Perfectly golden Vegan Crab Cakes! Tender, moist, full of "meaty, flaky crab-like" texture and packed with lots of deliciously spiced flavour-givers!
FEATURED COMMENT:
"Just made this and it was an absolute winner! Loved the flavours and when pan frying they held their shape perfectly. Thanks so much for an awesome recipe, I will definitely make again!" - Lucie ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
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I'm in the mood for crab cakes. But not just any crab cakes. These are vegan crab cakes made using artichokes and hearts of palm to give the texture of "crab" without the actual crab. Because crab harvesting and preparation is inherently cruel and unethical.
These Vegan Crab Cakes are perfectly golden, tender, moist, flaky, full of "meaty crab" texture and packed with flavour thanks to a delicious combo of red curry paste, green onions, lime, tamari and ginger which does a great job of hiding the briny flavour of the hearts of palm and artichokes and making these crab cakes super delicious!
They feel very "special occasion" but don't be fooled. I'm the farthest from fancy and these vegan crab cakes are deceptively easy and perfect to serve as an appetizer or main course on weekdays or weekends. They will soon be your new favourite vegan seafood dish!
Mel x
Ingredient Notes
Here is what you need at a glance, along with some important ingredient notes & substitution ideas:
- Potatoes - Mashed potato makes up the main substance of these cakes and is what holds everything together. I recommend using Yukon Gold if you can. They have a lovely creamy, rich texture. Red potatoes make a good alternative. Avoid russets as they tend to get a bit watery when boiled and will make your crab cakes too loose. In the UK use Maris Piper or red potatoes.
- Canned hearts of palm & canned artichoke hearts - For the vegan "crab meat" texture and appearance. The mixture of the two creates a stringy, flaky texture in the crab cakes. Be sure to drain them both really well!
- Nori - For the "of the sea" slightly fishy flavour. Dulse flakes or kelp granules make a good alternative. This is just for flavouring though and doesn't affect how the recipe works technically. That means you can safely omit it if you want to.
- Red curry paste, green onions, tamari, lime, ginger - When it comes to flavouring, we are not keeping things traditional and that is intentional and for very specific reasons. Traditional crab cakes have the crab flavour to carry them. These do not. If we just made them like traditional crab cakes they would be bland, briney and boring. To avoid that happening I'm amping them up with lots of very flavourful ingredients. They work together to cover up the briny taste, add interest, and bind. I used red curry paste here but you can use green instead. I like the brand Thai Kitchen because their curry pastes are vegan . Many others are not so check carefully when buying.
Love a really crispy crunchy "crab" cake?
Prefer things really crispy crunchy? Coat your crab cakes in panko crumbs! Put the crumbs on a plate and once you have formed the vegan crab cakes push them into the crumbs so they stick into the mashed potato and coat the cakes all over. Then cook as directed.
Let's Make Vegan Crab Cakes!
Can't wait to make vegan crab cakes? The full printable recipe is below, but first, let me walk you through the steps to set you up for success in your kitchen. I recommend watching my recipe video if you're more of a visual learner.
Boil, drain, then mash the potatoes. Be particularly careful to drain thoroughly and let them steam dry in the pan before mashing.
Blend up the flavour givers (green onions, red curry paste, soy sauce, lime zest, juice and ginger into a paste then pulse in the nori. A food processor is perfect for this.
Grate the hearts of palm and chop the artichokes.
Add everything to a large bowl and mix together.
Form into patties then cook. You can pan fry, air fry, or bake. For the nicest crust, best flavour, and most succulent interior, frying is the way to go, though.
Recipe FAQs
The nori is just for "of the sea" flavouring and doesn't affect how the recipe technically works. That means you can safely omit it if you want to. You will of course lose some flavour though.
The grated stringy hearts of palm and flaky chopped artichoke hearts is what gives these vegan crab cakes their "crab meaty" texture. I recommend using them if at all possible however, canned young jackfruit would probably work well instead of the artichoke.
