Join Richie and the crew as they kick off a new season of Wild at Home with an old favorite, crab cakes. Homemade mayonnaise, avocado dipping sauce, and some tips on crabbing those cakes.

Recipe

Prep time: 1 hr 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 2 hr
Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS

Homemade mayonnaise (optional):
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon fine grain salt
1 teaspoon cold water
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
¾ cup canola oil (or any neutral oil)

Avocado dipping sauce:
1 ripe avocado, peeled and pitted
¼ cup packed cilantro, leaves and stems
¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
1 teaspoon Champagne or white wine vinegar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon green Tabasco (or other hot sauce)

Crab cakes:
¼ cup homemade mayonnaise (or Hellman’s)
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons finely diced celery
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 scallion, thinly sliced
½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1 ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
½ pound crab meat from 2 Dungeness crab clusters (about 1 cup)
Neutral oil for frying
Lemon wedges for serving

DIRECTIONS

MAKE MAYONNAISE
In a small bowl add egg yolk, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt, water, and vinegar whisk until frothy. While continuing to whisk, start to add small drops of oil to begin the emulsion process. Add very small amounts of oil at a time until you have used about half the oil. Then you can start adding slightly larger amounts of oil while you continue to whisk. Stop whisking when oil is gone. The finished emulsion should have the consistency of mayonnaise. For added ease use a condiment squeeze bottle to add oil.

MAKE DIPPING SAUCE
In a blender add all ingredients and blend until smooth. Transfer to a serving dish, cover, and refrigerate until crab cakes are ready to serve.

MAKE CRAB CAKES
In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, celery, parsley, scallion, lemon zest, 1/4 cup of panko and season with salt and pepper. Gently fold in the crab meat and form into 2-inch patties, about 1-inch thick. Chill for 1 hour. Remove from refrigerator and coat crab cakes with the remaining panko. In a large skillet over medium-high heat add 1/4 inch oil and heat to about 375°F. Fry the cakes, turning once, until golden all over, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain on paper towels, sprinkle with salt, and serve with lemon wedges.