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Home > Vegan Recipes

3 Ways to Make Vegan Crab Cakes

6/4/22 by Nicole | 4 Comments

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5 from 2 votes. Leave a review!

This vegan crab cake recipe makes delightfully flavorful and crisp cakes. Best of all, you can easily customize it with a base ingredient you like (or have on hand), including jackfruit, hearts of palm or artichoke hearts!

It’s a simple recipe that makes satisfying crabless cakes for any occasion. They’re great as an appetizer, but don’t let that stop you from having some as a meal either! Pair with vegan crab cake sauce or just eat as-is, you can’t go wrong!

Stack of jackfruit crab cakes with top one cut in half.

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Ingredients for Vegan Crabless Cakes

This is a very versatile recipe as you can start with a base of jackfruit, hearts of palm or artichoke hearts. From there, everything else is the same! It uses simple ingredients to create a delicious crab cake alternative.

You can also experiment with which type of flour you’ll use. I like chickpea flour, but most flour options can work!

Let’s dive deeper into what you can do to make these vegan crab cakes from ingredients you enjoy most (or already have on hand)!

Ingredients to make vegan crab cakes (jackfruit, breadcrumbs, spices, vegetables, sauces, chickpea flour).

Base Ingredient Variations

This recipe uses a basic formula for delicious vegan crab cakes and lets you choose between a variety of base ingredients. Jackfruit, hearts of palm and artichoke all make delicious vegan crab meat alternatives.

While none of these ingredients taste like crab, the rest of the recipe creates a delicious flavor. Therefore, use whichever base ingredient you prefer or whatever you have on hand.

Jackfruit tends to create the firmest crab cake. This is because its texture is finer than hearts of palm or artichoke.

Close up of golden brown, baked jackfruit crab cakes sitting on a wood board topped with salad greens and lemon wedges. Bottom right corner of image shows a corner of a glass bowl filled with creamy dip.

Hearts of palm create a tasty crab cake with the chunkiest texture since hearts of palm are thicker compared with jackfruit or artichoke. These crab cakes have the most texture variation compared to the other options. While they hold together, they’re the most prone to crumbling apart. Use a flour that binds well (chickpea or wheat flour).

Top view of a blue plate with arrangement of crab cakes around the outer edge, surrounding a small glass bowl in the center that is filled with pale orange creamy dip. Lemon wedges and sprigs of parsley arranged around the crab cakes. Image is cropped so only ¾ of plate showing, with white marble background.

Lastly, artichoke has the flakiest texture which is most like crab meat. It also has the strongest flavor compared to the other options which comes through slightly in the final product. It’s a tasty choice if you want a bolder flavor and “accurate” texture.

Five breaded artichoke cakes arranged on a long wood board, each topped with a dollop of creamy sauce. Crab cakes become more blurred toward the back. Board garnished with parsley and lemon wedges. Grey background.

Flour Variations

Chickpea flour is a great option for this recipe, but I’ve also tested all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour and coconut flour.

All flour options work well. All-purpose flour creates the firmest texture, followed by whole wheat flour. Whole wheat flour provides a slightly nutty, earthy flavor.

Platter of hearts of palm crab cakes with lemon wedges and a dish of dipping sauce.

Coconut flour produces the softest crabless cakes because it doesn’t absorb liquid or contain gluten which has binding properties. It adds a tasty coconut flavor to the crab cakes too, so keep that in mind if you try it.

I haven’t tried almond flour in this recipe but suspect it creates a similar texture to coconut flour; softer but with a nutty almond flavor.

Other flour options could work too. Just know they may create softer crab cakes and the flour flavor is likely to come through.

Stack of three jackfruit crab cakes on a plate.

How to Make Vegan Crab Cakes

This simple recipe takes some time to prepare but is well worth the effort!

Step 1: Prepare Ingredients

It’s always best to start by prepping each ingredient.

Reserve 2 tablespoons of liquid from the cans of either jackfruit, hearts of palm or artichoke, then discard any remaining liquid.

Hand scooping liquid from a can into a large bowl.

Chop the base jackfruit, hearts of palm or artichoke into small, flaky pieces and add to the bowl along with your reserved canning liquid. Don’t discard the jackfruit’s core or seeds if that’s what you use; simply chop them finely.

Chopping and pulling apart jackfruit.

You’ll also need to finely mince the celery, onion and parsley.

Pre-cook Vegetables (Optional)

I prefer using raw celery and onion when making this recipe. These vegetables cook in the oven but remain quite crisp once done.

If you don’t want that crisp texture, or don’t like raw onion/ celery, you can pre-cook these two vegetables. Just cook in a pan over medium heat, with some oil to prevent sticking, for 5-8 minutes.

Cook time depends on how well-done you want the vegetables. Keep in mind they’ll cook further in a heated oven, so don’t worry about making them too soft.

