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This cheesy, hot crab dip is truly unbelievable! It’s a super easy, creamy appetizer made with crab, green onions, cream cheese, mayo, and cheese. It’s naturally low carb, keto, and gluten free, and is great for tailgating, holidays, or entertaining.
What Makes This Recipe So Good
- It’s a creamy hot crab dip. Not “hot” like “spicy”, but “hot” like “warm and gooey and oven-baked”. If you’re looking for a little flavor-heat, though, you can add some Old Bay or cajun seasoning to your crab dip.
- It’s SO easy to make. Seriously, just mix and bake. The hardest part of making this dip is not eating it all in one sitting. I won’t judge you if you do, though.
- This is a fantastic make-ahead recipe! Just mix all the ingredients together, spread the mixture in the skillet, then cover tightly and refrigerate until you’re ready to bake it! Let it sit out of the fridge for 15-20 minutes before baking, or increase your bake time if your dip is very cold when you put it in the oven.
- Need a party snack for New Year’s Eve or football season? Look no further! This cheesy baked crab dip is low carb and gluten free, so it works for a variety of dietary needs. Plus it’s delicious, and who doesn’t love delicious food?
What Do You Serve With This Dip?
Creamy and crunchy were meant to be together, if you ask me. I usually opt for blue corn tortilla chips, pita chips, buttery crackers, or homemade crostini.
To make crostini, slice a baguette and sprinkle with salt and bake about for 15 minutes in a preheated oven. Full instructions for homemade oven-baked crostini are in the recipe below. You can also make air fryer crostini using this air fryer garlic bread method from our sister site!
If you’re looking for a low-carb vessel for your crab dip, try a batch of cauliflower chips. The flavors compliment the dip nicely and you still get that great crunch without all the carbs!
Chef’s Tips
- I used canned crab meat in this recipe because it’s easy and more budget-friendly, but you can absolutely use fresh crab meat!
- For more heat, add in some Old Bay Seasoning, or sub the salt for Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning. Top it off with a few dashes of Louisiana hot sauce!
- Don’t be afraid to add more crab! Seriously, you can never go wrong with more crab meat. Depending on how much you add, you won’t need to make any adjustments to the other ingredients in the recipe.
More Tasty Appetizers & Party Foods
- Greek Appetizer Platter
- Creamy Clam Dip
- Crab Salad
- 3-Ingredient Sausage Dip (Stovetop or Crockpot)
- Fried Pickle Dip
- The Best Vegan Queso
- Perfect Keto Charcuterie Board
- Marry-Me 7 Layer Dip
- Bacon Wrapped Dates Recipe
- Beer Cheese Dip
- Sriracha Deviled Eggs
- Whole30 Grazing Board (Paleo, Dairy Free, Gluten Free)
- Creamy Herb Dip
- Cream Cheese Sausage Balls
- Guacamole Dip (Restaurant Style)
Creamy Hot Crab Dip
Ingredients
- 12 ounces cream cheese softened, 1 ½ blocks
- 6 green onions finely chopped
- 5 tablespoons mayonnaise ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon
- 2 6-ounce cans crabmeat 12 ounces total, drained
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup shredded white cheddar cheese or shredded mozzarella, divided
- sliced green onions for garnish
- crackers, chips, celery, or crostini for serving, see Notes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit (175° C).
- In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, onion, mayonnaise, crabmeat, garlic powder, salt, and ½ of shredded cheese. Stir until very well combined.
- Spread into a small 6-inch cast-iron skillet or 1 quart baking dish. Top with other ½ cup cheese.
- Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven or until bubbly.
- Turn broiler on and broil until cheese on top is browned in spots.
- Remove from oven and let sit 5-10 minutes before serving. The dip will be very hot.
Video
- To make crostini: Cut a baguette into 1/2″ slices. Preheat oven to 350º and arrange slices in a single layer on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and bake about 15 minutes, or until tops are just beginning to turn golden brown. Slices should feel very firm but not totally crisp yet. Let cool 10 minutes.
- For a gluten free appetizer, be sure to use gluten free bread, crackers, or chips.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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How long should I broil for?
Broil until the cheese on top is browned in spots!
Would adding chopped artichokes to this be good?
That sounds yummy! Let us know if you try it!
I have a question not that I’m going to do it, but just in case, would this work with imitation crab if finely diced?
It would!
Can you freeze this before baking?
We haven’t tried freezing it first, but the texture and consistency of the cream cheese and mayo can change a lot after freezing, so I’d recommend making it fresh when you plan to serve it if possible.
I’ve made this a couple of times. Sometimes I substitute one of the cans of crab for shrimp. Delicious. Every time.
That sounds great, Donna! So glad you enjoyed!
Could you make this with dairy free cream cheese and dairy free shredded cheese?
We haven’t tested it so we can’t say for sure, but I don’t see why not! If you try it, let us know how it turns out!
Some canned crab includes chunkier pieces of leg meat and others do not and it’s just finely shredded miscellaneous crab meat. Which do you recommend? What do you use?
You can use whichever you prefer! They’ll both work well here, so it’s just a matter of what texture you want for your dip. The finely shredded crab meat will give you a creamier dip, and the chunkier crab meat will give you a… well, chunkier dip! You can also use containers of claw meat or lump crabmeat instead of canned crabmeat if you prefer.
Can you use imitation crab?
Yes, you can!
I made this just for a snack and it was delicious love it and will make it again
So glad to hear it! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
How would you recommend doing this in the crockpot??
You could just add all of the ingredients to the slow cooker and cook on low for 4 hours, or on high for 2. Just give a good stir every now and again to prevent anything sticking to the bottom and burning. As long as everything is melted and combined, it’s ready to serve!