Author Notes
My husband and I lived for a couple of years in southern China where we became big fans of East Asian flavors, seafood, and spicy cuisine. Crab cakes with aioli seemed like a natural fit to incorporate all three. The wasabi and cilantro in the aioli brings out the ginger and lime flavors of the crab cakes, which are great as an appetizer or as a main course. If you make too many, they also freeze extremely well! —cooklocalthinksocial
Ingredients
- Wasabi Cilantro Aioli
1
egg yolk
2
garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 teaspoon
salt
1/2 teaspoon
water
1 cup
olive oil-
Juice of one lime
2 tablespoons
chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon
wasabi
- Ginger Crab Cakes
2
celery stalks
2
scallions
1 pound
lump crab meat
1 cup
panko bread crumbs
1 tablespoon
chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon
grated fresh ginger
2
eggs, beaten
2
garlic cloves, crushed-
Zest of one lime
1 teaspoon
salt
1 cup
canola oil
Directions
-
For the Aioli:
In large bowl, combine egg yolk with crushed garlic, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. water. Continuously whisk all ingredients together while slowly pouring olive oil into the bowl. In order to avoid the aioli separating, start with only a few drops of oil at a time and then increase to a steady stream. You will notice that the mixture lightens in color and thickens as more oil is added. - Once all olive oil is incorporated into the aioli, add lime juice, cilantro, and wasabi. Mix well and taste for level of salt, adding more if necessary. Set aside in the refrigerator.
-
For the crab cakes:
Chop celery and scallions. In a large bowl, combine celery, scallions, crab meat, 2/3 c. panko, parlsey, ginger, eggs, garlic, lime zest, and salt. Mix well. - Sprinkle remaining 1/3 c. panko onto a small plate. Using your hands, form crab mixture into cakes that are 2″ in diameter. Press lightly on panko plate so that the cakes have an outer coating of bread crumbs.
- In a large pan on the stove top, heat canola oil. Fry each crab cake for approximately five minutes per side or until golden brown. Immediately remove from pan and place on a plate lined with paper towels to drain excess oil. Once cooled, serve with Wasabi Cilantro Aioli.
