Crab Po'boy {Crab Salad Sandwich} (2024)

Our Crab Po’boys inspired by New Orleans are a fan favorite. This easy crab salad sandwich can’t be beat!

The thing I’ve learned about traveling around the country and eating foods of the same name in a dozen different restaurants, is that pretty much all French onion soups are the same. And every po’boy is different.

I’m not sure what it is about the po’boy that makes chefs and cooks alike get creative in the kitchen, but it’s become a bit of a game when we go somewhere new to see what’s passing for a Po’boy in any given town. Try ours with easy fridge pickles and steak fries!

Crab Po’boy (Crab Salad Sandwich)

Crab Po’boy, Ingredients:

Crab // enough to overstuff your roll, about 1 heaping cup

Celery // chopped, 2 tablespoons per sandwich

Mayonnaise // to taste, start with 1 tablespoon and work from there

Old Bay seasoning // start with 1/4 teaspoon and work from there

Bread // I prefer a large bakery hot dog bun or fresh baked french bread

Lemon wedges // for the finishing touch

How do you make a crab po’boy?

First, in a bowl add crab, celery, mayonnaise, and seafood seasoning. Mix well then sample the dressing and adjust mayonnaise and seasoning to taste.

Then, stuff crab mixture into your bun until it’s nearly spilling over.

Finally, squeeze lemon juice over top and garnish with a touch more seasoning.

What is a Crab Po’Boy?

In New Orleans

Most recently we visited New Orleans, home of the po’boy, and even there it seems no one could decide on any given formula! We found shrimp, crab, lobster – even chicken. Some were fried and drizzled with sauce while others were steamed and drenched.

A few were topped with lettuce and tomato, but the best ones were just piled high with meat. Today I’ve put together my favorite components of all the po’boys we’ve encountered so far and if I do say so myself, it was incredible.

Official definition

According to Wikipedia:A po’ boy (also po-boy, po boy, or poor boy) is a traditional sandwich from Louisiana. It almost always consists of meat, which is usually sloppy roast beef, or fried seafood which includes shrimp, crawfish, oysters and crab.

I never saw a roast beef po’ boy in our travels. But I wouldn’t mind trying one in the future!

What is in a crab po’boy?

Most po’boys have a mayonnaise based sauce, a remoulade, component. Remoulade is a historically French sauce that has been adapted by Louisianans. And much like it’s counterpart, the po’boy, there’s no one way to make it. We used mayo, lemon juice, and seafood seasoning in ours that I picked up on a quick market run.

Some folks include other ingredients like mustard, pickle juice, and hot sauce. Make sure whatever seasoning you choose has paprika though, because that’s a key flavor!

When to eat crab po’boys

I’m not sure what it is about seafood and summer that go so well together, but this sandwich just screams beach! Cold iced tea! Flip flops! Possibly because it’s seafood and seafood comes from the ocean. (Okay, probably. Maybe definitely).

Regardless of why, it’s the perfect lunch for a blazing hot afternoon when you don’t even want to think about turning on the stove or oven. We used leftover crab from our recent low country crab boil. If you’ve never done one before, I strongly suggest adding it to your bucket list!

More Seafood Recipes

Shrimp Scampi

Crab Boil

Baked Salmon

Old Bay Shrimp

See all our seafood recipes!

More Sandwich Recipes

Reuben Sandwich

Chicken Parm Sub

Steak Sliders

See all our sandwich ideas!

Tools we love

• Oil mister– This is the perfect gift for folks who want to make sure they know exactly what they’re spraying on their pans. We like to put olive oil in ours, but you could use anything from vegetable oil, grapeseed oil, avocado oil, or whatever you like! Just pump the top a few times and it sprays a fine mist of the oil you chose.
• Santuko knife– My favorite knife for cutting vegetables! This knife is the perfect size and shape, handles great, and is super reasonably priced. Also, I just love that it’s fun and colorful!
• Silicone baking mats– Nothing sticks to these! Whaaaa?! Perfect for baking sugary cookies, or cheesy croissants. You know why? Because nothing sticks to these!!!

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