Easy Crab Dip Recipe (The MOST Delicious Hot Crab Dip Ever)

This crab dip recipe is so, so good. It combines tender crab meat with cream cheese, mayo, sour cream, and melty cheese to create an appetizer that will be the talk of the party. It's about as addictive as an app gets. And, best of all, it takes just 5 minutes of prep work to make this decadent hot crab dip come to life!

The Best Crab Dip 

If you've never had crab dip before, then just wait until you give this recipe a try. It's an incredibly creamy, savory, and rich dip, and each bite is as good as the last.

From the fresh crab meat, cream cheese mixture, and perfectly balanced spices, it's just absolutely loaded with flavor. Honestly, this might just be one of my favorite dip recipes of all time!

That's why I love making this hot crab dip recipe whenever I'm having a get-together, no matter the size.

I mean, not only is it absolutely delicious but it's also so, so easy to make too. From start to finish, you only need to be in the kitchen for about 5 minutes. Then, the oven takes care of all of the heavy lifting on this hot crab dip recipe after that.

Oh, and since this crab dip spends most of its time baking away in the oven, you'll have plenty of time to whip up more delicious sides to serve alongside it, like t! If you're looking for what to serve with crab dip, I love serving this hot crab dip with my Rotel dip recipe and these cream cheese sausage balls. I like to have a couple of options out for my guests, and these three together are always a hit!

Ingredients

The ingredient list for this hot crab dip recipe is super simple.

It may look like a long list, but for the most part, all of the ingredients are pretty much pantry/kitchen staples. In fact, I'm willing to bet you already have most -if not all - of the ingredients you'll need to make it on hand already!

Anyway, here are all of the ingredients you'll need to make this crab dip: 

• 1 cup cream cheese
• ½ cup sour cream
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 2 cups lump crab meat (or imitation crab meat)
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika
• ½ tsp. garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp. hot sauce
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• salt and pepper
• 1 cup mozzarella/cheddar cheese mix, shredded
• 2 green onions, sliced
• Crackers and tortilla chips to serve

Pretty simple stuff, eh?

By the way, if you love crab, you can use a few of these same ingredients to make this crab rangoon or crab casserole next! 

Ingredient Substitutions And Suggestions

While I recommend making this hot crab dip with the ingredients listed above, there's definitely room to switch up this recipe.

So, with that said, I'll go over a few of my favorite suggestions.

Crab Meat To Use

For this crab meat dip, I recommend using jumbo lump crab meat since it's usually cheaper than the whole crab. And you can use either fresh lump crab meat or canned lump crab meat both will work great.

In fact, even imitation crab will work to make this crab dip. I've used it a few times, and it turned out super yummy each time.

Switch Up The Spices

When it comes to the spices used to make this dip, feel free to improvise depending on what you have in your pantry. I love swapping the smoked paprika for Old Bay seasoning for a little cajun flavor. Also, if you don't have crushed fresh garlic, you can use a little garlic powder in its place.

How To Make Crab Dip

So, now that we've gone over the ingredients, it's time to make this hot crab dip!

Again, this recipe could not be easier to make. You basically just mix up the dip ingredients, top everything with shredded cheese, then let it bake in the oven. It's really that simple!

So let's stop wasting time and get into this recipe!

Step 1: Combine The Crab Dip Ingredients

First things first, preheat the oven to 350°F (180ºC) and grab a 24 oz. oven-safe bowl or an 8x8-inch baking dish. 

Then, if you haven't done so already, chop up your crab meat into bite-sized pieces. Now, after you've taken care of that, you can add the lump crab meat, cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, smoked paprika, garlic, hot sauce, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper to a large bowl.

Give all of the ingredients a good mix until they combine, then transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. 

Step 2: Bake The Crab Dip and Serve

Now you can evenly spread the crab dip out in the bowl/dish and top it with the shredded cheese mixture. Then, you can transfer the dish to the oven and bake the dip for 20-25 minutes - or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Once it's baked to perfection, allow your hot crab dip to cool slightly before serving. Finally, you can serve the dip warm with crackers, tortilla chips, or anything else you want.

Enjoy!

How To Store Crab Dip

This delicious hot crab dip recipe makes about 6 servings, so it's the perfect amount for an appetizer for a small get-together. With that said, if you're planning on serving this crab dip at a party, I would recommend making a double or triple batch since it requires no extra effort or prep time.

Then, if you end up with some leftover crab dip, you can store it and enjoy it later that week!  Speaking of leftovers, if you have any, just transfer the cooled crab dip to an airtight container, and it'll stay good in the fridge for about 3-5 days.

Alternatively, if you want your leftovers to last even longer, then you can freeze the crab dip in an airtight container - or freezer-safe bag - and it should stay good for up to 6 months. Then, when you're ready to enjoy it again, just remember to let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.

How To Reheat Crab Dip

When you're ready to enjoy this crab dip again, you'll definitely want to reheat it.

So, to reheat the dip, you can just put the dip back in a baking dish and warm it in the oven at 325°F for about 7-10 minutes - or until the cheese has melted and the dip is fully warmed through.

FAQS About This Crab Dip Recipe

Wrapping It Up

Well, that's how to make crab dip in under 30 minutes!

I really think this recipe is one of the best crab dip recipes of all time. I mean, it's just so darn delicious and beyond easy to make too. I seriously can't get enough of it, and everyone who tries it just raves over how good it is.

Anyway, I hope you like this hot crab dip recipe as much as I/we do.

As always, if you give this recipe a try, be sure to leave a comment and let us know how it went!

More Appetizer Recipes

If you're in need of some more easy and delicious appetizer recipes, we've got you covered.

Here are some of our most popular ones:

• Clam dip
• Shrimp dip
  
• Cream cheese sausage dip
• Smoked tuna dip
  
• Million dollar dip

Also, make sure to check us out on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram! We post new recipes on them every day.