These easy Vegan Crab Cakes are crispy on the outside and have flaky vegan “crab meat” on the inside. Served with lemon aioli for dipping, they make for an unforgettable party appetizer vegans and non-vegans will love!
Make it the best party ever with a spread full of easy vegan appetizers, like these crispy Zucchini Fritters, my popular Vegan Spinach Artichoke Dip, and this retro Vegan Cheese Ball.
If I had it my way, every dinner party or get-together would start with these golden Vegan Crab Cakes. Easy to make with hearts of palm and chickpeas, they’re a fancy-ish vegan appetizer featuring a crunchy breadcrumb coating and a flaky, Old Bay-seasoned “crab meat” center. It’s honestly shocking how much they look and taste like the real deal!
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“Absolutely delicious and makes a great amount – no skimpy cakes here! Will definitely make this recipe again.” – Hilary
Why you’ll love these vegan crab cakes
- Super simple ingredients – It’s amazing how canned hearts of palm, chickpeas, and Old Bay seasoning make these crab cakes scary similar to real seafood.
- Make-ahead-approved – Just shape the patties and freeze them for later! You can reheat them in no time in a skillet, air fryer, or toaster oven.
- Best party appetizer – I love serving these crispy crab cakes with my homemade Vegan Tartar Sauce at parties and get-togethers. It always feels like a vegan seafood extravaganza!
How to make vegan crab cakes
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Pulse the chickpeas and hearts of palm in a food processor until they’re broken down but not smooth. Transfer the mixture to a bowl.
Sauté the red bell pepper and onion until soft.
Add the cooked veggies to the bowl with the chickpeas/hearts of palm, along with the mayo, dijon mustard, Old Bay seasoning, salt, black pepper, panko breadcrumbs, and dill/parsley. Mix to combine.
Form the vegan crab mixture into patties.
Pan-fry the patties until they’re golden brown on both sides, then transfer them to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
While you wait, whisk the vegan lemon aioli ingredients together in a bowl.
Serve the warm vegan crab cakes with the lemon aioli on top or on the side for dipping. Enjoy!
Worried about them falling apart?
A few of my readers have tried chilling the patties in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before cooking to prevent them from falling apart. It works really well! Feel free to try it if you’re worried about them crumbling in the pan.
Frequently asked questions
I’ve tried this recipe with a can of artichoke hearts when I was out of hearts of palm, and the crab cakes were really tasty! I did notice an artichoke flavor, though.
A few of my readers have swapped the chickpeas with canned white beans (cannellini beans) and had good results.
Sure! For gluten-free vegan crab cakes, swap the panko breadcrumbs for gluten-free breadcrumbs.
Yes. Freeze the shaped patties on a parchment-lined baking sheet until solid, then transfer them to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw them in the fridge overnight before cooking.
The fried crab cakes are best served fresh, while they’re still hot and crispy. If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
To keep them crispy while reheating, warm up the leftover patties in a skillet with a little oil or in an oven/toaster oven/air fryer until warmed through.
Vegan Crab Cakes
Ingredients
Vegan crab cakes
- 15 ounce can chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 15 ounce can hearts of palm drained and rinsed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 large red bell pepper seeded and finely diced
- 1/2 medium sweet onion finely diced
- 3 tablespoons vegan mayo
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon Old Bay Seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped dill or parsley
- vegetable oil, for frying
Lemon aioli
- 1/2 cup vegan mayo
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
- salt + pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a food processor, add the chickpeas and hearts of palm to a food processor. Pulse a few times until broken down a bit but not smooth. You want to leave a lot of texture.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and set aside.
- In a small pan, sauté the red bell pepper and onion over medium heat in a tablespoon of olive oil until translucent and softened, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add the red bell pepper and onion to the bowl with the chickpeas/hearts of palm, along with the vegan mayo, dijon mustard, old bay seasoning, salt, black pepper, panko breadcrumbs and dill/parsley. Mix until well combined.
- Form into about 8 patties, about 1/2 inch thick.