I don't recommend using anything else instead. If you don't like curry paste this isn't the recipe for you.
Recipe
Vegan Crab Cakes
Author:WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients
- 680g or 1.5lb (about 4 medium) potatoes , such as Yukon Gold or red. I don't recommend using russets.
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper ,or to taste
- 1 bunch (7 to 8) green onions
- 4 tablespoons red or green Curry Paste , I use Thai kitchen brand.
- 1 lime , zest & juice
- 1 thumb-sized piece fresh ginger
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari , GF if necessary
- 4 sheets nori
- 1 x 15oz (398 gram) can hearts of palm (the long stick shaped ones) , drained
- 1 x 15oz (398 gram) can artichoke hearts , drained
- 2 tablespoons oil if pan frying
INSTRUCTIONS
- Prepare the potatoes. Peel and cube the potatoes then add them to a large saucepan. Cover with water and boil until just fork tender and mashable but not too soft. Drain through a colander or sieve then return to the pan and allow to steam dry with the lid off for 5 minutes. Add the pepper and mash well. (Don't add anything like dairy-free milk or butter to the potatoes while mashing).
- Blend the flavour-givers. While the potatoes are boiling, add the green onions, curry paste, lime juice, lime zest, ginger, and soy sauce to a food processor. Blend to a paste then break the nori sheets up into manageable pieces and put them in the food processor. Pulse until they are broken up into small pieces and distributed evenly through the paste.
- Prepare the "crab". Drain the hearts of palm and the artichokes. Squeeze the artichokes to remove any excess moisture, then dry them and the hearts of palm in some kitchen paper or a clean cloth. Grate the hearts of palm or shred them with a fork and roughly chop the artichokes into flaky pieces.
- Mix. Add the paste mixture, hearts of palm and artichokes to the pan of mashed potatoes and stir it all together. Taste. It doesn't usually need salt because of the curry paste and soy sauce but add some if it needs it and mix well again.
- Make the crab cakes. Form the mixture into patties, squeezing them together really well. You can make them as big or small as you like. Place on a tray lined with parchment paper as you go. To cook you can either pan-fry, air fry, or oven bake. They are at their best when pan-fried.
To pan-fry
- Warm a couple tablespoons of oil in non stick frying pan or skillet over medium heat. Once hot add the crab cakes carefully. Leave them well alone until a thick, golden crust develops then turn over and do the same on the other side. Remove from the pan and rest them on some kitchen paper to absorb excess oil. Your pan wont be big enough to cook them all at once so have the oven on low and pop the cooked ones in there on a plate or small baking tray to keep warm while you finish the rest.
To oven bake
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Brush the parchment with some oil and lay the crab cakes out on it. Bake at 400°F for around 25 minutes. Turn over half way through. If you make them particularly small they will take a shorter time. Remove when golden.
To air fry
- Brush the bottom of your air fryer basket with a little oil. Add the cakes to the air fryer basket (don't crowd them) and cook at 400°F (200°C) for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. The exact time will depend on how big you make the cakes and your particular air fryer so keep an eye on them towards the end.
NOTES
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Katrina Hurricane says
I don’t like Nori or any seaweed, will the recipe still work out the same if I omit it?
A Virtual Vegan says
It will work fine, but it won't taste "fishy". Will still be good though!
Alexia says
Awesome and unique recipe! Just made a big batch of these in the air fryer.
Sita says
I made these two days ago and they were delicious, even better the second day. I also made your green sauce, which I also loved. Thanks so much for your recipes. They are fabulous.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you Sita! I'm really pleased you enjoyed them. They are particularly good with that green sauce!
WendyH says
My hubby made these last week......fabulous! I will be making them again very soon. He used a different red curry paste and they were quite spicy but still delicious. So glad he found this recipe.
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm really pleased you both enjoyed them Wendy!
Lucie says
Just made this and it was an absolute winner! Loved the flavours and when pan frying they held their shape perfectly. Thanks so much for an awesome recipe, I will definitely make again!
