Real Crab vs Artificial Crab

[simplicity]

The obvious difference is about $18.00/lb.

I'm making a Crab and Wild Rice salad for the ladies who lunch. The seafood part is about 50% shrimp and 50% crab. I'm putting in tiny English Peas, green onions, roasted red pepper and changing the wild rice to a blend, plus a few seasonings in a mayonaise dressing.

I'm not familiar with artificial crab. I understand it's not the real thing, but will it be enough to notice?

[kitchenelf]

Now, don't get me wrong, we have munched on a lot of artificial crab and I even use it in my hot dip made with cream cheese - it actually is the flavor needed.

BUT, for your dish I'd say real crab is the way to go. Even if you cut the 50/50 ratio to save on the expense I would use the real thing.

[DramaQueen]

Artificial crab is usually a fish called polluck. From what I understand it is a form of codfish. I can taste the difference and it looks fake but if that's what you have to go with then do it. Most people can't afford good crabmeat at 32.00 per pound. You could buy one crab leg and chop the meat from that to add to the polluck.

[GB]

Fake crab looks tastes and feels nothing at all like real crab IMO. I like the fake crab, but in a dish that highlights crab as an ingredient the fake stuff will not fool anyone.

[VeraBlue]

There are right times and wrong times to substitute faux crab for real. This isn't one of those times. The ingredients you mention are fresh and bright...adding surimi is going to drag those flavours down down down. Use less crab and more shrimp if you want to cut costs, but don't skimp on the crab entirely.

[JMediger]

How much is your recipe calling for ... 1/2 a cup? a full cup? There are some canned or pouched products that are real crab and cost a ton less than if you are buying it out of the meat / seafood section (I think I paid $3.99 for a pouch last week to make pasta). Like Kitchenelf & Verablue suggested, cut the amount in half and add more shrimp if that helps but stay away from the fake stuff in this case.

[kitchenelf]

And, you don't have to go for the lump crab either - just real, fresh crab - - - that's what the recipe needs. I think you will see we have all pretty much said the same thing, but, in different ways. This dish seems to be fairly "delicate" in flavor. Can you PM me the recipe? I'm curious and it sounds wonderful.

And I take it to mean you are changing the all wild rice to a blend of wild and brown rice? I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that blend!!!! I'll PM you one of my favorite recipes that uses that blend.

[MostlyWater]

We keep kosher and I always use the fake shrimp, etc. We really like it !

[Robo410]

crab as of yet cannot be successfully farm raised (and perhaps it just can't). We are seeing populations in unprotected waters drop alarmingly due to overfishing. Still, in this recipe, I'd use fresh, real crab of some type.

[JillBurgh]

Ha ha fake Crabmeat is my secret passion
Don't tell my hoity-toity friends I hide it under the deli drawer.