combination of hearts of palm, fresh vegetables, and Old Bay seasoning creates a savory and satisfying flavor that mimics traditional crab cakes.
- Crispy Texture: The panko breadcrumb coating ensures a crunchy exterior, providing a delightful contrast to the moist interior.
- Easy to Make: The recipe is straightforward and easy to follow, making it accessible for cooks of all skill levels.
- Versatile: These vegan crab cakes can be served as an appetizer, main dish, or even in a sandwich, offering versatility for various meal ideas.
- Impressive Presentation: The golden-brown cakes garnished with fresh chives and paired with a vibrant dill remoulade look beautiful on the plate, making them perfect for entertaining guests.
- Diet-Friendly: Suitable for vegans and vegetarians, this recipe caters to those with dietary restrictions or preferences.
- Customizable: The recipe allows for easy customization with different herbs, spices, and sauces to suit individual tastes.
- Perfect for Parties: These bite-sized cakes are ideal for parties and gatherings, providing a crowd-pleasing appetizer that’s both delicious and nutritious.
How to Make Vegan Crab Cakes
1. Prepare the Dill Remoulade
In a medium bowl, combine all remoulade ingredients. Mix well until thoroughly combined. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. Cover and refrigerate while you prepare the crabless cakes.
2. Make the Vegan ‘Crab’ Cakes:
In a large bowl, mash the hearts of palm with a potato masher or fork until a crab-like texture forms (note: if the hearts of palm seem too firm to mash by hand, you may have to quickly pulse them in a food processor for 10 to 20 seconds). Add the shallot, bell pepper, green onion, flour, and vegan egg replacer. Mix well to combine.
3. Prepare the Breading:
In a shallow bowl, whisk together the panko breadcrumbs and remaining 2 teaspoons of Old Bay seasoning.
4. Form the Vegan Crab Cakes:
Scoop out 1/3 cup of the heart of palm mixture and form it into evenly shaped ‘crab’ cakes using your hands. Coat each cake gently in the panko breadcrumb mixture.
5. Chill the Cakes:
Place the crab cakes on a parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate for an hour to help them solidify.
6. Fry the Cakes:
About 15 minutes before removing the crab cakes from the refrigerator, heat an inch of canola oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, fry the cakes for 6 to 8 minutes, turning halfway through, until golden brown and crispy. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain excess oil.
7. Serve and Enjoy!
Serve the crab cakes immediately with dill remoulade and garnish with fresh minced chives. Enjoy!
Tips and FAQs
- Refrigerate the Cakes: Chilling the cakes for at least an hour before frying helps them hold their shape and prevents them from falling apart during cooking.
- Adjust Seasoning: Taste the mixture before forming the cakes and adjust the seasoning as needed to suit your preferences.
- Handle Gently: Be gentle when forming and coating the cakes to prevent them from breaking apart.
- Monitor Oil Temperature: Ensure the oil is hot enough before frying to achieve a crispy exterior without making the cakes greasy. Test by dropping a small piece of the mixture into the oil; it should sizzle immediately.
- Drain Excess Oil: Place fried cakes on a paper-towel-lined plate to drain excess oil, keeping them crispy and not overly greasy.
- Make Ahead: Prepare the mixture and form the cakes ahead of time, then refrigerate or freeze them. This makes for easy and quick cooking later.
Can I Use a Different Binder Instead of Vegan Egg Replacer?
Yes, you can use a flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flaxseed mixed with 2.5 tablespoons water) or chia egg (1 tablespoon chia seeds mixed with 3 tablespoons water) as an alternative binder.
Can I Make These Vegan Crab Cakes Gluten-Free?
Absolutely! Substitute the all-purpose flour with a gluten-free flour blend and use gluten-free panko breadcrumbs.
Can I Bake or Air Fry These Instead of Frying:
Yes! Spray the vegan crab cakes with a bit of oil and bake the crab cakes at 375°F (190°C) for 20 to 25 minutes, flipping halfway through, until golden brown and crispy. You can also use an air fryer at the same temperature, for about 15 minutes, flipping halfway through.
