Easy Crab Louie Salad
Crab Louie is a spectacular seafood salad that is as beautiful as it is delicious. Tender fresh crabmeat is served with soft-boiled eggs, avocado, tomatoes, crisp radishes, chives, and romaine, then finished with a creamy, tangy homemade Louie dressing. It comes together in less than 20 minutes, making it just as perfect for an easy lunch as it is for entertaining.
A Note from Teri on Crab Louie Salad
Cooking for me is like a meditation, and this Crab Louie is such a wonderful example of that. There isn’t much actual cooking involved. Instead, this is about preparing delicious ingredients and taking the time to arrange them for a beautiful presentation. It’s colorful, celebration-worthy, and a little bit glamorous, while still being incredibly simple to make.
The crab is absolutely the star here, so when you can get your hands on wonderful fresh crabmeat, this is one of my favorite ways to serve it. And then there’s the Louie dressing! Mayonnaise and ketchup make the creamy base, with dill pickle relish, lemon, Tabasco, Worcestershire, garlic, smoked paprika, and chili powder bringing tang, spice, and so much flavor. It’s absolutely delicious with the sweetness of the fresh crab.
What is a Crab Louie Salad?
Crab Louie is a classic American salad made with crabmeat, lettuce, eggs, tomatoes, and a creamy Louie dressing. You may also see it called Crab Louis. Often labeled the “king of salads” this salad has West Coast origins and can be traced back to San Francisco as early as the 1910s. While the crabmeat and pink Louie dressing are pretty standard, there are many variations with the other ingredients that could include cucumbers, olives, and even asparagus! This is my spin on the classic and I add avocado and thinly sliced radishes for even more color and texture, and instead of hard-boiled eggs, I love a seven-minute soft-boiled egg with that gorgeous gooey center.
Ingredients for the Crab Louie Salad
- Fresh crab – The crab is the centerpiece, so use wonderful fresh crab meat whenever possible. If you can’t get ahold of crab, you can use lobster, shrimp, or even smoked or cured salmon.
- Romaine lettuce – Crisp romaine makes the base of the salad and gives you a wonderful contrast to the tender crab and creamy avocado.
- Eggs – I love a seven-minute egg here because the center stays beautifully soft and jammy. If you prefer your eggs firmer, simply cook them a little longer.
- Radishes – Thinly sliced radishes add crunch, freshness, and a little peppery bite.
- Avocado – Creamy avocado is fantastic with the crab and adds richness to the platter.
- Pear tomatoes – Tomatoes add sweetness, acidity, and another gorgeous pop of color. Cherry or grape tomatoes work beautifully too.
- Chives – Fresh chives add a mild onion flavor without overwhelming the crab.
Ingredients for the Crab Louie Dressing
- Mayonnaise – Mayonnaise creates the rich and creamy base of the Louie dressing.
- Ketchup – Adds sweetness, acidity, and tomato flavor and gives the dressing its classic color.
- Dill pickle relish – The relish brings tang, crunch, and a wonderful pickle flavor that cuts through the richness of the mayonnaise.
- Fresh lemon juice – Lemon brightens the entire dressing and is always wonderful with seafood.
- Garlic – One minced or grated garlic clove adds just the right savory punch.
- Tabasco sauce – A teaspoon gives the dressing a little heat and acidity without making it overwhelmingly spicy.
- Worcestershire sauce – Adds a wonderful savory depth of flavor.
- Sweet smoked paprika and chili powder – These add warmth, subtle smokiness, and another layer of flavor.
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper – Season to taste to bring all of those flavors together.
How to Make Crab Louie Salad
Step One: Make the Louie Dressing
In a bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, ketchup, dill pickle relish, fresh lemon juice, garlic, Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce, sweet smoked paprika, and chili powder. Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Set the dressing aside while you prepare the rest of the salad. This gives all of those wonderful flavors a little time to meld.
Step Two: Make the Soft-Boiled Eggs
Fill a medium pot three-quarters of the way with water and bring it to a boil. While the water heats, prepare a large bowl of ice water.
