Hot and Cheesy Crab Dip

Welcome friends! How are your holiday preparations coming along? Have you finished all your shopping; have your menu planned? Today I have a super simple, but super impressive Hot and Cheesy Crab dip that would be a great addition to your appetizer menu. I am planning to bring this hot appetizer dip to our Christmas Eve family get-together and I am sure it will be a hit! Let’s get right to it!

Well before you want to whip this dip together, take the 8-ounce block of cream cheese out of the fridge and let it come up to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grate the cheese, slice the scallions and measure out your ingredients.

When you slice the scallions, separate the white and light green parts from the green parts. The white and light green parts will go into the dip, while the green parts will go on top after it comes out of the oven. Otherwise, we have mayo, sour cream, celery salt, Kosher salt, hot sauce (like Frank’s Red Hot or Tabasco), sherry vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, cream cheese, about 1.25 cups each grated sharp cheddar and havarti. And of course we have the fresh crab. In total we need 1 pound of either jumbo lump crab meat or claw meat. The claw meat is about half the cost of jumbo lump, so go with what you can.

You also want to go with fresh crab meat, rather than canned. If your local supermarket fish counter doesn’t have shelled crab meat by the pound, ask them if they have it pre-packaged. My local Publix has it packaged in 8-ounce containers in their refrigerated section.

Mix the Dip

This all comes together super quick in a stand mixer, but you can use a hand mixer too. Add the cream cheese, mayo, sour cream, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, salts, and sherry vinegar to the bowl of the stand mixer and attach the paddle attachment. Cream everything together on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Then add 1 cup each of the grated havarti and cheddar (reserving about 1/4 cup of each cheese for topping the dip before baking). Mix on low just until the cheese is evenly mixed into the creamy dip.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and gently fold in the crab meat. Be careful not mix too hard or too much, we want to keep the crab claw meat mostly intact. Then add the white and light green scallion slices. Again, don’t mix too hard.

Pour the dip into a 1.5 to 2-quart baking dish. Place the whole dish on a sheet tray and top the dip with the remaining grated cheeses.

Bake, uncovered, on the center rack in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes – until the dip is bubbling around the edges and the cheese is melted. Then, switch the oven to broil, leave the dip on the center rack, and broil for about 3-5 minutes, until the cheese on top has browned.

Remove the sheet tray with the dip from the oven and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Then top with the sliced green parts of the scallions.

Hot and Cheesy Crab Dip

Serve with sliced baguette, crackers and/or endive leaves. This dip is rich and creamy, with so much flavor from the crab – truly restaurant-worthy! I guarantee this Hot and Cheesy Crab Dip will be a crowd pleaser on your holiday table.

Thank you so much for joining me today; this dip is incredibly simple and comes together quickly. The crab will be on the pricy side, but it really makes this a special appetizer, perfect for the holidays. Repeatedly, I found myself scooping up dip on my baguette slice saying to myself, “this is the last one,” only to be back 10 minutes later, with another slice of baguette, scooping more dip saying, “no, really, this is the last one.” If you like the idea of a hot cheesy dip but want to go with something a little different, try my Old Bay Hot Shrimp Dip. Take care and be well, everyone. xo Kelly

Print Recipe

Hot and Cheesy Crab Dip

(2 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)

Loading...

Appetizer – American

By Southern Living – Serves: 12

Prep Time: 15 Minutes – Cooking Time: 20-25 Minutes – Total Time: ~40 Minutes

Hot and Cheesy Crab Dip is rich and creamy – truly restaurant-worthy! I guarantee this will be a crowd pleaser on your holiday table.

Ingredients

• 4 Medium Scallions
• 8 oz. Cream Cheese, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup Mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup Sour Cream
• 1 tsp. Kosher Salt
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 tsp. Hot Sauce (like Frank's Red Hot or Tabasco)
• 1 tsp. Sherry Vinegar
• 1/2 tsp. Celery Salt
• 1.25 cups Grated Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese, divided
• 1.25 cups Grated Havarti Cheese, divided
• 1 lb. Fresh Jumbo Lump Crabmeat or Claw Meat, drained
• Sliced Baguette, Crackers, or Endive Leaves, for serving

Instructions

1

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2

Slice the scallions, separate the white and light green parts from the green parts. The white and light green parts will go into the dip, while the green parts will go on top after it comes out of the oven.

3

Add the cream cheese, mayo, sour cream, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, salts, and sherry vinegar to the bowl of the stand mixer and affix the paddle attachment. Cream everything together on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Then add 1 cup each of the grated havarti and cheddar (reserving about 1/4 cup of each cheese for topping the dip before baking). Mix on low just until the cheese is evenly mixed into the creamy dip.

4

Remove the bowl from the mixer and gently fold in the crab meat. Be careful not mix too hard or too much, we want to keep the crab claw meat mostly intact. Then add the white and light green scallion slices. Again, don't mix too hard.

5

Pour the dip into a 1.5 to 2-quart baking dish. Place the whole dish on a sheet tray and top the dip with the remaining grated cheeses.

6

Bake, uncovered, on the center rack in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes – until the dip is bubbling around the edges and the cheese is melted. Then, switch the oven to broil, leave the dip on the center rack, and broil for about 3-5 minutes, until the cheese on top has browned.

7

Remove the sheet tray with the dip from the oven and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Then top with the sliced green parts of the scallions.

8

Serve warm with baguette slices, crackers, and/or endive leaves.

This post may contain affiliate links; when you click the links and make a purchase, we receive a commission on qualifying items.