How Do I Store Leftovers?
Store leftover crab cakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven or air fryer to maintain crispiness.
Can I Freeze Vegan Crab Cakes?
Yes, you can freeze the formed crab cakes before frying. Place them on a baking sheet to freeze individually, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag or container. They can be fried directly from frozen, adding a few extra minutes to the cooking time.
What Can I Serve with Vegan Crab Cakes?
Serve with a side of dill remoulade, lemon wedges, and a fresh green salad. They also pair well with roasted vegetables or a grain like quinoa or rice.
Crab-Less Cakes So Good, You Won’t Miss the Crab!
These vegan crab cakes are a delicious and satisfying alternative to traditional crab cakes. With a crispy exterior and flavorful interior, they’re sure to become a favorite in your household. Try them out and let me know what you think in the comments below! Don’t forget to snap a photo, take a video, or make a story and post it to Instagram or TikTok, and tag me at @eat_figs_not_pigs and #EatFigsNotPigs. I love seeing your recreations of my recipes!
Vegan Crab Cakes
Ingredients
Dill Remoulade
- ½ cup vegan mayonnaise
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill, finely minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced
- 1 tablespoon green onion, minced (green parts only)
- 2 teaspoon white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon capers minced
Cradles Cakes:
- 2 14 oz cans whole hearts of palm, drained
- 1 small shallot, minced
- ½ cup red bell pepper, minced
- ⅓ cup green onion, thinly sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 5 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning, divided
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon vegan egg replacer, optional
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- Canola oil, for frying
- Fresh minced chives, for garnish
Instructions
- For the dill remoulade, mix all ingredients until they are thoroughly combined Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary. Place in a covered container and set in the refrigerator while you make the crabless cakes.
- For the crabless cakes, place the hearts of palm into a large bowl and mash with a potato masher or the back of a fork, until a crab-like texture forms (note: if the hearts of palm seem too firm to mash by hand, you may have to quickly pulse them in a food processor for 10 to 20 seconds). Add the shallot, bell pepper, green onion, garlic and 3 teaspoons of the Old Bay Seasoning. Sprinkle the mixture with the flour and egg replacer. Mix well to thoroughly combine.
- Next, place the panko breadcrumbs and remaining 2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning in a shallow bowl, whisking to combine.
- Scoop out 1/3 cup of heart of palm mixture, and using your hands, form evenly shaped ‘crab’ cakes. Gently coat each of the crab cakes in the panko breadcrumbs.
- Transfer each ‘crab’ cake to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and place in the refrigerator for an hour to solidify.
- About 10 minutes before removing the ‘crab’ cakes from the refrigerator, place an inch of oil in a large saute pan over medium heat.
- Once the oil is hot, fry each ‘crab’ cake for about 6 to 8 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy, flipping halfway through. Transfer to a paper-towel lined plate to drain excess oil.
- Serve immediately with dill remoulade and chives. ENJOY!
These look stunning and delicious! I was never a crab cake person before going plant-based, but I might become one now :O NICE!!
This looks awesome! I love heart of palm-going to give it a whirl! Thanks!
This looks so good. I’m pecetarian trying to go full vegan I always have hearts of palms. Thanks for this great recipe. I do think I’ll try it with garbanzo flour for protein, Do you think it’s proportional to AP ?
Hi, Roxana!! I’ve never tested the recipe with garbanzo flour, so I’m not sure if it will work exactly the same. If you try it, please let me know ????
I just want you to know this is the best vegan recipe I have eaten thus far. My husband and started going vegan only a month ago and I have tried dozens of recipes, all delicious in there own right, but this one by far is the best. The only thing I did different was I added flax egg to the crabless mixture and it was perfect. Great recipe!
Thanks, Jasmin!!!!! N
Do you think jackfruit would sub well for the heart of palm?
