This easy crab ceviche is made with imitation crab, fresh citrus juice, and simple ingredients you can find at any grocery store. It’s light, refreshing, and perfect for warm weather, parties, or an easy meal. If you’ve ever been curious about ceviche but were unsure about using raw seafood, this imitation crab ceviche is a great place to start since it’s fully cooked – nothing raw in this recipe.
For another fresh, no-cook meal like this, you might also enjoy my Creamy Chipotle Bean Salad—it’s another high-protein, flavor-packed recipe perfect for warm days or when you just want an easy, healthy meal that doesn’t require cooking.
Why You’ll Love Crab Ceviche
Super Easy to Make: This recipe is simply a matter of chopping your fresh ingredients and squeezing limes. The rest is just tossing everything together! No raw fish to deal with AND no cooking.
Healthy: The crab is an excellent source of protein, while the other fresh ingredients bring with them a healthy dose of fiber, vitamins and nutrients. It’s not only delicious and refreshing, but it’s also a meal your body will thank you for. :)
Crowd Pleaser: It’s not only a great meal idea, but it’s an excellent dish for large gatherings. Trust me when I say this is always a hit! Not only do people at parties love it, but it’s also a personal family favorite. One of my daughters is extremely picky, so it’s rare that there’s a recipe we ALL eat. This crab ceviche is one of those few recipes.
Large batch: Since everyone here loves it so much, this recipe does make a larger batch. It lasts our family of four about two days. However, if you want a smaller batch of ceviche, you can easily half the ingredients.
What is Crab Ceviche?
Crab Ceviche, known as ceviche de jaiba in Mexico, is something I learned how to make from my mother-in-law. It’s a fresh seafood dish made with imitation crab, citrus juice, and chopped vegetables like onion, tomato, and cilantro. It’s commonly served chilled as an appetizer or light meal with tostadas.
Substitutions & Variations
The best part about this crab ceviche is how easy it is to customize to your liking. I personally like to add diced mango and avocados when I have them. My mother-in-law adds a large splash of Clamato juice, which gives it a nice flavor. While I’ve opted to leave it out in my recipe, it’s a wonderful option if you prefer more liquid, or juice, in your ceviche. (Pictured below are examples of both.)
Other optional mix-ins:
- Shrimp
- Fish
- Mango
- Hot sauce
- Avocados
- Jalapeños or Serrano Peppers
- Bell peppers
- Radishes
- Pineapple
If you want to try another one of my Mexican-inspired recipes, check out our family’s favorite Roasted Salsa Verde (Green Salsa) or White Spaghetti.
Ingredients Needed to Make Crab Ceviche
- Imitation crab – I normally use two 12 ounce packages, which yields about three cups. It doesn’t matter if it’s flake or leg style. It’s all getting chopped up anyway!
- Fresh tomatoes – Fresh and juicy, these tomatoes add a burst of vibrant color and natural sweetness, rich in vitamins A and C.
- Cucumbers – I love the flavor and texture the cucumbers add to this ceviche. Some people make theirs without it, but I always add cucumber. It’s one of my favorite ingredients in this.
- Red onion – Another healthy ingredient that brings it’s own mild, tangy flavor to the ceviche.
- Cilantro – This aromatic herb infuses the ceviche with a fresh flavor. I love cilantro so much! It adds a lot of flavor and is so good for you. I put it on almost everything.
- Limes – You can’t have ceviche without fresh lime juice! Technically, you don’t need the lime juice for crab ceviche in the same way you need it for fish ceviche. With fish ceviche, it’s used to “cook” the fish a bit. Since imitation crab is already fully cooked, the lime juice is just added for the flavor and juice it brings.
- Clamato – This is optional but my family prefers it with about 1-2 cups of Clamato added in. Without it, you will have a fresh, chunky ceviche.
FAQ’s
Crab ceviche is not made with raw seafood. This recipe uses imitation crab, which is fully cooked and ready to eat, making it a safe and approachable option for anyone who prefers not to use raw fish.