- Heat a large pan (non stick or cast iron preferred) with a thin layer of oil. Fry the patties for about 4-5 minutes on each side, until golden brown.
- Transfer cooked patties to a plate lined with paper towels or a clean dish towel to soak up the extra oil.
- Lemon aioli: In a small bowl, whisk together the vegan mayo, lemon juice, sweet pickle relish and salt + pepper to taste.
- Serve the vegan crab cakes with lemon aioli and enjoy! Leftovers will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat in a pan on the stove, the air fryer or oven to make them crispy again.
Notes
- Nutrition information is an estimate only and does not include the lemon aioli, since how much you use will vary greatly and depend on what kind of vegan mayo you use. The estimate is for 1 of 8 crab cakes.
- Air fry – You can air fry the cakes instead of frying. Spray the basket with oil and air fry at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, flipping over once halfway through.
- Bake – Place the formed patties on a parchment lined pan and bake at 400 degrees F for about 20 minutes, flipping once halfway through.
- Gluten free – To make them gluten free, substitute gluten free breadcrumbs.
- If you can’t find hearts of palm, canned artichoke hearts work quite well.
I’ve made these a few times and they are absolutely delicious.
Could the mixture be prepared and then refrigerated for a few days before frying?
Thanks!
I’m so happy you love the crab cakes, Julie! Yes, you can make the mixture 1-2 days before cooking. Enjoy!
I made these today for dinner and they fell apart as they were cooking. What can I do different next time?
Sorry to hear that, Kelley! The crab cakes are delicate, so I would be very gentle the next time you give them a try. Otherwise, pack them very tightly in your hands when forming the patties and feel free to add more breadcrumbs if they’re too moist.
Very new to vegan living. Tried these and was so excited! They were great. I made some in the air fryer and some pan fried. All your recipes are fantastic! Thank you!
Hi Lisa. Thank you for sharing your feedback! I’m so glad that you loved the crab cakes, and are enjoying my recipes! Enjoy your journey! Happy cooking!
Added a diced celery stalk, did the stove top pan frying method, and it was totally delicious. Me and hubs both loved this recipe!
I think next time will try adding alfalfa sprouts for an even “crabbier” texture.
I’m glad you guys loved the crab cakes! Let me know how the alfalfa sprouts go when you try it! Thank you for your wonderful feedback and review!
Can you make these ahead and cook them later the same evening?
Yes you can! Enjoy!
These came out great! I made them in the air fryer to make them lower points on WW. Due to people mentioning the mixture being “too wet”, I dried out the hearts of palm ahead of time similar to what you do to tofu, in a towel with weight on top for 20-30 minutes before adding to the food processor. The cakes held up great for me.
Thank you for sharing your great review and ideas! I’m glad the crab cakes turned out great for you!
I made this tonight and they were a hit! My wife and son both loved it. I have a question about the crab cakes – they seemed quite moist even after pan frying. Should I have done something different?
I would say the crab cakes are pretty moist, yes. Did you use panko breadcrumbs and drain the chickpeas and hearts of palm well?
These are wonderful. I made them for the second time and this time made the lemon aioli sauce, too. Lovely flavors. Thank you, Nora!
This is ‘date-night’ worthy & great for company, so I’ve made this recipe quite a lot. I like uniform patties & to easily achieve this, I use one of my plastic BALL mason jar cover lined with plastic wrap as the mold – press firmly & this makes 8 perfectly uniform sized & shaped patties.
I use my BALL mason jar cover when I make your grillable burgers also.
Thank you for sharing all your perfectly delicious recipes.
I love your mason jar cover mold idea! Thank you! I appreciate you taking time to share your fantastic review and comments. I’m thrilled you are loving the crab cakes! Thank you for using my recipes, and happy cooking!
Hi Nora,
Love your site. Thank you for caring and sharing. Do you take the skins of the chickpeas?
Like ALL of Nora’s recipes, this one is delicious! I did mine in the air fryer and it does not disappoint!
Thanks for sharing your wonderful review and comments, Jane! I’m so glad you loved the crab cakes!