Janine, I’m not sure if jackfruit will work in place of hearts of palm as I’ve never tried before! If you do try it, please let me know how it turns out 🙂
I don’t usually write comments or reviews. But, this will be my third time making these, and they are absolutely amazing. I first stumbled upon this recipe my second week of being vegan, so it helped a lot. My boyfriend, who is very much a meat and seafood eater LOVED it.
If you’re thinking about it, I say just go for it! You won’t be disappointed!
THANK YOU STEPHANIE!!!!
So, I am oil free and wanted to know if these would work in an air fryer?
Hi Cody! I’m not sure if they’d work in an air fryer as I have never tried, but I have gotten lots of feedback from people who’ve baked them and they’ve come out great! If you do air fry them, please let me know how they turn out. Good luck!
Has anyone tried baking instead of frying? It’s not that I am against frying I just never know what to do with all the oil once I am finished.
Hi Kaitlyn! I’ve had a couple people message me and said they’ve baked them and they came out just as good!! I definitely think it’s worth a try 🙂
Would you happen to know the calorie count for the crab cakes and the remoulade individually?
Hi, Janine!! Unfortunately, I don’t. I don’t really track calories, but there are many apps for smart devices that do! My Net Diary is a great one ????
These are delicious! My non vegan friends complimented them as well! We subbed the bread crumbs and flour to gluten free and they turned out wonderful!
Thanks, Jasmine!! So happy your non-vegan friends love them, too ????
This recipe was incredible. I added diced celery and it worked really well. My family, which includes meat eaters, LOVED this!! Will definitely make this often in the future! ????
Wen, SO happy to hear your family loves the recipe!! Thank you for sharing it with your loved one’s!
Trying them tonight. They look amazing! Love the sauce too.
Thanks, Jan!! Hope you love these crabless cakes as much as we do!
Had to make these twice. First time I mistakenly used the Slap Yo Momma spice instead of the Old Bay. Anyone who knows both of these will realize this was a huge mistake. I did salvage it a bit by adding an additional can of hearts of palm and some additional Old Bay but still way to spicy for every day people. Second time I left the Slap Yo Momma out altogether just to see. I think it needs a some of the heat but definitely not the tablespoon I used the first time. Love learning about the hearts of palm. I see a lot of things I am going to try with this. I did put these in a food processor for the second batch and was much happier with the texture.
Anyone know if I could make these a few days in advance and freeze them? I’ve made these several times before and now I want to take them on vacation and share with family.
Yes you can absolutely make them ahead and freeze them!!
This is hands down one of my fav recipes! They tasted absolutely amazing to say the least, Pretty sure I licked my fork, my fingers and plate once I was done. It was my first time cooking with hearts of palm and all I can say is WOW, I’m seriously amazed how spot on the texture was. The sauce was also super easy to make and now one of my go to sauces for EVERYTHING! This is definitely a must try! Thanks for the amazing recipe Ash!
I can’t wait to try some of your recipes! I just got my first crock pot (and I’m a senior) and am exploring the world of slow cooked food. Thanks!
This looks soooo good!! I’m not a fan of the flavor/texture of soy milk. Did you by chance test with dairy milk, or have thoughts on subbing it? Thanks!!
Hi Rose! I do not cook with any animal products, so I have not tested this recipe with regular dairy milk. I have, however, tested it with oat milk and almond milk – and because the protein content is higher in soy milk, I find it works best for this recipe.
CALLING ALL CRAB CAKE AND FOOD LOVERS!
I can say, hands-down, that these are the best crab cakes I have ever had. Before going vegan, I would order them off of almost any menu. I have travelled the country over the past 12 years for work and if there was one appetizer I would expense, it was almost always crab cakes. I am SO HAPPY that I can indulge in them once again and the texture, flavor and sauce are seriously on point. I made them for my dad and boyfriend who are both meat eaters and I didn’t have to ask them, “Well, what do you think? Are they good?” like I have to with other veganized recipes. They both told me immediately how much they liked the crab cakes and I even filmed the reaction of my boyfriend when he tried them, he was in shock at how closely they resembled the real thing. Please do yourself a favor, if you’re reading this and contemplating making them, go check your ingredients, get the ones your missing, do yourself a favor and make these awesome plant-based crab cakes, you will NOT regret it!
