Crab Fondue

Tasty hot crab dip appetizer with lump crab meat, cream cheese, mayo, and seasonings.

By
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.
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Updated May 11, 2022
Elise Bauer
Crab Fondue
Elise Bauer

My friend and neighbor Molly passed along her mother's recipe for crab fondue the other day. It's a tradition in her family to prepare this hot crab dip while everyone is gathered for the holidays.

Garrett and I whipped up a batch recently, adding wine, onion greens, and more spice to the original recipe.

As Molly says, it's "totally addictive"! Good for gatherings on cold winter days.

Crab Fondue Party
Elise Bauer

Crab Fondue

Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Total Time 25 mins
Servings 8 servings

We also peeled and chopped up bosc pears to use for dipping in this recipe. If you are avoiding wine, just use water to get to desired consistency.

Ingredients

  • 18 ounces cream cheese

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise

  • 1 teaspoon mustard (yellow or Dijon)

  • 2 tablespoons powdered sugar (or 1 tablespoon cornstarch if you want to skip the sugar)

  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

  • 2 teaspoons (or more to taste) Old Bay seasoning (or paprika with a little ground ginger and cayenne)

  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup dry white wine or dry sherry (optional)

  • 1 to 2 teaspoons lemon juice

  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest

  • 3/4 to 1 pound crab meat, fresh or canned

  • 1/4 cup chopped green onion greens, chives, or parsley

  • 1 loaf day-old French or Italian bread (best not fresh or it will fall apart when dipped), cut into 1-inch cubes

Method

  1. Make the fondue base:

    Slowly heat the cream cheese, mayonnaise, powdered sugar, garlic powder, Old Bay, lemon zest, and mustard in a double boiler until the cheese is completely melted.

    (If you don't have a double boiler, fill a saucepan a third of the way with water and bring to a boil, place a metal bowl over the saucepan. This will work as a double boiler.)

  2. Stir in the wine, lemon juice, crab, and onion greens:

    Slowly stir in the wine and lemon juice (adjust quantities to taste and desired consistency). Slowly stir in the crab meat and onion greens.

  3. Transfer to chafing dish or fondue pot:

    To serve, transfer to a heated chafing dish or fondue pot to keep warm.

    Serve with bread cubes and forks for dipping.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
540 Calories
35g Fat
35g Carbs
19g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories 540
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 35g 45%
Saturated Fat 15g 73%
Cholesterol 125mg 42%
Sodium 986mg 43%
Total Carbohydrate 35g 13%
Dietary Fiber 2g 7%
Total Sugars 6g
Protein 19g
Vitamin C 3mg 15%
Calcium 166mg 13%
Iron 2mg 12%
Potassium 324mg 7%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.