My daughter fixed these for a family supper and they were delicious! Her oldest son dubbed them “Fab Cakes”
LOL! That’s great! Thanks for sharing your wonderful and review and very fun comments!
These are amazing! Full of flavor and the texture is spot on. Thank you for sharing, everything I’ve tried on your site has been so delicious!
Thanks for sharing your comments! I’m glad you loved the crab cakes! Thanks for using my recipes, and I’m glad you are loving them!
Absolutely loved these, the flavors were wonderful!!
I am considering adding a binder next time to help them from crumbling. Would you recommend flax meal and h2o or do you think “JUST Egg” would work better? Thank you!!
I haven’t tried either because I didn’t find it necessary, but you could try Just Egg or flax eggs I suppose. It will make them more wet, so I’m not sure.
These were a hit with me and my 2.5 yr old. I never had old bag spice before and the patties came out spicier than expected, but she still liked them with ketchup. I cooked the onion and red pepper much longer so they would become nice and soft (my 2 yr old doesn’t like crunchy veggies) I first tried to cook them on the stove but they completely fell apart when I tried to flip them. Perhaps I didn’t process the chickpeas and palm hearts quite enough? Luckily I only formed 2 patties in advance so I added a flax egg to the remaining mixture (using 2.5 tbsp water, microwave mixture for 30 sec and stir to let a lot of water evaporate) then I baked the patties in the oven and they turned out superb! I also subbed yogurt for mayo in the aioli sauce since the patties were already kinda greasy, and I added extra sweet relish.
I’m glad you guys loved the crab cakes! Thanks for sharing your review!
We have made these 3 times since you posted them. Out of this world! Have shared w/ many friends already.
Thank you!
That’s so great! I’m glad you are loving them! Thanks for sharing your terrific review and comments!
Just made my 2nd batch. Can these be frozen? Thank you .
I haven’t tried freezing them but I think it will work just fine.
These were packed full of flavor! Is it ok to freeze un-cooked leftover mix? I doubled the recipe so we could indulge in big fat crab cakes but have 6 patties left over that I didn’t cook yet. They’re in press and seal, refrigerated but I would prefer to freeze if it should keep!
I don’t see why you couldn’t freeze the leftover uncooked mix. It should be fine! So glad you enjoyed them, thanks!
Nora,
I just made these and they are delicious! The texture is awesome. My husband and I just love them and will make them again and again.
Thank you!
Jeannie
I’m thrilled that you guys love the crab cakes, and plan on making them often! Thank you so much for taking time too share your review! Happy cooking!
Absolutely delicious. Just made these and they were fantastic. Didnt have all the ingredients for lemon aoile sauce so went without. Pan fries them they were so good. Thank you
Thanks for sharing your review! I’m so glad you loved the crab cakes!
These were really delicious, Nora! I’ve never had actual crab, as I am allergic to seafood. But I loved the texture and flavor! I have a strong aversion to mayo, so I subbed tahini instead. I didn’t make the aioli, just served the cakes with a spicy brown mustard. I will definitely make these again!
Hi Coby. I’m thrilled you loved the recipe! Thanks for your awesome review and feedback!
These were so good! Tasted like the real deal!!
Thanks for sharing your great review! Glad you loved them!
Nora these are amazing! Thank you so much. I love all your recipes so far!
Much Love,
From a Newbie Vegan!
Welcome to Nora Cooks, Adrieanna, and thank you for using my recipes! I’m glad you love the crab cakes! Thank you for sharing your review, and happy cooking!
Would it work to use a vegan yogurt, such as Kite Hill unsweetened almond in place of the vegan mayo? I am excited to try this!
Yes, that works quite well! Hope you enjoy!
These were amazingly delicious!! I didn’t have relish so I used some green chili salsa. Excellent!! Thank you once again!
You are welcome! I’m glad you found them delicious! Thanks for sharing your review on my new crab cake recipe!
Just made these for lunch and they are absolutely delicious!!!
Thanks Kait! I’m so glad you made them so quickly and enjoyed them! I know my family devoured them in about 5 minutes haha.