Air Fryer Crab Cakes

Air Fryer Crab Cakes combine lump crab with just a few ingredients, including a whipped egg white, for absolutely perfect crab cakes.

I researched this recipe quite a bit. I even made a chart, comparing and contrasting ingredients. Lump crab is the gold standard. I view crab cakes as something to make for a special occasion. So find the best lump crab meat that you can find. And if you’re going to spend some money, you want the crab to really shine. The filler and fillings are minimal in the best crab cakes, but the combination is important. Crushed crackers are the best choice, instead of bread crumbs.

Whipping the egg white to a cloud-like froth (similar to a meringue) really helps to bind everything together. And also helps to make the crab cakes less dense. I think the best thing though is how perfectly the air fryer cooks crab cakes. The constant hot air circulation makes a beautifully browned crust, without the need to add extra oil or butter for frying. I know for a fact that this is how I’ll be enjoying my crab cakes from now on!

Ingredients for Air Fryer Crab Cakes

• Jumbo Lump Crab Meat – or back fin lump crab meat if you can’t find jumbo.
• Cracker Crumbs – saltines are a good choice but this is the brand that I used for testing this recipe.
• Fresh Parsley – I like buying this brand because the chopping is already done for me.
• Fresh Lemon Juice
• Harissa Seasoning – this is one the ways I made this recipe unique to me, I just love the flavor of Harissa combined with the crab. You can substitute Old Bay seasoning if you prefer.
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Yellow Mustard – Dijon Mustard is usually suggested in crab cake recipes, but I usually have yellow mustard in my refrigerator, so that is what I used, and I loved it.
• Egg – this is important – separate the egg and beat the egg white vigorously for 1 – 2 minutes to make it frothy, like a meringue.
• Melted Butter
• Salt

How to make Air Fryer Crab Cakes

1. Open the can of crab and put it in a large bowl, fluffing it up with a fork.
2. Add the cracker crumbs and use a fork or spatula to stir together the crab and crackers until well combined.
3. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, egg yolk, parsley, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, melted butter, Harissa and salt.
4. Add this mixture to the crab and cracker mixture and mix gently until well-combined.
5. Using a small whisk, vigorously whip the egg white for a minute or two until the white is filled with air and very frothy, similar to a meringue.
6. Gently fold the whipped egg white into the crab mixture until combined.
7. Use a large cookie scoop (about two scoops each) to evenly divide the crab mixture into six cakes.
8. Place them on a plate and refrigerate the crab cakes for about 10 minutes to let them set up a bit.
9. Place the crab cakes in the air fryer basket (my basket fit four at a time).
10. Air fry the crab cakes at 375 degrees F for about 12 minutes, or until they are nicely browned.

Kitchen Tips

• I use a Philips XXL Air Fryer to test all of my recipes
• This is the large cookie scoop I used to help form the crab cakes
• For a simple sauce, whisk together a couple of tablespoons of mayonnaise with two teaspoons of lemon juice, a teaspoon of parsley and half a teaspoon of Harissa
• Serve the crab cakes with corn chowder and a Caesar salad

Foodtastic Mom is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Any highlighted, clickable Amazon link you see is an affiliate link that I may earn advertising fees on.

More Air Fryer Recipes

• Bang Bang Shrimp
• Air Fryer Lobster Tail
• Homemade Fish Sticks
• Air Fryer Salmon
• Shrimp Tacos