History

Crab cakes grew out of the Chesapeake's 19th-century oyster-and-crab economy, when Baltimore was the world's leading seafood-packing port. The Maryland style, jumbo lump bound with just egg, mustard and a little binder, then broiled, became fixed as the gold standard. Faidley's at Lexington Market, selling crab cakes since 1886, is often credited with setting the no-filler benchmark that locals still defend against fried, filler-heavy versions elsewhere.

Common allergens: Shellfish, Egg, Gluten

Make it at home

Yield 4Hands-on 20 minTotal 40 minDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 1 pound jumbo lump blue crab meat, picked over for shell
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons crushed saltine crackers or fresh breadcrumbs
  • 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
  • Lemon wedges, to serve

Method

  1. Whisk the egg, mayonnaise, mustard, Worcestershire, Old Bay and parsley in a bowl until smooth.
  2. Add the cracker crumbs, then gently fold in the crab meat, keeping the lumps as whole as possible.
  3. Shape into four loose mounds and chill for 20 minutes so they hold together.
  4. Broil 4 inches from the heat for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden on top and hot through.
  5. Serve with lemon wedges and nothing else that competes with the crab.

Tip from the editors. Fold, do not stir: the goal is intact lumps barely held together, with just enough binder to keep the cake from collapsing.

Where to eat maryland crab cake

Maryland crab cake in Baltimore

Faidley's Seafood ★ 4.7

Street food$downtownMon-Sat daytime, closed Sunday

Faidley's stand inside Lexington Market serves the city's benchmark crab cake since 1886, almost all jumbo lump, eaten standing at a counter off brown paper.

Try: Jumbo lump crab cake

Tip: Order the all-lump grade and eat it at the stand-up rail; it also fries a classic lake trout.

119 North Paca Street, Baltimore, MD 21201

Gertrude's Chesapeake Kitchen ★ 4.3

BrunchChesapeake brunch$$$16 to $28downtownWeekend brunchReservations recommended

Gertrude's at the Baltimore Museum of Art runs a Chesapeake weekend brunch, plating crab Benedict and shrimp and grits on a terrace over the sculpture garden.

Order: Crab Benedict over the BMA sculpture-garden terrace.

Tip: Book the terrace for brunch overlooking the sculpture garden; the crab Benedict is the move.

10 Art Museum Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218

Thames Street Oyster House ★ 4.7

Seafood$$$fells-pointWed-Sun 11:30-14:30, Mon-Thu 16:30-21:30, Fri-Sat 16:30-22:30, Sun 16:30-21:30

Thames Street Oyster House in Fells Point runs Baltimore's deepest raw bar, with chef Eric Houseknecht's Eastern Shore crab cake and a lobster roll.

Signature: Eastern Shore crab cake, Raw bar oysters, Lobster roll

Order: The Eastern Shore crab cake, broiled with almost no filler, and a half-dozen from the raw bar.

Tip: Reserve the upstairs dining room for quiet; the downstairs bar takes walk-ins and pours through a deep oyster list.

1728 Thames Street, Baltimore, MD 21231 Book →

True Chesapeake Oyster Co. ★ 4.1

Chesapeake$$hampden{'Mon': 'closed', 'Tue': '17:00-23:00', 'Wed': '17:00-23:00', 'Thu': '17:00-23:00', 'Fri': '17:00-23:00', 'Sat': '17:00-23:00', 'Sun': '11:00-21:00'}

True Chesapeake Oyster Co. is a chesapeake room in Hampden. Ask which farm harvest is freshest; the oysters come from the restaurant's own beds.

Why locals love it: Tucked inside the Whitehall Mill complex away from the dining strips, serving oysters from the restaurant's own St. Jerome Creek farm.

Tip: Ask which farm harvest is freshest; the oysters come from the restaurant's own beds.

3300 Clipper Mill Road, Baltimore, MD 21211

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