Crab cake

[1][2] Although the earliest use of the term "crab cake" is commonly believed to date to Crosby Gaige's 1939 publication New York World's Fair Cook Book in which they are described as "Baltimore crab cakes,"[3] earlier usages can be found such as in Thomas J. Murrey's book Cookery with a Chafing Dish published in 1891.

Crab cakes vary in size, from no bigger than a small cookie to larger than a hamburger.

Crab cakes in Maryland traditionally consist of no other ingredients than jumbo lump meat picked from steamed blue crabs, a very small amount of binder and maybe a spice with a significant tie to the state like Old Bay.

The ingredients are formed into cakes and cooled in a refrigerator for a period of time allowing them to firm up.

[5] The foreign product is often harvested using methods and practices considered unsustainable in the United States, where the crabbing industry is carefully regulated to ensure sustainability.