You’re going to love this vegan crab dip recipe from the new cookbook, Great Vegan BBQ Without a Grill by Linda and Alex Meyer. This dairy-free and gluten-free dip is wonderfully creamy and brimming with flavor.
You know you live in the Midwest when the official start of spring is immediately followed by a deluge of snow. At a time of year when I’m more than ready to be in flip-flops and tank tops, instead I spent Sunday shoveling my driveway.
Luckily, that doesn’t mean I can’t still enjoy some delicious vegan barbecue – even if my grill is currently hiding under a pile of white stuff.
My blogging buddies, Linda and Alex Meyer of Veganosity, also live in the Midwest. They are a mother/daughter duo that knows inclement weather can dictate how easily that outdoor grill gets used.
So they did us a solid by writing the cookbook, Great Vegan BBQ Without a Grill.
Great Vegan BBQ Without a Grill
Now you can nosh on vegan “honey” BBQ ribz, vegan baked beans, vegan pulled pork sandwiches with mushrooms, and not dogs while sitting in front of the fireplace or under a heated blanket.
In addition to hearty mains dishes, sandwiches, stuff-on-a-stick, and foil dinners, there are sides, salads, dips, and sauces to round things out.
This beautiful cookbook includes over 70 recipes with a mouthwatering photo for each one to really whet your appetite!
Today I’m sharing an appetizer from the book that would be great for your next vegan cookout or gathering.
This meatless crab dip recipe gets much of its flavor from one of my favorite all-purpose spice mixes, Old Bay Seasoning. (I especially love to use it in vegan crab cakes!)
Old Bay Seasoning is a blend of 18 spices, including red & black pepper, paprika, and celery seed. It’s that celery seed flavor that really dominates and keeps me coming back for more.
(Celery seed is my secret ingredient in vegan tuna salad!)
Crab dip often uses a base of mayonnaise or cream cheese. However, instead of turning to vegan mayo, this vegan crab dip recipe gets its creaminess by way of raw cashews.
Raw cashew tips
You’ll want to soak your raw cashews ahead of time, so that the cashews blend easily into a perfectly smooth backdrop.
Short on time? Here are some workarounds:
- You can cover the cashews in boiling water to soften them.
- I’ve even microwaved them in water for a minute or so, and then let them sit until it’s time to blend.
- Finally, if you’re really short on time and don’t have a high-speed blender, grind the dry raw cashews in a clean coffee grinder until they’re like a flour. Then add them to your standard blender with the remaining ingredients. That’s what I always used to do before I got a high speed blender. It’s an inexpensive workaround!
As for the crab-like part of this dip, Alex and Linda turn to jackfruit for its flaky, piece-y quality.
As I mentioned in my recent post on vegan BBQ sandwiches, jackfruit isn’t always my favorite stand-in for things like vegan pulled pork-style sandwiches, because of its softer texture.
(It’s great in jackfruit carnitas or vegan taquitos, though!)
In this dip, the jackfruit is all about adding body & flakiness rather than something to sink your teeth into.
How to find the right jackfruit
When you’re looking for jackfruit for this savory dip, you’ll want to use canned young jackfruit – that means it’s not ripe yet. Young jackfruit has a mild, neutral flavor and flaky texture, whereas ripe jackfruit has a flavor reminiscent of canned peaches.
When you’re looking for canned jackfruit, be sure to buy the kind packed in water or brine, not syrup. In this savory dip, a syrupy sweet canned jackfruit really wouldn’t work.
You can find canned jackfruit in Asian grocery stores. It’s also popping up in lots of mainstream grocery stores as well.
Trader Joe’s has young jackfruit in their canned food area. (It’s one of my favorite vegan Trader Joe’s products.) Occasionally it’s also on display with one of their barbecue sauces.
My local Hy-Vee and Co-op sells it in the international section near their Thai offerings.
How to use jackfruit
After you open the can, drain the jackfruit and give it a good rinse. Mild jackfruit can sometimes take on the metallic taste of the can itself. So you’ll want to rinse as much of that away as possible.
You can either break up the jackfruit with a fork or use a food processor. Your call. I used a food processor for this recipe, and it only took seconds until it was perfectly piece-y.
Just dump the drained jackfruit into the food processor, blitz it for a few seconds, and you’re good to go.