Yes. Imitation crab (also called surimi) is fully cooked during processing and does not need to be cooked again. It’s commonly used in cold seafood dishes like ceviche, salads, and sushi rolls.
Absolutely. You can substitute cooked, fresh crab meat for the imitation crab if you prefer. Just make sure the crab is fully cooked before adding it to the ceviche.
Crab ceviche is best enjoyed fresh but can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Stir before serving, as the citrus juice may separate slightly over time.
Easy Crab Ceviche (Ceviche de Jaiba)
Ingredients
- 24 oz imitation crab chopped
- 5 roma tomatoes chopped
- 2 cucumbers peeled and chopped
- ½ red onion finely diced
- ½ bunch cilantro chopped
- 3-4 limes
- 2 tsp salt
Optional:
- 2 tbsp hot sauce
- 1-2 cups Clamato juice
- diced avocado
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a large bowl, including juice from the limes. Gently toss to combine. (If you like your ceviche with more "juice" in it, I recommend adding the Clamato. If you like your ceviche more chunky, you can skip the Clamato.)
- Taste and add more salt, lime juice, hot sauce or Clamato if needed.
- Enjoy immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to eat.
- Traditionally served with tostadas or tortilla chips, but you could also enjoy this crab ceviche with avocado halves, toasted bread, cucumber slices, lettuce cups or multigrain crackers.
- If you make this recipe and could take a quick second to give it a rating below, I would be so grateful!
Nutrition
How to Make Crab Ceviche (Ceviche de Jaiba)
Chop up the crab into small pieces. Finely dice the tomatoes, red onions, cucumbers and cilantro. Cut limes in half so they’re ready to be squeezed.
Add all the ingredients to a large bowl. Squeeze juice from the limes on top. Gently toss to combine.
Taste and add more salt, lime juice, hot sauce or Clamato if needed.
Enjoy immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to eat.
This is traditionally served with tostadas or tortilla chips, but you could also enjoy this crab ceviche with avocado halves, toasted bread, cucumber slices, lettuce cups or multigrain crackers.
Tips & Notes for the Best Crab Ceviche
Season Properly: Don’t be afraid to season with enough salt, lime juice and hot sauce to enhance the flavors. Taste at the end and adjust to your preference.
Make it Ahead: This dish can be made the night before. In fact, allowing it to marinate a bit longer in the fridge can enhance the flavors. However, it’s best enjoyed within 2-3 days to ensure maximum freshness.
The best part about this crab ceviche recipe is that you really can’t mess it up. It’s just a bunch of cutting and juicing limes. I love that this involves no cooking, no heat, and lots of fresh, healthy ingredients that all taste so good together. Once you see how delicious and easy this is, it’s sure to be a regular in your rotation – especially during the extra hot months.
If you want to try another one of my Mexican-inspired recipes, check out our family’s favorite Roasted Salsa Verde (Green Salsa). It’s the salsa I make most often for our family. I love to have the salsa on hand because it’s a great addition to lots of recipes. It’s also great to have as a quick snack with some chips.
This is exactly how I make mine except I add shrimp and sometimes fish. I love this recipe. I can’t looking for a recipe similar to mine because it’s a long time since I made it that I wanted to make sure I wasn’t forgetting anything. You hit the nail on the head! Thank you.
I’m so happy to hear that! I’m glad it’s like the one you’re used to. My mother-in-law always adds shrimp when she makes it too. It’s so good! Thank you for sharing that and for taking the time to rate the recipe. I really appreciate it. :)
Always a hit! I add fish and shrimp to mine.
Yay! I’m so glad you like it! I bet fish and shrimp taste great in this. Thank you so much for taking the time to rate the recipe! I really appreciate it. :)
Thank you delicious and simple.
This was delicious and so easy. Love how light and healthy it is too. Added some more hot sauce because we like it spicy. Definitely making this one again.
So glad you liked it! Thanks for coming back to rate it. :)