Pre-cooking vegetables releases some liquid which can make it difficult to hold the crab cakes together. An extra tablespoon or two of flour can help bind the crabless cakes and create a firmer texture if you pre-cook the vegetables.

Step 2: Mix Crab Cakes

Once you’ve prepared the vegetables and base ingredients, add them to a bowl with the flour of your choice and seasonings. Mix all of this together until well-combined.

Bowl filled with ingredients to make crabless cakes (jackfruit, parsley, red onion, celery, flour, spices and sauces).

Don’t add panko breadcrumbs yet; you’ll use them to coat the crab cake so keep them until the next step!

Stirring ingredients for crabless cakes in large bowl.

Let this mixture sit for 10 minutes before shaping into crab cakes. This is especially important if using a gluten-free flour option as it’ll need some time to absorb liquid. It’s easier to shape the crabless cakes and they’ll hold together better if the mixture sits for at least 10 minutes.

Step 3: Shape and Coat with Breadcrumbs

Once the batter has sat, shape the crabless cakes. First, cover a baking tray with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper for easy clean up. This is also a great time to preheat your oven.

Next, sprinkle panko breadcrumbs onto a plate.

Scoop about ¼ cup of crab cake batter into your hands and press firmly, shaping it into a round, flat disk about 1 inch (2 centimeters) thick. I like to use a ¼ cup measuring cup to get all the crab cakes the same size.

Hands forming a circular patty with crabless cake batter.

Place this patty onto the breadcrumbs, sprinkle extra breadcrumbs on top and lightly pat down.

Carefully pick up the crab cake and place onto your lined baking tray.

Hands pressing breadcrumbs onto vegan crab cake.

Step 4: Bake and Serve

When all the crabless cakes are shaped and on your baking tray, use an oil spray to lightly coat both sides of the patties. This helps the breadcrumbs crisp and brown when baking in your oven.

If you don’t have an oil spray bottle, lightly brush oil onto each side of the crab cakes. This typically uses more oil which makes for a crisper, golden brown coating!

Baking tray with breaded crab cakes on them. Hand drizzling oil onto crab cakes.

Depending on your oven, you may need to flip the crab cakes halfway through baking to evenly brown both sides.

You can serve crab cakes hot if you use a knife and fork. However, if you want to pick them up, or have a firm crab cake, let them cool first. Wait at least 15 minutes before picking one up as they become firmer as they cool.

How to Create a Balanced Vegan Meal

I consider a balanced meal one that contains a good source of plant-based protein, carbohydrates, fats and lots of vegetables or fruits.

This is an appetizer recipe typically served before a main meal. If serving with a main meal, keep in mind these crab cakes don’t have a lot of protein.

While jackfruit, hearts of palm and artichoke are great crab replacements in terms of texture, none of these ingredients is high in protein. Using chickpea flour adds some plant-based protein to the recipe, but otherwise, it’s simply a good source of vegetables, carbohydrates, some fat and lots of satisfying flavor!

Serving with a side salad and adding a source of plant-based protein can create a tasty, well-balanced meal.

Close up of artichoke crab cake cut in half with sauce on top.

How to Store and Reheat Leftovers

Cool leftover crab cakes to room temperature before refrigerating in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

It’s best to reheat these crabless cakes in an oven so the coating remains crisp. Simply pop the crab cakes onto a baking tray and heat at 350 °F until warmed through.

Microwaving creates a softer breadcrumb coating. I don’t have an air fryer but have been told that’s a great way to reheat this recipe. Give it a try if you have one!

Platter of artichoke crabless cakes with parsley and lemon.

If you make this recipe, please rate and comment below to help others benefit from your experience!

Close up of a stack of jackfruit crab cakes with top one cut in half.

Vegan Crab Cakes

This vegan crab cake recipe makes flavorful, crisp crab cakes using jackfruit, hearts of palm or artichoke hearts! It’s a simple recipe that makes perfectly satisfying crabless cakes for any occasion.
5 from 2 votes. Leave a review!
Prevent screen going dark
Prep Time 25 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 45 mins
Servings 8 Crab cakes
Calories 153 kcal
Cuisine Vegan

Equipment

  • Cutting board
  • Knife
  • Large bowl
  • Baking tray
  • Silicone baking mat (or parchment paper)
  • Measuring cups and spoons
  • Oil spray bottle (optional)

Ingredients
  

  • 3 cups base ingredient of choice (canned jackfruit OR hearts of palm OR artichoke hearts)* (545 g)
  • 2 tablespoons liquid from can (of jackfruit, hearts of palm or artichoke hearts) (30 mL)
  • ½ cup chickpea flour ** (80 g)
  • ⅓ cup celery , finely diced (50 g; one large stalk)
  • ⅓ cup onion , finely diced (50 g; half a medium onion)
  • ¼ parsley , finely diced (15 g)
  • 2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise (30 g)
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard (10 g)
  • ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar (7.5 mL/ 10 g)
  • 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
  • ½ cup panko breadcrumbs (50 g)
  • oil spray
Prevent screen going dark