This delightfully creamy dip is a good one to make ahead of time, because the flavors get even better as they have a chance to meld.
Serve this savory vegan crab dip with toasted bread slices, crackers, or vegetables.
Jacked up vegan crab dip
Ingredients
- 2 cups raw cashews soaked in 2 cups (480 ml) water overnight
- 1 large clove garlic
- ¼ cup unsweetened cashew milk or other vegan milk
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- ½ teaspoon ground sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 14-ounce can young jackfruit packed in water
Instructions
- Drain and rinse the cashews and put into a high-powered blender or food processor.
- Add the garlic, cashew milk, lemon juice, mustard, Old Bay seasoning, salt, paprika and onion powder and blend for approximately 2 minutes (scrape the sides frequently), or until it’s smooth and velvety. You shouldn’t see or taste pieces of solid nuts. Scrape the cashew mixture into a medium bowl.
- Drain and rinse the jackfruit well. Shred the jackfruit with a fork or in a food processor and put in the bowl with the cashew mixture. Gently fold until fully combined.
- Serve with crackers, toast or sliced vegetables.
Marlene
Oooooh, ok. NOW I get how to cook with that canned Jackfruit. I’ve tried making things with it before, stuff like simple tacos, etc, and did not know you were supposed to shred it. I figured there was some cooking process I was missing, like sauteing it in the pan or boiling, to get it to shred up like I’ve seen when I have bought it at restaurants. I’ve just had an “aha” moment and now cannot wait to try this recipe with my new found knowledge! This looks like it is going to be super yummy!
Cadry
I’m so glad it was helpful, Marlene! For things like tacos, I usually just shred it in a bowl with a fork before cooking. This was the first time that I used a food processor. It makes the jackfruit extra shredded, which is good for vegan crab. I hope you enjoy the dip!
Linda from Veganosity
Cadry, thank you so much for the wonderful review of our book and crab dip recipe. We couldn’t be more thankful. We’re so happy you enjoyed the dip and hope you make more BBQ recipes as the weather eventually begins to warm up.
Cadry
My pleasure, Linda! Thank you for writing such a beautiful book and allowing me to share one of the delicious recipes. I look forward to trying more from it as the weeks pass!
Diane
Any suggestions as to what we can substitute Old Bay seasoning with here in the UK – recipe looks delicious and I’d love to try it.
Cadry
That’s a great question, Diane! If you Google it, there are lots of Old Bay seasoning recipes to make your own spice mix. However, this vegan crab dip only uses a half teaspoon of Old Bay seasoning. So I’d probably just eyeball it with some celery salt, paprika, red and black pepper to taste.
Sarah De la Cruz
Oh my goodness, we had snow today too! It was just a flurry/hail/graupel mix, but c’mon! It’s April! Also, we’ve been known to put our deck umbrella over our grill so that we can grill because….Seattle. Sigh. Can’t wait to try some of the recipes in this book! I have my eye on the bratwurst! YUM!
Cadry
Yes, this winter is really dragging on! I’m so over the gloomy, gray skies. The bratwurst do look really good. Speaking of bratwurst, did you see that Beyond Meat is also coming out with vegan bratwurst? Everyone was raving about them at Expo West this year. I can’t wait to try them!
Annie
Any suggestions for jackfruit substitutes? I’m dying to try to recipe but can’t seem to find jackfruit anywhere in the city of Chicago!
Cadry
Oh, no! I’m so surprised that you can’t find jackfruit in Chicago. Have you tried Trader Joe’s? They sell their own canned Trader Joe’s jackfruit now. It’s near their other canned goods. It’s becoming so popular, even in a small town like where I live, most Asian grocery stores, natural grocery stores in the Asian section, and even mainstream ones have it. Barring that, I’d try using hearts of palm. It has a similar flaky texture that would work well here. For a more processed option, cooking Gardein crab cakes and then crumbling them would also work. I make vegan crab rangoon with them, and they’re terrific. Best of luck to you!
Jenn
We have been loving this book! I made this crab dip, too, and it’s straight addictive! So good! Perfect for parties.
Cadry
I agree!
Lauren Vaught
Hi Cadry,
I work with jackfruit quite a bit, and really like this recipe idea. I’m wondering if you’ve every baked it, and served it warm??
