Sweet Corn Crab Cakes with Lemon Dijon Dipping Sauce: Traditional crab cakes, air fried and lightened up with the extra crunch of sweet corn kernels.
All about these sweet corn crab cakes
These crab cakes are very traditional, but the addition of sweet corn kernels really adds an extra element of flavor. These crab cakes are air fried; even though this recipe doesn’t call for oil or butter, it’s not lacking in flavor. Mix jumbo lump crab meat with panko breadcrumbs, an egg, almond milk, sweet corn kernels, scallions, and seasoned salt. Air fry these crab cakes for a crispy outside texture and tender inside. The lemon dijon dipping sauce adds an extra level of flavor to this already-delicious dish. Serve these as an appetizer, or pair these with potatoes and a vegetable for a delicious and filling main course.
I love making these crab cakes in the summer time, especially since I can avoid turning on my oven and use my air fryer. The options for side dishes are plentiful here, but I really love serving these over mixed greens (I use the lemon dijon dipping sauce as a dressing over the greens). They pair perfectly with potatoes or French fries, too. It’s the ultimate summer dinner.
What you’ll need to make sweet corn crab cakes
Here’s what you’ll need to make this recipe:
- jumbo lump crab meat
- panko breadcrumbs
- sweet corn kernels (frozen or canned works fine here)
- my favorite corn is frozen corn from Trader Joe’s
- an egg
- almond milk
- a lemon
- scallions
- seasoned salt
- light mayo
- dijon mustard
Buying and working with crab meat
If you have never worked with or purchased crab meat before, do not be afraid. It’s probably one of the easiest ingredients you will ever work with. It is sold in a can, believe it or not. Even the highest quality lump crab sold at seafood markets is sold in a can.
This recipe calls for 16 oz of crab meat, which is typically the size of the cans. One can will be perfect for this recipe.
Before you add crab meat to any recipe, the general rule of thumb is to use your fingers and feel the meat. You want to get into the meat and feel around for any pieces of shell. Even the highest quality crab might have a stray piece or two of shell.
After that, there is no other preparation required. You can just dump the picked-through crab meat right into your mixing bowl and get to work! Like I said, it’s one of the easiest ingredients to work with. Once you use it, you’ll find yourself always wanting to make it again.
How to make sweet corn crab cakes
Grab a mixing bowl and get to work! All you need to do is combine the lump crab meat, corn, egg, milk, the zest of a lemon, seasoned salt, and chopped scallions. I find that using my hand as a mixer works best here, similar to mixing burger meat.
Mix the ingredients thoroughly, and then form equal-sized balls. They should be approximately 1/2 cup each in size. Once you form balls with the mixture, press them to form patties and place them to the side on a plate or cutting board.
Spray the basket of your air fryer with cooking spray; for a recipe like this, I like using olive oil spray or avocado oil spray. Working in batches, gently transfer three of the patties to the air fryer basket. Spray the tops again with your cooking spray. Air fry at 400F for 15 minutes. Flip the patties halfway and spray the tops again.
Note: you will lose some corn kernels along the way, and that is totally normal! Don’t worry if they don’t come out perfect.
What if I don’t have an air fryer?
Any recipe that calls for an air fryer can be done in a convection oven as well- the same time and temperature guidelines apply. Just make sure you keep your eye on them.
When I use the oven instead of the air fryer, I also like to make sure that I use a wire rack fitted on top of my baking sheet. This creates space underneath the wire rack, which acts similar to an air fryer when it comes to air circulation.
Making the dipping sauce and serving
To make the dipping sauce, combine the light mayo, dijon, and the juice of the lemon. Whisk together to combine thoroughly. To serve, place the crab cakes on a platter lined with mixed greens, and drizzle the dipping sauce on top. Or, if you prefer, you can arrange the crab cakes on a platter and serve the dipping sauce in the middle.
Sweet Corn Crab Cakes
Equipment
- air fryer
- mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 16 oz lump crab meat
- 1 egg
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs, plain, unseasoned
- 1 cup sweet corn kernels, canned or frozen; if using frozen, make sure you defrost it fully
- 1/4 cup almond milk, unsweetened
- 2 teaspoons seasoned salt
- 2 scallions, chopped
- 1 lemon, zested
Dipping Sauce
- 1/3 cup light mayo
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 lemon, juiced
Instructions
Crab Cakes
- Combine the crab meat, drained corn, breadcrumbs, milk, egg, seasoned salt, lemon zest, and scallions in a mixing bowl.
- Mix the ingredients together using your hands.
- Form six equal-sized balls of the mixture, approximately 1/2 cup each in size.
- Flatten each ball to form patties.
- Working in batches, spray the basket of your air fryer with cooking spray and place three of the patties in the basket.
- Spray the tops with more cooking spray and air fry at 400F for 15 minutes, flipping halfway, spraying again.
- Repeat this process with the second batch.
- If using the oven, use the same temperature and time guidelines.
Dipping Sauce
- Combine the mayo, dijon, and lemon juice in a bowl and whisk together.
- Drizzle on top of the crab cakes or serve alongside for dipping.
Notes
- Green Plan:
- 4 WW points for 1
- 8 WW points for 2, including sauce
- Blue or Purple Plans:
- 2 WW points for 1
- 4 WW points for 2, including sauce
Nutrition
If you like crab, check these other crab recipes out:
2nd meal this week I’m trying your recipes. My husband said wow this is great about 4 times during dinner. I was a little nervous to add corn to the crab cakes but it was so good!!
The presentation on these is amazing. Crab pairs great with corn. I don’t have an air fryer, I think these would still cook up nicely in the oven or on the stovetop.
Looks yummy, making these tonight for dinner! When I put the nutritional information into the WW calculator it comes to 4 ww points on blue for 1 crab cake and ww points for 2 crab cakes?
These were delicious! My husband said they were better than ones from a restaurant!
Restaurant quality!!
Tried these for the first time the other day. Easy peasy recipe so loaded with flavor! I can’t believe how easy they were to make. They taste like you’ve spend the day making them! Definitely restaurant quality! Thank you Steph!
Where do you get your crab meat?
I was super nervous to work with the crabmeat but trusted that if it was a recipe of Steph’s it’d be simple and delicious. And this recipe did just that. So yummy! Husband approved as well!
Made these tonight for dinner. So easy and so fresh tasting. We had it with a large tossed salad with lemon vinaigrette. Perfect for a hot summer dinner.
These are fabulous!!! I can’t emphasize enough how tasty these are. I live on the NC coast so am quite familiar with crab cakes and these are hands down the best I have ever made or even had foe that matter. Make these ASAP! Thank you, Steph!!
Delicious & EASY to make! The whole family loved them!