I tried this last night after finding it on Pinterest and we loved it! It’s definitely on my list to make again!
I am not vegan, not even vegetarian, but really liked these. I could not mash the heart of palm in the pan so I removed them and pulsed in the food processor. Also living in Europe I do not have your seasoning I used mustard, worcestershiresauce, tabasco, paprika powder. Instead of regular flour I used chickpea flour and regular dairy milk. The texture was fabulous!! They tasted good and I imagine they would be even better with the seasoning you have in the recipe. Lovely healthy find!
Absolutely delicious! We will be making these for Christmas Eve dinner…Do you have other vegan( seafood )non seafood recipes?
Hi Annette! I have a vegan scallops recipe on my blog that is quite popular as well, and perfect for Christmas dinner! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe … it’s one of my favorites!!!
Yasssss to these amazzzzinggg ????’less cakes
I used Gf flour mixed with chickpea flour for my dredge, almond milk and GF crumbs……..soooo crispy and delish, right down to the sauce that perfectly compliments them.
Will def be making these again real soon!!!!
Thank you ????????
Incredible! These cakes have a wonderful texture and they’re so flavorful. I was also surprised at how easily and quickly they came together… I skipped putting the formed cakes in the freezer to set and they still came out just right. I’ll be making these again soon.
Hi! I have made these quite a few times and they are positively delicious!!! I would like to make them a few days ahead of time and freeze them. Would you suggest freezing them uncooked or after frying them?
I made these last night and omg they are delicious!! I used Just eggs in place of the almond milk and I added just eggs to the mix itself and they turned out fabulous. My hubby is making vegan hallndaise sauce today so we can have crab cake bennicts, we will use the just egg patty’s from the freezer. Thank you for all your delicious recipes love them all!!
This was amazing and came out so much better than I thought. I will be making this again
These vegan cakes are the best I’ve ever had. I bought The make it Vegan cookbook and I have made almost all the recipes in the book and every single one is hands down Delicious!! Thank you Ashley for all the wonderful recipes!!
These meatballs are so good. My family loves them…kids included. They’ve become my “go to” turkey meatball recipe. I’ve made them quite a few times and finally decided I should say thank you for a good recipe. Thank you .
After going vegan, I realized I didn’t crave a lot of what I used to eat but what I DID crave was crab cakes! Seafood was the most difficult to give up for me (I was pescatarian first) so I am SO excited to try this! I have most of the ingredients but I think I’ll go run to the store today to get the rest so that I can make this tonight. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
I just made these for vegans and non- vegans and everyone went nuts for them. Just the other day I was mentioning to my husband how every time I try to make breaded anything, the breading falls off when I fry it. These came out perfect and exactly like the picture. Tasted so good too.
Yay! So happy to hear that!!!!
I just made these and they were awesome. I used chickpea flour and baked in the oven. I didn’t make the sauce because I am trying to stay low fat. I ate with cocktail sauce instead. I was amazed how much like a crab cake it was. Definitely will make again.
Could this be made in an air fryer?…
Yes, instructions for air-frying are in the “Tips and FAQs” section of this blog post, which you can easily navigate to in the table of contents at the top of the post.
Hi – quick question. Do you use Hearts of Palm in brine or water? I think i’ve only seen them in brine but does that make them to vinegar-y?
Hi! Great question 🙂 I typically use hearts of palm in brine. I haven’t found that they taste too vinegar-y!
have made this so many times!!! FANTASTIC! Sometimes, I swap the heart of palm for Lions Mane, and it comes out equally amazing. I’ve made this for guests, I especially love making it for non vegan friends, and they are shooketh when I say there is no crab in it. I love proving people wrong about vegan food! thank you for this recipe!