Fantastic crab pico de gallo made with a real crab claw meat and the most crisp and fresh vegetables. Take a bite of it with a tortilla chip or just eat with a spoon! Crab and lime juice make the best flavoring combination to impress your guests.

The secret of the best pico de gallo is to use only freshest ingredients. Go to the store and pick the best looking and ripest vegetables. If you like to shop on farmers markets, even better! I grew my tomatoes on the backyard so as jalapenos so i just went outside and picked some.

It is important to pick a good crab meat also. I little more about it later in the post.

How to make crab pico de gallo

Start with washing all of the vegetables. Finely chop tomatoes, onion and cilantro. Add it to the medium size bowl. Please use glass or ceramic bowl if possible because of the acid contained in tomatoes and limes.

Now slice jalapeno in half and scoop seeds out if you don't want pico de gallo to be spicy. I left seeds in because we love a little spice kick! Add salt to taste and juice couple limes right into the bowl. If you decided to use garlic, its time to add it. Finely chop it or mince using a tool.

Fresh garlic is the best but you can also use store bought chopped garlic. It is usually sold in glass or plastic jars and need to be stored in fridge.

Stir very well and add chopped real crab meat. Stir again and your fresh delicious crab pico de gallo is ready to be served! Add more or less crab meat as you want. Its a personal preference just like the amount of salt or black pepper.

Ingredients and substitutes

• Tomatoes – you can use Roma, tomatoes on the vine or cherry tomatoes. Roma tomatoes are probably the most traditional tomatoes for this recipe but i used on the vine just because they are so juicy and tasty.
• Onion – you can use red or white onion. Red onion is sharper and spicier than yellow onion when served raw.
• Cilantro – an essential ingredient in this recipe and cant be substituted. Unless you have a bunch of parsley, it will still not taste the same.
• Jalapeno – you can add more or less, depending on the spiciness level you prefer. If you like it spicy keep the seeds in.
• Garlic – not an essential ingredients but optional. Can me added to pico de gallo chopped or minced.
• Lime juice – You can substitute lime juice to lemon juice in equal proportions. Lime juice still tastes more authentic to me.
• Crab meat. Scroll down for more information. Don't substitute with imitation crab.

Crab meat

I prefer to use crab lump meat sold in plastic containers. Big cans of real crab are fine too. Of course the best would be if you could have a whole crab and remove meat out of claws. Fresh is always best.

Do not use fake crab meat for this recipe and don’t use crab mush sold in small cans. Those are just not good for this recipe.

Can i make it ahead

Crab pico de gallo can be stored in the fridge for couple hours before serving. It tastes best when made fresh and served right away though. I don't recommend making it a day before because tomatoes might get a bit soggy and will release too much juice.

Recipes tips and tricks

• If using tostadas instead of corn chips, don’t top it with pico de gallo until ready to eat. Otherwise tostada will become soft and soggy.
• Use hot peppers of your choice. Jalapenos, Serrano peppers- add as much as you want. Chop it really well and remove seeds if needed.
• DO NOT use crab meat from little cans. They are usually very cheap. I made that mistake once and ended up with a nasty mash when i opened cans.
• Try to chop vegetables all the same size. It will look more appealing and also it will be easier to grab a bite with tortilla chip. The finely you will chop your veggies the better.
• It is important to remember that you cant use metal or plastic bowl when making any kind of pico de gallo because of the use of tomatoes and lime juice. Glass bowls are the best for acidic dishes.

Leftovers

Crab pico de gallo does not store very well. It will get soggy and not appetizing if stored longer than 1 day. You can still put it in the air tight container and keep in the fridge. Since crab is a seafood its also not recommended to store it for a long time because it spoils quickly.

More crab and fish recipes

• Pumpkin crab bisque
• Crab guacamole
• Crab potato salad
• Imitation crab dip recipe
• Crab ceviche
• Pressure cooker frozen crab legs
• Cobia recipe
• Baked white pomfret recipe