Cadry
I’ve never done that, Lauren, but it sounds like a great idea! My only thought is that it may dry out in the oven since the recipe wasn’t developed with that in mind. So I’d probably keep an eye on it and add more liquid, if necessary. Let me know if you try it! I’m curious to hear how it goes.
Cap'n Dave
I’ve only recently begun cooking with jackfruit. At a vegan deli in Berkeley, they use it for their pulled pork (shredded, obviously) and in the whole pieces straight out of the can for their “fish & chips” – battered, dredged in flour, deep-fried, and then spritzed with malt vinegar and sprinkled with Old Bay. They’re…different. I’m still trying to decide if I like them.
That being said, shredding them and using them in a crab dip? That sounds wonderful! Like Lauren mentioned above, baked sounds wonderful, but I can easily see it drying, but perhaps in a covered casserole dish? Hmm…and now I’m picturing it combined with a creamy, cheesy artichoke dip and served with a vegan focaccia…or using it to stuff cremini mushrooms and douse with a little vegan parm…this is gonna be great!
Question…the seeds. Do you just shred it seeds and all or do you take the time to remove them from each piece prior?
Thanks for sharing this! I can’t wait to try it!
Cadry
Malt vinegar & Old Bay seasoning makes everything better. Two of my favorites! It doesn’t sound like the jackfruit fish and chips are a total success for you, though.
I just shred the seeds. They’re edible. If they bother you, you can remove them, but I don’t.
I hope you enjoy the recipe, and let me know if you try it warm. I’m curious to hear how it goes!
Shellie
I can’t wait to try this recipe. Any thoughts on using the boxed shredded unseasoned jackfruit in place of the canned? They’re 7 oz. boxes. Lately, I’ve been buying these instead of the canned. No seeds or liquid..
https://store.edwardandsons.com/collections/organic-young-jackfruit
Cadry
I would think the recipe would basically stay the same. The drained weight of the canned jackfruit is 9.9 ounces. So there is a little bit of a difference in volume, but I wouldn’t think it would be enough to be a huge difference flavor-wise. Let me know how it goes! I haven’t tried boxed jackfruit, but I am intrigued.
Shellie
Fantastic recipe. I ended up using a can of jackfruit instead of the boxed, and I shred it in the food processor. I didn’t want to short change us on jackfruit. I will try it next time though, and there definitely will be a next time. One thing….after I added my Old Bay I noticed that it said Best By Aug. 2016. Oops. Time for a new one. 🙂
Cadry
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Shellie! I’ll have to keep my eyes peeled for boxed jackfruit. That sounds like something I’d like too. I hear you on the Old Bay seasoning expiring before you can use it all. That’s definitely happened to me a time or two.
Nicky
I’m unable to eat cashew nuts (or any nuts) and alternative ideas or shall I just use vegan mayo?
Nicky
Cap'n Dave
Hi, Nicky! I hear you on the nut problem. I don’t have a problem with cashews, but I know many who do (my late wife had an allergy to all nightshades – made it VERY difficult for this old Irish boy when I wanted my potatoes – she couldn’t enjoy any of them!)
Personally, I’d probably go for a vegan sour cream over the mayo – far less oil – or you could combine half and half. Probably the same amount as it would be for the processed cashews? Start at around 1 cup and go from there until it reaches the consistency you like. Kite Hill makes a wonderful vegan sour cream that doesn’t really have that tangy sour cream flavor to it, and it’s made from white beans. It’s fairly bland, really, but it doesn’t have that oily consistency that other brands (Tofutti, for example) seem to have, so maybe have half of that and half mayo?
Anyway, just my two cents’ worth until Cadry chimes in. 🙂
Cadry
I’d probably go with vegan mayo. I haven’t tried it that way, but it seems like it would work fine. Because vegan mayo already has some tanginess built into it, I’d pull back on the lemon juice, dijon mustard, and salt to start, and then add more to taste. The Old Bay seasoning, paprika, and onion powder will probably be fine in their current amounts. Let me know how it goes, Nicky!
Mollietee
Delicious! You can use hearts of palm for variation, this dip is so good for vegans or meat eaters.
Cadry
I’m glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for the feedback!