The best easy and quick Vegan Crab Cakes with Dill Sauce recipe. Chickpeas and hearts of palm with a dash of sea weed give these fritters an authentic crab taste and texture. You can easily make these plant-based crab crab gluten free by swapping out the bread crumbs with a gluten-free variety.
Hearts of Palm & Chickpeas
Hearts of palm are a magic vegetable! They’re like nature’s way of giving us a plant-based fish. This vegetable naturally has a subtle fish-like flavour and a flaky texture. It’s wild how much hearts of palm mimics the flaky flesh of a fish.
A major bonus of hearts of palm is that it also acts as a great protein-rich replacement for fish. It’s nutritious, low in calories but high in protein, fibre, manganese and a wide range of other essential nutrients. Like many canned foods, hearts of palm can tend to be high in sodium. By rinsing them off before consuming though is a quick and easy way to slash their sodium content.
Likewise, chickpeas also have a slight fish-like flavour resembling tuna. This is why so many vegan recipes use chickpeas for plant-based tuna salad. Mixed with the flaky texture of heart of palm, the combination gives your Vegan Crab Cakes with Dill Sauce an authentic ‘under the sea’ vibe.
Making Your Vegan Crab Cakes with Dill Sauce
Equipment:
• All you need to make this recipe is a food processor, hand blender or just a simple fork to mash up your mixture!
Making your mixture:
• Mash or blend the mixture enough so that it will hold together. At the same time, however, you want to leave your mixture with a bit of texture to it.
• If your mixture is not holding together well enough to make your patties simply chill it in the fridge or freezer for a little bit. A cold mixture will always hold together better.
Breading your crab cakes
• When dipping your crab cakes into the breadcrumbs, keep your fork (or fingers) clean after dipping each. You do not want to get the breadcrumbs wet with the chickpea mixture or the breadcrumbs won’t stick.
• This makes them hold together better when flipping to ensure both side are covered with breading, while making your crab cakes remain in tact.
Frying your crab cakes
• You do no need a ton of oil! Many crab cakes recipes have you cook your cakes in a sea of oil. For this recipe you only need a Tbsp or two in a non-stick pan.
• You can even get away with doing oil free if you choose.
• After flipping your crab cakes if your cakes loose their shape a bit you can reshape them with your spatula.
Serve your crab cakes with your cool and creamy dill sauce for the perfect plant-based seafood dish!
Vegan Chickpea Crab Cakes
Ingredients
Vegan Crab Cakes
- 1 can chickpeas (19 oz) drained and rinsed
- 1 can hearts of palm (19 oz) drained and rinsed
- 1 cup breadcrumbs divided
- 1 sheet seaweed chopped
- 1/4 cup vegan mayonaise
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp mustard
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 Tbsp oil
- 1 Tbsp capers for garnish
Lemon & Dill Sauce
- 4 Tbsp vegan mayonaise
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp dill fresh or dried
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Instructions
Vegan Crab Cakes
- To a food processor, add the chickpeas, hearts of palm, chopped nori, vegan mayonnaise, lemon juice, paprika, mustard, salt, and pepper.
- Pulse 3-4 times to mix and break up the chickpeas and hearts of palm. Do not over mix, as you want there to be texture.
- Add in 4-5 Tbsps of breadcrumbs to the mixture and stir.
- Divide the mixture into 10 portions and use your hands to form 10 small patties. (It's easier to ensure they hold together in the pan when frying/flipping when smaller in size).
- Dip both sides of your patties in a shallow bowl filled with the bread crumbs.
- Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat.
- When hot add the patties, and fry 5-7 minutes per side until golden brown.
- Serve hot with a side of Lemon Dill Sauce and capers.
Lemon & Dill Sauce
- Combine all ingredients in a small mixing bowl.
- Serve overtop of Crab Cakes or in a small dip bowl.
Looking for more plant-based seafood recipes? Try my Vegan Hearts of Palm Fish Tacos with a spicy mayo sauce!
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