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm really pleased you enjoyed them Lucie!
Dhara says
Hi there! I love the look of this recipe, thanks for posting!! Just a quick question, is 200g the net weight of hearts of palm that you use or that’s the weight of the can? Thanks!
Melanie McDonald says
200g is the approx weight of the hearts of palm when removed from the can and drained. They come in a can that weighs about 398g. I will make it clearer in the recipe. It is a bit vague!
Henry Rowbottom says
Just made them for dinner. Such great flavors and textures. Such a unique recipe. We loved it!
Charlotte says
So yummy. In fact made them twice last week!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you Charlotte. I'm so pleased you enjoyed them and thank you for taking the time to leave feedback. It's much appreciated!
Sarah says
I followed this recipe exactly and they disintegrated in the pan! Pure mush and inedible. Not to mention, nothing like crab cakes. I’ll stick to my chickpea “tuna” patties.
Shelly says
What brand of Red Curry paste do you use?
A Virtual Vegan says
I tend to use the Thai Kitchen one as it's the only one easily available in the stores here. It's great in these crab cakes.
Teresa says
I had a little trouble with this recipe. It seemed like the lime juice overpowered the other flavors, and my crab cake batter was pretty soft and wet so it didn't hold it's shape too well. When I baked them on parchment paper, they got stuck and it was a mess to flip them over. They did much better when I tried them in my air fryer at 380 deg F for 15 minutes.
Next time I think I'll cut back on the lime juice, maybe let the batter dry out in the fridge. If baking, I do recommend drizzling some oil over your parchment paper. That might have prevented my problem.
Overall still very good! The texture reminded me of the Portuguese codfish cakes my mom and grandmother used to make, so I might try to veganize those using this recipe as a base.
Maggie says
Is the Nori the reason the Sodium is 580mg/cake?
My husband has Hypertension and I know he's going to want at least 2.
Thank you.
A Virtual Vegan says
Nori is pretty high in sodium but there isn't that much in each crab cake so I don't think it's a major contributor. It's canned hearts of palm and artichokes that are making the sodium content so high. They are generally canned in a brine solution. You could cut the sodium by using a sodium free soy sauce or coconut aminos instead of the tamari and by trying to find low sodium hearts of palm and artichokes. I've never looked for them so I'm not sure how easy that would be. Pre-made red curry paste is pretty high in sodium too. I just checked my jar in the fridge and it has 350mg per tablespoon. Making your own red curry paste would reduce that substantially. If you made the cakes he would be wanting 2 for sure. I'm sorry that it's not looking like the best recipe for him.
Maggie says
Thank you for quick response ????
I will try the coconut amino since I have some here and look into making my own red curry paste. I don't mind the extra work. I think this would be a nice treat for him.
Nicole says
Can these be frozen before cooking and if so, how long will they last in the freezer?
lisa says
is there a secret in getting rid of that bitter taste from palms of heart i tried making crabless crab cakes and that bitter flavor ruined it. its the liquid that it soaks in. i wanna give it another try and master the crabless crab cake
A Virtual Vegan says
This recipe might be a good one for you to try again as it's got lots of other powerful flavours going on. My husband is pretty sensitive to funny tastes and had never tried hearts of palm. He loved these crab cakes. Hope that helps!
Sue says
Great idea and the flavors that you are combining here are so good - they taste wonderful and we really enjoyed them!
Gregory says
Mel, these are awesome! We loved everything about them. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
A Virtual Vegan says
So glad you enjoyed them and thank you for stopping by to let me know!
Harry says
They are so simple and tasty! Perfect switch up for a vegan dinner.
CHarlotte says
I was a bit sceptical about "fishy" but they were perfect. We really enjoyed themm.
Letty says
Such a fun recipe--They are amazing! So tasty. Best vegan crab cakes yet!
Mrs. T says
How clever! I'm excited to try this recipe!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you. Let me know what you think when you try them!