what is a chesapeake crab cake

What is a Chesapeake Crab Cake? The Real Deal Explained

Crab cakes are an iconic dish along the Chesapeake Bay and especially in Maryland. But what exactly makes an authentic Chesapeake crab cake? I did some digging into the history ingredients and prep to break it all down.

As a Maryland native and seafood lover I grew up indulging in these delicious crab creations. My family would pick crabs by the bushel and then use the fresh meat in homemade crab cakes crab imperial, crab soup and more.

After moving away from my home state, I quickly learned that not all crab cakes are created equal. The crab cakes I enjoyed in other regions lacked the authenticity I was used to back home.

This led me on a mission to uncover what exactly makes a real deal Chesapeake crab cake stand out from the crowd. From talking to locals, researching traditional recipes and testing techniques, I’m sharing everything I learned about how to make the best Maryland crab cakes.

What is a Chesapeake Crab Cake?

A Chesapeake crab cake is a variety of crab cake that originated in the Chesapeake Bay area along the East Coast of the United States. The Chesapeake Bay spans Maryland and Virginia. This region is known for its blue crab harvest.

The Chesapeake crab cake was created to make use of the abundant blue crab caught locally. The cakes consist mainly of jumbo lump or backfin crab meat delicately formed together with minimal filler.

Traditionally, Chesapeake crab cakes are seasoned simply to allow the sweet crab flavor to shine. A touch of mustard, Worcestershire and Old Bay seasoning adds the signature zing.

Chesapeake crab cakes are best showcased by frying or broiling to develop a browned, crisp exterior while keeping the interior moist. They are served as sandwiches or appetizers with tartar sauce, cocktail sauce or drawn butter.

What Makes a Crab Cake Chesapeake Style?

There are a few key factors that differentiate an authentic Chesapeake crab cake from other regional varieties:

• Blue Crab Meat – Chesapeake crab cakes specifically use meat from blue crabs harvested in the bay. This gives them their distinctive sweet, briny flavor.

• Jumbo Lump Crab Meat – The hallmark is the use of jumbo lump or backfin lump crab meat. This preserves the prized large chunks in each cake.

• Minimal Filler – A light hand is used with binders like crumbs or mayo to keep the lump crab meat as the star. Too much filler obscures the crab’s flavor.

• Simple Seasoning – Authentic Chesapeake crab cakes use restrained seasoning like Old Bay, mustard and Worcestershire to complement versus overwhelm the crab.

• Frying or Broiling – To achieve the perfect crispy exterior encasing the moist interior, Chesapeake crab cakes are best made by frying or broiling.

• Serving with Sauce – For dipping or drizzling, tartar sauce, cocktail sauce and drawn butter are traditional pairings.

By following these defining qualities, you can recreate the authentic Chesapeake Bay blue crab cakes right in your own kitchen. Keep reading for more details on mastering this regional specialty.

Where Did Crab Cakes Originate?

The history of crab cakes leads right back to the Chesapeake Bay region where an abundance of blue crabs offered a readily available main ingredient. Native Americans living along the Chesapeake harvested and ate blue crabs for centuries.

Once European settlers arrived in the 1600s and 1700s, they quickly adopted blue crabs into their diets. By the 1800s, crabbing had developed as a fishing industry. The tasty, meaty blue crabs were shipped from Maryland and Virginia to eager consumers along the East Coast and beyond.

To utilize the harvested meat, cooking techniques like crab boils, crab stuffing, deviled crab and crab cakes became popular ways to savor blue crab. Crab cakes emerged as a practical way to stretch the precious crab meat into more portions.

The art of crab picking also became established in this era. Special wooden mallets and knives were used to expertly extract crab meat from the shells without crushing or shredding it. This allowed cooks to showcase glorious chunks of crab in each cake.

While other regions like the Gulf Coast have their own iconic crab cake recipes, the Chesapeake Bay crab cake remains the original. Its creation arose directly from Maryland and Virginia’s long history as the heart of blue crab harvesting in America.