Once the water is boiling, gently lower in the eggs and cook for exactly 7 minutes. I find that 7 minutes leaves them perfectly jammy, but you can cook them longer if you prefer a firmer yolk.
Transfer the eggs immediately to the ice water to stop the cooking and let them cool for 5 minutes. Peel the eggs, cut them in half lengthwise, and set aside.
Step Three: Assemble the Crab Louie
Arrange the romaine, fresh crabmeat, halved eggs, thinly sliced radishes, avocado, and tomatoes beautifully on a large platter, in a serving bowl, or in individual bowls.
Drizzle the Louie dressing over the top or serve it alongside in a small bowl or pitcher so everyone can add their own. Finish with plenty of finely chopped fresh chives.
Recipe FAQs
Crab Louie is traditionally made with crabmeat, lettuce, eggs, tomatoes, and a creamy Louie dressing. My version adds avocado, radishes, and chives and uses soft-boiled rather than hard-boiled eggs. The homemade Louie dressing is made with mayonnaise, ketchup, dill pickle relish, lemon, garlic, Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce, and spices.
Use high-quality fresh crab meat whenever you can. The crab is the star of the salad, and since you aren’t doing much to it, this is a recipe where starting with delicious crab makes all the difference.
You can do much of the prep ahead. Make the dressing, cook and peel the eggs, wash the lettuce, slice the radishes, and prepare the tomatoes in advance. I recommend cutting the avocado and assembling the platter closer to serving so everything stays as fresh and beautiful as possible.
Crab Louie is served chilled or at cool room temperature. The fresh, cool ingredients are part of what makes this salad so refreshing.
It can be! Use Whole30-compliant mayonnaise, ketchup, buffalo sauce, and hot sauce and check the labels on all of your condiments to make sure they fit your Whole30.
Try These Other Seafood Recipes!
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Easy Crab Louie Salad
Ingredients
For the Louie Dressing
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoon dill pickle relish
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 garlic clove minced or grated
- 1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
For the Salad:
- 6 ounces romaine lettuce
- 1 pound fresh crabmeat
- 4 large eggs
- 1 bunch radishes trimmed and thinly sliced
- 2 avocados cut into chunks
- 1 ½ cups pear or grape tomatoes halved
- 1 bunch chives finely chopped
Instructions
Make the Louie dressing:
- In a bowl, whisk the mayonnaise with the ketchup, relish, lemon juice, garlic, Tabasco, Worcestershire, paprika, and chili powder. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside to allow the flavors to meld.
While the dressing sits, soft-boil your eggs:
- Fill a medium pot ¾ of the way with water and bring to a boil. In a large bowl, make an ice water bath.
- When the water reaches a boil, gently lower the eggs and boil for exactly 7 minutes. Note: I find that 7 minutes leaves them perfectly jammy but you can cook longer if preferred.
- Once the eggs are done cooking, transfer them to the ice water to stop the cooking; let them sit in the water for 5 minutes to cool. Remove and peel the shells. Cut the eggs in half lengthwise and set aside.
Assemble the Crab Louie Salad :
- Arrange the Romaine, crabmeat, halved eggs, radishes, avocados and tomatoes beautifully on a large platter, in a large serving bowl, or in individual bowls. Drizzle the Louie dressing over the top or serve it in a small bowl or pitcher on the side, and garnish with the chives.
- Cooking for me is like a meditation and this is the part where you get to really slow down and put your heart into the dish. I’m absolutely delighted when it’s all assembled and ready to eat or share with friends.
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The dressing is the detail that makes this more than a standard seafood salad—the mayo with chopped green olives, lemon, smoked paprika, Aleppo pepper, and both hot and mild buffalo sauce sounds creamy, briny, and bright. Seven-minute eggs should add a rich soft center without overwhelming the fresh crab. I also like the instruction to arrange everything on one large platter rather than toss it; keeping radishes, avocado, tomatoes, and crab in distinct sections makes it feel celebratory and lets guests build each bite. This seems fast enough for lunch but polished enough for company.