This is my favorite crab dip recipe! It’s unbelievably creamy, made with fresh crabmeat, and you can serve it hot with bubbly cheese or cold!
Not all crab dips are created equal. Growing up in Maryland, we’ve tried our fair share of crab dips and often find that they are too heavy and don’t have enough crab.
That’s why I’m excited to share this recipe with you, which calls for a generous 8 ounces of fresh crab meat and just enough cheese to create the perfect balance of flavor and texture. I love serving this with crusty bread for an amazing appetizer.
Key Ingredients
- Crab: We’ve made this recipe with blue crab and Dungeness crab, and both varieties work beautifully. The same goes for our favorite homemade crab cakes. I prefer fresh crab meat and don’t recommend imitation crab meat for this recipe. If you can find it, jumbo lump crab meat is incredible.
- Cream cheese: I use full-fat block cream cheese because it makes the dip incredibly rich and delicious.
- Heavy cream and sour cream: These ingredients add flavor and creaminess while lightening the texture of the cream cheese. Some recipes call for mayonnaise, but the sour cream makes our dip a little lighter on its feet.
- Green onion: We use green onions to add a hint of onion flavor to the dip without overpowering anything.
- Worcestershire sauce: A small amount of Worcestershire sauce adds another layer of flavor and makes creamy dips and sauces so much better. I also use Worcestershire sauce when making our smoked salmon dip (another favorite seafood dip).
- Old Bay and mustard powder: Our Maryland family members might disown us if we didn’t include Old Bay (plus, it’s delicious with the creamy dip and crab). The mustard powder adds a little bit of spice.
- Cheese: To replicate the cheesy crab dips we grew up with, we add some cheddar. I love using an English or Irish cheddar in this recipe.
Find the full recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Our Favorite Crab Dip
Tip 1: Mix the base first, then add the crab. A good crab dip should have noticeable chunks of crab meat, not just a hint of it. To achieve this, mix all your ingredients (cream, spices, green onion, sour cream, and cream cheese) until smooth. Then, gently fold in the crab last to keep those lovely lumps of crab intact.
Tip 2: Serve it hot (my favorite!). I love the melty, bubbly goodness of a hot crab dip. You’ll prepare it the same way as the cold version (below), but transfer the mixture to a baking dish. Top with a bit of extra cheese and bake for about 20 minutes, or until it’s bubbly and golden.
Tip 3: Serve it as a cold dip. This dip is also delicious served cold. After you’ve mixed everything, store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until it’s chilled. When cold, it’s more of a spread than a dip. It’s fantastic with fresh, crisp vegetables or spread on crackers and baguette slices.
More Crab Recipes
Easy Crab Dip
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- TOTAL
This creamy homemade crab dip recipe is a perfect appetizer for your next party or gathering. Serve it hot or cold (both are delicious). When baking this dip, make sure that you allow the dip to cool on the counter for 10 minutes before serving so it can thicken up a little. We love serving it with sliced bread, focaccia bread, sturdy kettle chips, homemade pita, or pita chips.
Watch Us Make the Recipe
You Will Need
8 ounces crab meat, fresh or pasteurized, from Blue Crabs or Dungeness Crabs (225g)
½ cup cream cheese, softened, 4 ounces (113g)
¼ cup heavy cream (60ml)
2 tablespoons sour cream (28g)
1 green onion, sliced, whites and greens separated
½ teaspoon Pickapepper or Worcestershire sauce, see notes
¼ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
¼ teaspoon Coleman’s mustard powder
5 tablespoons shredded English or Irish cheddar, divided (35g)
Directions
1Make the base: In a medium bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, Pickapeppa (or Worcestershire), mustard powder, and Old Bay seasoning until there are no lumps. Switch to a spoon, then stir in the cream cheese, sour cream, the white and light green parts of the green onion, and 2 tablespoons of the shredded cheddar.
2Add the crab meat: Drain the crab meat, if necessary, and pick through it for any rogue shells. Gently fold in the crabmeat, being careful to keep as many larger lumps of crab intact.
3For cold crab dip: Stir in 3 more tablespoons of cheddar cheese. Spoon the dip into a small serving dish and sprinkle the remaining green parts of the green onion on top. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
4For hot crab dip: Preheat your oven to 350°F (177°C). Spoon the dip into a small baking dish (an 8 to 10 ounce dish is perfect) and top with the remaining 3 tablespoons of shredded cheese. Bake on a small baking sheet to catch any drips, for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the dip is hot and bubbly. Let it cool for 10 minutes before serving, then sprinkle with the green parts of the green onion.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Storing: Keep homemade crab dip in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. We do not recommend freezing it.
- Pickapepper vs. Worcestershire: These are both umami-rich condiments used as a seasoning in soups, stews, and sauces. Pickapepper is a little thinner and a bit sweeter than the more savory Worcestershire, but in this recipe, they are interchangeable.
- Cheese: English-style and Irish-style cheddar is a bit sweeter than American-style cheddar. A great example in most US grocery stores is Kerrygold Dubliner cheese or Coastal English cheddar (we find it at Costco). You can use white American cheddar cheese as a substitute.
- For spicy crab dip: Add a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce to the mixture before baking or serving.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.
I haven’t tried this yet, but as a fellow Maryland girl, I’m sure your recipe won’t disappoint! Was just back home visiting family (we live in Florida now) and got to have blue crabs, crab cakes, scallops, rock fish, and oysters. My Maryland heart was so happy
You are going to love this recipe! 🙂
This recipe is absolutely delicious. I made it for the first time on a Tuesday. I didn’t have all the ingredients( old bay, cheddar & Worcestershire) but it was still pretty good. I went to the store the next day and got the needed items AND OMGOODNESS. Absolutely amazing!! I made the hot version and ate it with pita chips
I don’t have any mustard powder. Can I used actual Dijon mustard?
You, you may need to use a little more.
First timer…will give this site my respect and response going forward. Best regards.
Thank you a for this wonderful recipe. I am a Marylander and appreciate that you have not overwhelmed the sweet taste of the crab, as in so many other recipes. The only thing that would make this better would be to say, Use only Maryland blue crab meat LOL!
Haha. Blue crab is pretty delicious isn’t it. We moved across country a few years ago and have fallen in love with Dungeness. That said, blue crab will always be our fav 🙂