Learn what to make with imitation crab with this collection of 19 delicious recipes. Delightful appetizers, scrumptious salads, and dinners your family will love. Use up that fake crab meat with these amazing ideas.
Imitation Crab Recipes
If you’ve stocked up on imitation crab, then you will want to grab these recipes to use up your meat. These dishes will have you thinking outside the box and creating something new and delicious with crab sticks or shredded fake crab meat.
What is imitation crab?
Artificial crab meat is made from a paste of surimi (white fish) that has been flavored and formed to resemble crab meat. It is made from real fish. It’s just not the real deal.
It is a great alternative when you’re looking to have delicious seafood, without spending the money that you would on real crab meat.
Since you should eat an opened package within three days, it’s a good idea to use it up with something fun and new! Like the recipes below! A vacuum-sealed pack of imitation crab can last in the refrigerator for about two months.
Another great way to save money on seafood is to try canned salmon.
This collection of recipes that use fake crab meat includes:
- Fun Appetizers
- Delicious Salads
- Amazing Dinner Ideas
Each of these seafood ideas will tell you:
- Type of recipe
- Number of ingredients
- How much crab meat you will need.
- The complexity of ingredients (aka, whether or not you might need to hit the grocery store first)
- How long it takes to prepare (including cook time)
- Special diet (Keto, Gluten-free, etc)
- Equipment needed. (Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, etc.)
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Other recipe ideas you may enjoy!
What to make with imitation crab
Are you still in planning mode? No worries! Pin this collection of recipes to your favorite Pinterest board and it will be ready when you are.
Ingredients that work well with artificial crab:
These ingredients will pop up in a lot of the recipes below. So if you have them on hand, you will be able to find more ideas to make.
- cream cheese
- sour cream
- bread crumbs
- old bay seasoning
- Worcestershire sauce
- cayenne pepper
- garlic powder
- dijon mustard
- hot sauce
- lemon juice
- chicken broth
- green onions
- red onion
Fake Crab Recipes
Our mission is to help people find new recipes for the ingredients they already have.
Each of these ideas using imitation crab gives you some key information, that way you can choose the best dish for your family or event.
Check out the creators that published each recipe to use their notes and get the step by step instructions.
Note: pantry ingredients include dry ingredient pantry staples like olive oil, all-purpose flour, brown sugar, corn starch, salt, black pepper, spices, etc. Please check the recipe to make sure that you have the ingredients needed to create the dish. If you are making gluten-free recipes, it may include things like almond flour and other common gluten-free pantry items.
TYPE: Appetizer
INGREDIENT COUNT: 7 plus salt and pepper
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 8 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: Simple ingredients you may have on hand.
TIME: 10 Minutes
TYPE: Appetizer
INGREDIENT COUNT: 6 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 4 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 40 Minutes
NOTES: Air Fryer
TYPE: Appetizer
INGREDIENT COUNT: 5 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 4 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 43 Minutes
TYPE: Appetizer
INGREDIENT COUNT: 8 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 8 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: Simple ingredients you may have on hand.
TIME: 25 Minutes
TYPE: Appetizer
INGREDIENT COUNT: 6
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 8 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: Simple ingredients you may have on hand.
TIME: 15 Minutes
TYPE: Appetizer
INGREDIENT COUNT: 9 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 8 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 60 Minutes
TYPE: Appetizer
INGREDIENT COUNT: 4 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 8 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 15 Minutes
TYPE: Salad
INGREDIENT COUNT: 8 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 8 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: Simple ingredients you may have on hand.
TIME: 4 hours 22 Minutes
TYPE: Salad
INGREDIENT COUNT: 9 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 1 lb
INGREDIENT TYPE: Simple ingredients you may have on hand.
TIME: 2 hours 15 Minutes
TYPE: Salad
INGREDIENT COUNT: 9 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 5 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 15 Minutes
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 10 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 1/2 lb
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 9 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 1 pkg
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 35 Minutes
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 11 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 1 lb
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 60 Minutes
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 8 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 14 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: Simple ingredients you may have on hand.
TIME: 30 Minutes
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 9
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 7 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: Simple ingredients you may have on hand.
TIME: 25 Minutes
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 12 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 8 oz
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 25 Minutes
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 8 plus basic pantry ingredients.
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 1 1/4 lb
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 1 hour 40 Minutes
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 6 plus salt
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 6 pieces
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 60 Minutes
TYPE: Dinner
INGREDIENT COUNT: 8
AMOUNT OF CRAB: 3 pieces
INGREDIENT TYPE: You may have to hit the grocery store first.
TIME: 15 Minutes
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