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A Crab Dip Cheese Ball combines two of my favorite appetizers! Cream cheese, lump crab meat, Mozzarella and seasonings are blended together, formed into a ball and coated with minced chives. Serve with crackers or baked wonton wrappers for a unique snack!
Be sure to try my Crab Salad, Crab Cakes and Crab Legs recipes, too.
Crab Dip Cheese Ball Recipe
Cheeseballs are a must have for holiday parties, and this crab dip version is unexpected and totally amazing. The flavors blend together so well and you can even add a little heat if that’s your thing. If you’re looking for a new snack to take to your next holiday party, this is definitely a contender!
Making a cheese ball is a super simple way to give a new life to a classic favorite. Take the ingredients you’d put in a hot dish and blend them with smooth, creamy cream cheese? Yes, please!
I have always loved my mom’s Olive Cheese Ball and I’m excited to have a new favorite to add to the list.
HOW TO MAKE A CRAB DIP CHEESE BALL
- Beat some cream cheese until it’s nice and fluffy. This can take a few minutes depending on the temperature of your cream cheese. You want it to be smooth and fluffy with no lumps. You’re going to chill it later so don’t worry about it being too soft as long as it’s not melting.
- Mix in lump crab meat (chop or break up the pieces first) along with some lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce and other seasonings. Some like hot sauce so you can add a few dashes of your favorite like Tabasco or Tapatio.
- Chill your crab dip cheese ball mixture for about an hour to let it firm up and give the flavors time to blend together. Then pour it out onto some plastic wrap, form a ball and wrap it up to chill again.
Serving Suggestions
I like to serve crab dip cheese ball with crisp crackers – thicker or crunchier crackers work best. If I’ve got the time I will bake some wonton wrappers and serve those alongside for a more crab rangoon style snack.
To bake the wonton wrappers, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut 24 wonton wrappers in half diagonally and arrange in a single layer on ungreased baking sheets. Spritz with cooking spray and season with salt and pepper. A few sesame seeds would provide some texture but aren’t absolutely necessary. Bake for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans and cool on wire racks.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- Use softened cream cheese. Set the cream cheese in a bowl on the counter for up to an hour but make sure to remove the wrapper first – it will go much faster this way. If you don’t have that kind of time, you can soften it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.
- You can beat the cream cheese by hand, but I recommend using a hand mixer or stand mixer for optimal fluffiness.
- I recommend using lump crab meat rather than artificial crab. It’s an option if you want something more budget friendly but the real crab tastes so much better.
- For the chives, buy the actual fresh chives at the market, rather than green onions. They are much smaller and look a lot prettier. Dried chives will work too.
- Chill first, then form. I like to do these steps in this order to make the cheese ball easier to work with. It’s hard to form a ball if the ingredients are too soft from just being mixed.
- Store leftovers, covered, in the fridge for up to 2 days.
More seafood appetizers:
More cheesy appetizers:
Crab Dip Cheese Ball
Ingredients
- 12 ounces lump crab meat or imitation crab, chopped/shredded
- 16 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 1/2 cups Mozzarella cheese
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- hot sauce (optional)
- 1/4 cup fresh minced chives divided
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with a hand mixer until smooth and fluffy, 3-4 minutes (or use the paddle attachment on your stand mixer).
- Stir in crab meat, cheese, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, garlic salt and 1 tablespoon of minced chives until well combined. Taste and add a few dashes of hot sauce if you like. Cover and chill for at least one hour.
- To form the cheese ball: Remove from the refrigerator and form cheese mixture into a ball shape. Roll in remaining minced chives, coating completely (cut some more if needed). Wrap in plastic wrap and chill 15-30 minutes or until ready to serve.
- To serve: Remove cheese ball from the refrigerator and smooth all around. Remove plastic wrap and place in the center of a serving platter. Serve chilled with crackers, toasted crostini or raw vegetables.
Notes
- Use softened cream cheese. Set the cream cheese in a bowl on the counter for up to an hour but make sure to remove the wrapper first - it will go much faster this way. If you don't have that kind of time, you can soften it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.
- I recommend using lump crab meat rather than artificial crab. It's an option if you want something more budget friendly but the real crab tastes so much better.
- Store leftovers, covered, in the fridge for up to 2 days.
