Crab Salad (Maryland)

Andi of Longmeadow Farm's Note:

This is a personal recipe -- tried and true -- made time and time again. I use this in the good ol summa' time, but can be used during the rest of the year as well. Normally, I buy "cold steamed blue crabs" from our local fish market, that are bursting with flavor after resting in the unique Maryland seasoning. I pick the meat, and make this cooling, refreshing salad. It is also great served on a saltine or toast points. Usually though, I just place atop a garden fresh lettuce leaf, and grab a cracker or two with it. If you get the time, marinate the crab meat in 1 tablespoon of Italian dressing for about 1 hour prior to gently folding together. If you don't get the time, that's okay too! Just *enjoy* You can substitute lobster, shrimp, or even conch meat.

• Total Time: 20 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 1 lb crabmeat , fresh (can use other suggested seafood)
• 1 tablespoon Italian dressing (to marinate the crab)
• 1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning (to taste, if prefer spicy go up to 1 tablespoon)
• ½ cup mayonnaise (important to use Dukes or Hellman's)
• ¼ cup red pepper , diced
• ¼ cup celery , diced
• 1 small spring onion , minced
• ¼ teaspoon celery seed
• 1⁄8; teaspoon dry mustard (Dijon can be subbed)
• 1⁄8; teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 dash Tabasco sauce (add more for additional spicy taste)

Directions:

1. Carefully comb through crab meat for any extra shells.
2. Making sure not to break up crab, marinate crab pieces with Italian dressing for about 1 hour. But if you don't get a chance, ten minutes works well too.
3. Mix all other ingredients in a medium bowl thoroughly.
4. Add crab meat mixture to mayonnaise mixture and mix with spatula, again not to break up pieces.
5. You can either cool in fridge for an hour or two, or you can eat directly.

Reviews

[llangrove]

Wonderful! I used imitaion crab meat and I added 1 can of quality crab meat. Otherwise, I followed the recipe. I served on a bed of lettuce and with cottage cheese. This is a great salad for the hazy, hot and humid days of summer! Thanks Andi.

[BlackGrandma]

This is an AWESOME recipe. Made for a big Birthday gathering and had to stop in the middle of the party and print off copies of the recipe. I made it with imitation crabmeat and salad shrimp. Added a little extra Italian dressing because the imitation crabmeat soaked it up. BOY.........the Itailian Dressing makes such a big difference. My oldest GS wants to make sub sandwiches with this recipes. THIS IS A KEEPER. Thanks for the GREAT recipe.

[LunchBunch Wagner]

This is an excellent recipe! We made it to eat on hoagie rolls like a lobster roll. Substituted shrimp and just diced them up coarsely. I've been looking for "salad" recipe that he would actually eat, i.e. tuna, chicken, to no avail. I talked him into trying this one and he LOVED it! Kudos and thanks!