Crab dip, sometimes referred to as Maryland crab dip,
is a thick, creamy
dip that is typically prepared from
cream cheese
Cream cheese is a soft, usually mild-tasting fresh cheese made from milk and cream.Oxford English Dictionary Stabilizers such as carob bean gum and carrageenan are often added in industrial production.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration de ...
and lump
crab meat
Crab meat or crab marrow is the meat found within a crab. It is used in many cuisines around the world, prized for its soft, delicate and sweet taste. Crab meat is low in fat and provides around of food energy per serving. Brown crab (''Canc ...
.
Other primary ingredients such as mayonnaise may be used. Various types of crab preparations, species and superfamilies are used, as are a variety of added ingredients. It is typically served hot, although cold versions also exist.
Hot versions are typically baked or broiled. It is sometimes served as an
appetizer
An hors d'oeuvre ( ; french: hors-d'œuvre ), appetiser or starter is a small dish served before a meal in European cuisine. Some hors d'oeuvres are served cold, others hot. Hors d'oeuvres may be served at the dinner table as a part of the m ...
.
Accompaniments may include crackers and various breads. Some U.S. restaurants offer crab dip, commercially produced varieties exist, and some stadiums offer it as a part of their concessions.
Ingredients
Fresh, frozen or canned
crab meat may be used in the preparation of crab dip.
Different types of crab meat may be used, such as jumbo lump,
lump
backfin,
leg
and claw, among others. Various types of crab species and superfamilies are also used, such as
blue crab Blue crab may refer to:
* Blue Crab 11, an American sailboat design
* ''Callinectes sapidus'' – Chesapeake or Atlantic blue crab of the West Atlantic, introduced elsewhere
* '' Cardisoma guanhumi'' – blue land crab of the West Atlantic
* '' Dis ...
,
Dungeness crab
The Dungeness crab (''Metacarcinus magister'') is a species of crab inhabiting eelgrass beds and water bottoms along the west coast of North America. It typically grows to across the carapace and is a popular seafood. Its common name comes f ...
and Alaska
king crab
King crabs are a taxon of decapod crustaceans chiefly found in cold seas. Because of their large size and the taste of their meat, many species are widely caught and sold as food, the most common being the red king crab (''Paralithodes camtsch ...
,
among others.
Some versions may use mayonnaise, other types of cheese, such as pepper jack cheese, brie cheese or Cheddar cheese instead of or in addition to cream cheese as primary ingredients.
Some may incorporate other
seafoods in addition to crab, such as
imitation crab,
,
and
surimi.
Additional ingredients may include mushrooms, artichoke, onion, green onion, shallot, green pepper, bread crumbs (such as
panko
Bread crumbs or breadcrumbs (regional variants including breading and crispies) consist of crumbled bread of various dryness, sometimes with seasonings added, used for breading or crumbing foods, topping casseroles, stuffing poultry, thicken ...
),
heavy cream and others.
Bread crumbs may be used to top the dish, which may be browned during the cooking process creating a crust.
Sometimes Parmesan cheese is combined with the bread crumbs.
Some versions use
Old Bay Seasoning
Old Bay Seasoning is a blend of herbs and spices that is marketed in the United States by McCormick & Company and originally created in Baltimore, Maryland.
The seasoning is a mix of celery salt (salt, celery seed), spices (including red pep ...
as an ingredient to add flavor, and some are prepared spicy with the addition of ingredients such as hot sauce and red pepper.
Preparation and service
Some U.S. restaurants offer crab dip on their menus.
Commercially
mass-produced
Mass production, also known as flow production or continuous production, is the production of substantial amounts of standardized products in a constant flow, including and especially on assembly lines. Together with job production and ba ...
crab dips are also
manufactured
Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a ran ...
.
Crab dip can be prepared in advance, refrigerated, and cooked at a later time.
It may be served in bread that has been hollowed-out, such as a sourdough loaf.
Crab dip may be served with crackers,
flatbread,
pita bread, bread,
crostino
Crostini (meaning "little crusts" in Italian; singular ''crostino'') are an Italian appetizer consisting of small slices of grilled or toasted bread and toppings. The toppings may include a variety of different cheeses, meats, vegetables and c ...
, pretzels and sliced vegetables, among other accompaniments.
toaster oven
A toaster is a small electric appliance that uses radiant heat to brown sliced bread into toast.
Types
Pop-up toaster
In pop-up or automatic toasters, a single vertical piece of bread is dropped into a slot on the top of the toaster ...
File:Baked crab dip (2).jpg, alt=Crab dip served with vegetables, Crab dip served with vegetables
Stadium concessions
The
Nationals Park
Nationals Park is a baseball stadium along the Anacostia River in the Navy Yard neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Home to Major League Baseball's Washington Nationals since its completion in 2008, it was the first LEED-certified green major profe ...
baseball park in the Navy Yard neighborhood of
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, the home ballpark for the
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...
, offers a sandwich prepared with a
half-smoke
A half-smoke is a "local sausage delicacy" found in Washington, D.C., and the surrounding region. Similar to a hot dog, but usually larger, spicier, and with more coarsely-ground meat, the sausage is often half-pork and half-beef, Smoking (cooki ...
, Maryland crab dip and Virginia ham called "The DMV" as part of its concessions.
It was reported in August 2014 that
Byrd Stadium
SECU Stadium is an outdoor athletic stadium on the campus of the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland. It is the home of Maryland Terrapins football and men's lacrosse teams, which compete in the Big Ten Conference. The facility was ...
on the campus of the University of Maryland in
College Park, Maryland
College Park is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, and is approximately four miles (6.4 km) from the northeast border of Washington, D.C. The population was 34,740 at the 2020 United States Census. It is best known ...
planned to offer a large soft pretzel baked with crab dip and melted cheese that serves four people as part of its concessions.
Byrd Stadium also offers other foods prepared with crab, such as nachos and "crab fries".
See also
*
Clam dip
*
List of crab dishes
This is a list of crab dishes. Crabs live in all the world's oceans, in fresh water, and on land, are generally covered with a thick exoskeleton and are arthropoda and have a single pair of claws. Crab meat is the meat found within a crab. It is ...
*
List of dips
*
List of hors d'oeuvre
This is a list of notable hors d'oeuvre, also referred to as appetisers or starters, which may be served either hot or cold. They are food items served before the main courses of a meal, and are also sometimes served at the dinner table as a part ...
References
External links
* {{commons category-inline
Dips (food)
Condiments
Baked foods
Snack foods
Crab dishes