Why Are Maryland Crab Cakes Famous?

Within the Chesapeake Bay region, Maryland developed an especially strong association with crab cakes starting in the 1800s. By the 1900s, Baltimore and Maryland as a whole cemented their reputation for serving the nation’s finest crab cakes.

There are several reasons why Maryland crab cakes rose to fame:

• Abundant Local Blue Crabs – The Maryland side of the Chesapeake Bay offered a massive supply of wild blue crabs perfect for picking.

• Baltimore Seafood Tradition – As a major port city, Baltimore developed a rich seafood cuisine, especially for blue crabs.

• Minimal Filler – Maryland crab cake recipes stand out for using hardly any filler, just enough mayo or crumbs to bind the lump meat.

• Iconic Restaurants – Legendary crab shacks like Jimmy’s Famous Seafood and G&M Restaurant set the standard.

• Proximity to DC – Maryland’s crab cakes gained exposure thanks to close proximity to Washington DC and politicians.

By maximizing the sweet lump meat with minimal breading, the Maryland crab cake earned acclaim for letting the stellar ingredients shine. Nowadays, Baltimore is considered the crab cake capital, and Maryland crab cakes are exported around the world.

What Type of Crab is Used in Chesapeake Crab Cakes?

Chesapeake crab cakes live up to their name by using meat from the iconic blue crabs harvested in the Chesapeake Bay. The Latin name for blue crabs is Callinectes sapidus.

These swimming crabs are found along the Atlantic coast from New England to Florida but are most abundant in the Chesapeake Bay. Males are known as jimmies and females as sooks.

Blue crabs have a short lifespan of just 1-3 years. They thrive in brackish waters where river meets sea, like the Chesapeake Bay’s massive estuary. Their shells turn bright red when cooked. The crab’s Latin name sapidus even means savory or tasty, attesting to its flavor.

Within the broad category of blue crab, there are a few more specific meat grades ideal for Chesapeake crab cakes:

• Jumbo Lump – The biggest, meatiest chunks from the body cavity, ideal for showcasing in cakes

• Backfin Lump – Smaller chunks still intact, from the top backfin section of shell

• Special – Flaky meat from body crevices, adds richness

• Claw – Shredded meat from claws, often used in crab dip

Jumbo lump is the most prized for crab cakes, but backfin lump also works well since it still has nice pieces. Avoid regular lump which breaks down the meat too much. The sweet flavor and moist texture of blue crab meat makes it perfect for cakes.

What Kind of Crab Meat is Best for Crab Cakes?

For authentic Chesapeake crab cakes, jumbo lump or backfin lump crab meat from blue crabs is ideal. Jumbo lump contains the largest, most impressive intact chunks. The pros pick this by hand directly after steaming crabs fully.

Backfin lump is from a specific upper backfin section of the crab and also retains nicer pieces. Lump is a more generic term for crab meat that still has some chunks but also more broken down bits.

Stay away from claw meat which comes from legs and tends to be stringy. Regular lump and claw work better for crab dip than crab cakes. Flaky special grade meat from crevices adds richness but doesn’t hold together as the main component.

Beyond blue crab, Dungeness crab from the Pacific Northwest or peekytoe crab from Maine also offer nice chunks for crab cakes. Avoid snow crab legs which are too stringy. For non-regional recipes, a pasteurized canned jumbo lump still provides better texture than artificial crab meat.

How to Make Authentic Maryland Crab Cakes

To make the best old bay seasoning crab cakes like those famous in Maryland restaurants and crab shacks, follow these steps:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb jumbo lump blue crab meat
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 sleeve buttery crackers (Saltines or Ritz)
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp Old Bay seafood seasoning
• Juice from 1 lemon wedge
• Salt and pepper
• Butter or oil for pan frying
• Chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions:

1. Pick through crab meat to remove any bits of shell. Try to leave nice chunks intact.