These are amazing! My hope was to have crab ball appetizer for our family Thanksgiving, but I became so consumed with preparing all of the sides, I just didn’t want to possibly ruin a pound of crab meat while I was in a rush; it’s not cheap. Well, Thanksgiving had passed by and I still needed to put it to use ASAP! Skimming a few recipes for crab balls provided many fried options. That’s not going to happen, so I decided on a bake/broil option. I found a recipe on Just A Pinch food blog with a Maryland theme (Baltimore Ravens Ragin’ Crab Balls) that somewhat resembled what I had in mind. With a few additions and omissions, this recipe for Maryland Crab Balls was born! O.K. I mean adapted.
There are variations of grades of crab meat available locally(www.phillipsfoods.com/all-about-crabs/). Did I say locally? Yeah,I live in Maryland close to the shore so access to the best abounds! My local produce market sells Lump, Gourmet Lump(?), Jumbo Lump and occasionally, other grades. The regular lump was chosen 1) because the pieces of crab meat were smaller and better suited for the size of the appetizers and 2) it was cheaper.
The regular lump mix was oh, so sweet! The smaller pieces were perfect in forming these crab balls. Larger chunks just wouldn’t roll well. I have great admiration for the pickers, or lack thereof due to certain visas not being issued this year, but nibbling a little without having to do the work was certainly appreciated. Upon removing from its container, press gently between your fingers to check for any shell remnants.
To add to the color, two mini-bell peppers were seeded and finely chopped then combined. They were exactly 2 tablespoons as the recipe required.
Blend all the ingredients together, except Panko crumbs and crab meat.
On top of the crab meat, sprinkle the Panko crumbs. Pour the blended mixture on top of the crumbs. With a wooden spoon, gently stir to thoroughly combine.
Using a medium cookie scoop, measure out the balls to be. Roll them between the palms of your hands and place on parchment paper-lined rimmed baking sheet,
Combine the coating ingredients in a small bowl. Roll the formed balls into the crumb mixture. Toss some crumbs on the top: roll again gently to press the crumbs into the crab balls.
Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour in the fridge. (This batch was actually in the fridge overnight prepped for a dinner party.) Allow to sit after removing from fridge for about 10-15 minutes. Spray with a mist of olive oil before placing in a 350 degree preheated oven. Bake for about 8-10 minutes. Switch to broil. The rack should be at least 7 inches from the pan. Watching carefully, broil for about 2-3 minutes until it starts to lightly brown. Take out of the oven and flip over. Broil for another 2 minutes.
Now these are ready to devour. Serve these with my Smoky Comeback Dipping Sauce . In place of the Smoky Paprika, I substituted more Old Bay seasoning, a last minute thought, because there is never enough Old Bay! The original sauce was served on my Maryland Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes this summer and it was fabulous!
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 30
- Crab Ball Mixture:
- 2 T. finely diced bell peppers, different colors
- 3 T. mayonnaise
- 2 t. Dijon mustard
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1-1/2 t. Old Bay seasoning
- 1 T. green onions, thinly sliced and finely chopped
- 2 t. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 pound lump crab meat
- ⅓ c. Panko breadcrumbs
- Coating Mixture:
- ⅔ c. Panko breadcrumbs
- 1 t. Old Bay seasoning
- 1 T. Italian parsley(flat-leafed), finely chopped
- Check crab meat for any shells and place in a bowl.
- Combine all the first seven ingredients.
- Sprinkle ⅓ cup of Panko crumbs over the crab meat.
- Pour the blended mixture over the crab and crumbs.
- Using a wooden spoon, gently combine it throughout the crab and crumbs.
- With a medium cookie scoop, form the preliminary balls.
- Roll into balls between the palms of your hands.
- Roll into coating mixture; gently toss more on top and gently press/roll into the balls. Place on parchment paper-lined rimmed baking sheet.
- Wrap with either plastic or foil and chill for at least an hour or more.
- Spray them with a mist of olive oil.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 8 minutes.
- To brown them, CAREFULLY broil for about 2 minutes(about 7" away from broiling element). Make sure you are WATCHING as you don't want these delicacies burnt! Turn balls over and broil another 2 minutes. WATCH!
- Serve immediately either by themselves or with a comeback dipping sauce. YUM!