Instructions

Step 1: Prepare Ingredients

  • Open cans of either jackfruit, hearts of palm or artichoke hearts. Reserve liquid from the cans and place into a large mixing bowl.
    2 tablespoons liquid from can
  • Drain the remaining canning liquid.
  • Chop the jackfruit, hearts of palm or artichoke hearts into small, flaky pieces and add to the liquid in your mixing bowl. Don’t discard core or seed pieces from the jackfruit; simply dice them finely.
    3 cups base ingredient of choice
  • Finely dice celery, onion and parsley and add to the mixing bowl.
    ⅓ cup celery, ⅓ cup onion, ¼ parsley

Step 2: Mix Crab Cakes

  • Add chickpea flour, vegan mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, Old Bay seasoning, garlic powder, salt and black pepper to the mixing bowl.
    ½ cup chickpea flour, 2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ¼ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
  • Stir this mixture until well combined and let sit for 10 minutes.

Step 3: Shape and Coat with Breadcrumbs

  • Prepare a baking tray by covering it with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
  • Sprinkle panko breadcrumbs onto a plate or flat-bottomed bowl.
    ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
  • Scoop ¼ cup of crab cake batter (using a ¼ cup measuring cup or spoon) into your hands. Firmly press the batter together while shaping into a flat disk that’s 1 inch (2 centimeters) thick.
  • Place the patty onto your breadcrumbs and lightly sprinkle breadcrumbs onto the top.
  • Pat the breadcrumbs into your patty.
  • Carefully transfer onto your baking tray.

Step 4: Bake and Serve

  • When all crab cakes are formed and on the baking tray, spray both sides with oil. If you don’t have an oil spray bottle, lightly brush oil onto either side of the crab cakes.
    oil spray
  • Bake in an oven preheated to 375 °F for 20-22 minutes, until both sides are golden brown. Depending on your oven, you may need to flip the crab cakes over halfway through baking.
  • Serve these crabless cakes hot if you’ll use a knife and fork. If you want to pick them up, they need at least 15 minutes to cool and firm.

Video

Notes

*Canned in water or brine; about 2 14oz/400 g cans
**or other flour selection (ex. coconut flour, whole wheat flour)
Accuracy of nutrition information cannot be guaranteed (certain ingredients may not have all nutrients listed in the database); amounts may vary (and will vary depending on brands of ingredients used); all nutrition fact values rounded to the nearest whole number.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 Crab Cake (⅛ of recipe)Calories: 153 kcalCarbohydrates: 14 gProtein: 4 gFat: 9 gSaturated Fat: 1 gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1 gMonounsaturated Fat: 3 gSodium: 378 mgPotassium: 128 mgFiber: 2 gSugar: 2 gVitamin A: 207 IUVitamin C: 3 mgCalcium: 29 mgIron: 2 mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More Vegan Appetizer Recipes

Like this recipe? You should also try:

  • Close up of plate filled with cucumber rollups filled with pistachio and avocado.
    Vegan Cucumber Roll Ups (Avocado + Pistachio Filling)
  • Close up of a pile of cauliflower wings.
    Vegan Cauliflower Wings (with BBQ Sauce)
  • Close up of a plate of kale salad with tahini dressing, oranges, edamame, almonds and carrots.
    Vegan Kale Salad (with Orange-Tahini Dressing)

About Nicole Stevens

Nicole is a vegan Registered Dietitian (RD) and founder of Lettuce Veg Out.

She helps people thrive on a vegan diet with balanced recipes and easy-to-understand nutrition science.


Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Noelle

    January 16, 2022 at 7:15 pm

    I used young (soft) coconut. And added some seaweed for the fishy flavor. They are delicate, but tasty!!

    Reply
    • Nicole Stevens

      January 17, 2022 at 10:56 am

      Interesting, glad it worked out! I've never tried it with coconut; it's not really an ingredient I have access to but sounds yummy.

      Reply
  2. Steve Hayes

    May 17, 2021 at 4:58 pm

    Great recipe! It turned out so well! I usually cook them in the stove and dont bread them. These on the other hand were perfect since they didn’t just crumble apart as you cooked them. Definitely using this one again!

    Reply
    • Nicole Stevens

      May 18, 2021 at 9:02 am

      Thanks Steve, so happy you enjoyed!

      Reply

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Hi, I'm Nicole! As a vegan Registered Dietitian, I empower vegans to live a balanced life and gain confidence in the kitchen.

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