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First, a bit of history. When I was a kid, on special occasions we gathered at a relative's house and one of the items that was always on the buffet was crab salad on snowflake rolls. Even my young, unsophisticated, palate LOVED the crab salad. This was in New England.
Fast forward to now, when I have lived in the Midwest and the South, and no matter where I live, I cannot get what the fuss is about with crab. I have never, since I was a child with the crab salad, ever had any type of crab that was at all good.
I make crab cakes once in awhile, using various recipes, but I can't taste the crab at all, so I am never making it again.
What do you think I am missing?
PS: I love lobster and clams and most other crustaceans.
I like crab but have not had many crab cakes I like. They seem to be mostly cheap bread crumbs and little shreddy bits of crab. A restaurant called Scott's in Costa Mesa makes them with large chunks of crabmeat and a very good remoulade, but they are quite pricey. Usually they are disappointing, I agree.
I agree. It can be quite difficult to find a good crab cake. I rarely order them. The good ones are made with lump crab meat and have very little filler, binder.
Location: Los Angeles>Little Rock>Houston>Little Rock
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I love crab, but have never had a crab cake that I can eat more that a few bites of. This includes any kind of fish cake. I'd rather have a little pile of crab or whatever without the breadcrumbs.
First, a bit of history. When I was a kid, on special occasions we gathered at a relative's house and one of the items that was always on the buffet was crab salad on snowflake rolls. Even my young, unsophisticated, palate LOVED the crab salad. This was in New England.
Fast forward to now, when I have lived in the Midwest and the South, and no matter where I live, I cannot get what the fuss is about with crab. I have never, since I was a child with the crab salad, ever had any type of crab that was at all good.
I make crab cakes once in awhile, using various recipes, but I can't taste the crab at all, so I am never making it again.
What do you think I am missing?
PS: I love lobster and clams and most other crustaceans.
I can't stand any shellfish at all. I did try ONE crabcake at a very fancy restaurant, once, that I liked alright.. But not enough to get another one.
You have to make them with the jumbo lump crab meat. And use very little binder--you have to gently fold in the crab, so it doesn't break up. I'm not a fan of Dungeness crab cakes, as I think the meat is too stringy & doesn't stay in large lumps very well.
While I do like crab cakes, I've had a lot more bad ones than good. I don't even order it anymore and just make it. I make mine with just cracker meal, lhere's the recipe I use. I sub out the mayo for homemade aioli.
I make my own using jumbo lump crab meat, usually from Costco. Our local farmer's market also carries it at sometimes at a better price. The key is not to use very much filler. We are lucky that we also have a local place called Henretty's that makes their own, which are delicious. Most places put too much filler to save money and the filler really hides the taste of crab. Interestingly, I don't like anything else with crab--just my homemade crab cakes.
Location: St Thomas, USVI - Seattle, WA - Gulf Coast, TX
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What kind of crab are you using? Great crab is sweet, buttery and tender. Fresh lumps of buttery claw meat... YUM!!! Great crab cakes are almost entirely crab (the good, fresh, lump crab meat), so there's really no way to not taste the crab if they're made properly. Maybe some new recipes and new crab sources (get some from your New England roots!) are in order! If you are using the yucky stuff out of the can (like canned tuna vs. seared ahi...) or something similar (jarred in liquid or sitting in a grocery case for days...), yes, bleck, forget about it. I'm spoiled and grew up eating fresh-caught Dungeness in the Pacific Northwest, so maybe take a trip to, say, Cutters in Seattle to order crab cakes before you judge for certain. I'm a seafood lover though, so that helps.
Fresh out of the shell Dungeness only for me. I dont even make them anymore as once I start cracking and lumping the cooked crab it gets devoured.
Brought home 10 fresh caught dungeness this season. Didnt make it till next morning because of the raiding hoards.
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If you are using the yucky stuff out of the can (like canned tuna vs. seared ahi...) or something similar (jarred in liquid or sitting in a grocery case for days...), yes, bleck, forget about it. 
