The Best Hot Crab Dip

My mom used to have a lot of parties when I was little….at least that’s what I remember. Tupperware, Home Interiors, Princess House, AVON. Who remembers Avon? And those little lipstick samples.

Those tiny little tubes of glamorous heaven, at least to me. I loved to steal the samples and stash them away in my room, then try everything on and attempt to sneak out of the house looking as if I was getting ready to go clubbing. But I was going to school. Elementary school.

Not quite the right environment for DIY makeup experiments when you’re 10 years old. But other than the Avon samples, I always loved the little appetizers my mom would serve, like crab rangoon dip and salt and vinegar chips. She used to serve a crab dip quite often and I loved when she served it hot with Homemade Tortilla Chips.

That ooey gooey, cheesy hot crab dip with hunks of crab perched on a cracker was almost better than those little tubes of lipstick.

Start with the Freshest Ingredients

There are so many recipes out there for creamy Hot Crab Dip but I like to keep it pretty simple to let the flavors of the crab and cheese really shine. It’s truly the most perfect appetizer.

• Fresh Crab meat – I always go for the fresh jumbo lump crabmeat since it’s the key ingredient. It’s meaty and succulent and has the best flavor but it’s also expensive. You can substitute with fresh lump crab meat, backfin crab meat, claw crab meat or even crab legs. I’m not a fan of imitation crab meat but have had other readers say they’ve used it in the comments with great results. You can find canned crab meat in your grocery store usually at the seafood counter.
• Sour Cream – A little tanginess from sour cream keeps the dip from being overly rich.
• Cream Cheese – As with almost all my cheese dips, I start with room temperature cream cheese. Use a full fat cream cheese and resist the urge to cut calories with a low-fat or fat-free cream cheese.
• Onion – I like to use a yellow onion or vidalia onion. You can dice onion for this dip or grate it on box grater if you don’t like chunks of onion in your dip.
• Mayonnaise – Use a good quality mayonnaise here and don’t reach for the jar of Miracle Whip.
• Cheese – I use a combination of cheddar cheese and pepper jack cheese. Be sure to use freshly grated cheese and not the kind of cheese in a bag. It will melt more easily without a grainy texture. For a hint of saltiness, add some freshly grated parmesan cheese to the mix.
• Garlic – Fresh garlic works best and it only takes a few seconds to mince garlic cloves.
• Worcestershire sauce – For a pop of umami, I love to use Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce.
• Hot Sauce – A few dashes of hot sauce adds a nice peppery bite but is not overly spicy. If you don’t have hot sauce on hand, you can use a bit of ground cayenne pepper.
• Lemon – Fresh lemon juice and lemon zest add freshness to the dip.
• Old Bay Seasoning, optional (lots of readers say they add it with great results!)

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How To Make Hot Crab Dip

This Cheesy Hot Crab Dip couldn’t be simpler to make, you’ll mix everything up in a bowl then spread it in a baking dish. Pop it in the oven for 20 minutes until melty and bubbling then serve hot.

1. Preheat oven to 325˚F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, mayonnaise and sour cream with a hand mixer until smooth.
3. Stir in the pepper jack, cheddar, onion, garlic, worcestershire, Tabasco, lemon juice, dry mustard, salt and pepper until thoroughly combined.
4. Fold in the crab meat and transfer to a small baking dish.
5. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and bubbling.

We love to serve our crab dip with pita chips, crostini, baguette slices or these sourdough crackers.

What is Hot Crab Dip?

Crab Dip, or Maryland Crab Dip, is a rich, creamy dip made with cream cheese and crab meat. Sometimes Old Bay seasoning is used for added flavor and shredded cheese for extra decadence. It can be served baked or cold. For it truly to be Maryland Crab Dip, you must add old bay seasoning.

I never got my hands on the exact crab dip recipe since my mom is no longer friends with the shellfish, so I came up with my own and I have to say, it is the BEST Hot Crab Dip in the world. Creamy, cheesy and slightly spicy from a bit of Tabasco sauce.

Ok, maybe a lot of Tabasco but it pairs perfectly with the whole deal. I added a bit of Pepper Jack cheese to the mix to up the heat just a bit but don’t worry, it’s not fire in your mouth spicy.

It’s just lends a bit of pep to the dip that is a welcome addition when you pop it in your mouth….making it the BEST Crab Dip…if you didn’t get that by the title.

It’s my recommendation to not replace the Jumbo Lump Crab in this recipe BUT if you’re trying to keep costs in check you can certainly use Backfin Crab meat in this recipe without compromising the flavor too much. Backfin crabmeat consists of some lump crab and broken pieces of body meat.

We like to serve our crab dip with crispy crostini but you can use crackers or vegetables.

How To Make Crab Dip In Advance

1. Simply assemble all the ingredients and mix together.
2. Spread in the baking dish you plan to serve it in.
3. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to bake.
4. Remove the plastic wrap and bake the crab dip right before serving.

Looking for even more easy dip recipes? Try these party favorites:

• The VERY BEST Buffalo Chicken Dip.…I’m not even kidding.
• This Hot Asiago Artichoke Dip is simple and amazing.
• Super easy Chili Cheese Dip makes use of leftover chili!
• Completely from scratch White Queso Dip is sooooo good!
• Want something sweet? Try this Fluffernutter Dip!
• Super easy Spinach Artichoke Dip recipe!
• WE LOVE this Swiss Cheese Fondue….and it’s ready in minutes!