Succulent, sweet lump crab meat paired with a rich, full-bodied Chardonnay is simply a match made in heaven. The bright lemon notes in the wine bring out the sweetness in the crabmeat and the luxurious mouth-coating quality of an oaked, slightly buttery Chardonnay makes this an outstanding pairing with crab cakes. Drizzle a little butter on the crab cakes before baking and really bring out the creamy, buttery characteristics in the wine. The buttery flavors in the wine come from a winemaking process known as malolactic fermentation, this produces the diacetyl compound which gives the wine a creamy, dairy, buttery quality. Grab your favorite Chardonnay or try one of my favorite producers from California. These producers are known for making a more Old World Style of Chardonnay, in an effort to retain the bright, vibrant fruit notes and also maintaining a higher level of acidity.
Recommended Producers
- Jordan Chardonnay, Russian River, California, USA (SRP: $33)
- Grgich Hills Chardonnay. Napa, California, USA (SRP: $38)
- Cakebread Chardonnay, Napa, California, USA (SRP: $40)
Recipe: Gluten Free Crab Cakes (Serves 4)
Ingredients
3 tbsp. olive oil
16 oz crab meat
1 egg
1 lemon (juice & zest)
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 tbsp. chopped parsley
1 celery stalk (fine dice)
1/2 small onion (fine dice)
1/2 red bell pepper (fine dice)
1 bag of Cape Cod Chips (finely ground in food processor)
Directions
Heat 2 tbsp. olive oil in a medium saucepan, add minced veggies and sauté for 5-7 minutes until tender. Transfer to medium bowl. Let cool for about 5 minutes. Add lemon juice, zest, parsley, worcestershire sauce, salt & pepper and mix all ingredients. Fold in crab. Make 4 crab cakes of equal proportion and dredge both sides of all crab cakes in flour. Transfer to plate and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Since we are not using breadcrumbs in this recipe, this is an important step to make sure the crab cakes stay intact when cooking.
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Mix 1 tbsp. olive oil & 1 tsp. of Old Bay Seasoning. Place crab cakes on sheet pan and drizzle with Old Bay oil. Bake for 15 minutes. Serve over a bed of greens with lemon vinaigrette.