What is artificial crab meat made out of, if it is not actually real crab?

1. 87

   Faith Reaperposted 11 years ago

   What is artificial crab meat made out of, if it is not actually real crab?
   
   I just love this seafood salad I pick up at the grocery store, but I noticed it is not made with real crab meat.  If it is not real crab meat, what is it?  I am not sure that I really want to know, but ...  Thank you for answering. 
   
   

   replyreport
2. 83

   mgeorge1050posted 11 years ago

   I think it is made from a fish called pollack.  I prefer the real thing myself, although it is a bit more expensive.

   replyreport
   1. 87

      Faith Reaperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hello mgeorge1050, thank you so much for answering.  Well, I am glad to know it is at least fish lol!  I prefer the real thing too, but just wanted to know what is it if it is not real crab meat.

      replyreport
3. 82

   MarleneBposted 11 years ago

   Faith, I read the back of an "imitation" crab meat package one day and saw that imitation crab meat has "real" crab in it along with some other things. The package wasn't very specific.
   
   I read the package because I really needed to know what was in the package. You see, I'm highly allergic to shellfish. And so, eating "imitation" crab meat from that package would have sent me to the hospital. The package that I read stated that it was "Imitation Crab Meat", but that was such an illusion for me because, while I like the flavor of crab meat, I don't want to really eat the flesh of crab meat because of the negative effects of eating "real" crab meat. So, who knows? You might have been eating "real" crab meat along with "imitation" crab meat. My husband has a package of imitation crab meat in the refrigerator right now and it definitely states "crab meat" as one of the ingredients.

   replyreport
   1. 87

      Faith Reaperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hi Marlene, Wow!  Thank you so much.  Yes, that is an important reason to read it. Funny, mine did not say imitation or have the ingredients, so hopefully mine is the real deal.  I meant to call it imitation.

      replyreport
4. 61

   Bubblegum Jonesposted 11 years ago

   I'm not sure, but it taste just as good if not better. That's also a good looking picture of a crab.

   replyreport
   1. 87

      Faith Reaperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hi there, Bubblegum Jones, it truly does taste very good. Oh, I found that picture on en.wikipedia and chose it because it looks like an imitation crab lol.

      replyreport
5. 93

   Jackie Lynnleyposted 11 years ago

   I think it is just like the imitation lobster that I buy, just mixed seafood meats with maybe a bit of lobster. I love it though and it makes the very best salad to have back cold in summer for a snack. I doubt if anything is too good for us but after reading on it I didn't feel too bad about it. So your crab meat is probably OK. I bought some crab meat in a can but have not tried it yet.
   This reminds me my sister use to make the very best crab cakes I have ever tasted! She got hers from the ocean though.

   replyreport
   1. 87

      Faith Reaperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks so much, Jackie. Yes, it does taste good and you're probably right about it not being too bad. Lobster sounds great too. I bet they were the best fresh crab cakes no doubt.

      replyreport
6. 60

   Darksageposted 11 years ago

   Really Miss Faith!? Wow, they make everything fake now. Probably it was made of food rubber or something. lol. That's kinda sad really. I can't believe that they would do that. Well, we have a lot of fresh crabs in here so I guess we're pretty lucky. I hope that you would find less of those fake crab meat, I heard it's not healthy. I mean seriously? Fake crab meat.

   replyreport
   1. 87

      Faith Reaperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Yes...I will make sure it is not imitation but the real deal. You're right as there is no telling what it really is!

      replyreport
7. 78

   sallieannluvslifeposted 11 years ago

   Hi Faith,  I think it is made from the fish, pollock.  If you want real crab, you should try jumbo lump crabmeat from a place called CrabPlace.com.  It is a company in Crisfield, MD, right here on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, on the Chesapeake Bay, where they have the best crabmeat in the world.  Crisfield is known as the crab capital of the world.  There is nothing like it....tender, sweet...yum...the lump crabmeat makes the best crabcakes ever.

   replyreport
   1. 87

      Faith Reaperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hi sallieann, Thank you so much for answering.  Glad to know it is from real fish at least, and I appreciate the tip on where to find jumbo lump crabmeat!  Awesome, I will check them out.  I just love crabcakes too!  Have a wonderful day, Faith Reape

      replyreport
8. 84

   M. T. Dremerposted 11 years ago

   I saw a show on food network once that said one brand of imitation crab meat was made from Surimi, a common fish. It was made into a paste before being formed into the tube-like shape and the pink strip was added.

   replyreport
   1. 87

      Faith Reaperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hello M. T. Dremer, Oh, wow, well, I am glad it is also made from a common fish, but that paste with the pink strip now has me wondering of what the pink strip is made? Probably, the paste just dyed pink maybe?  Thank you for answering!

      replyreport
   2. 84

      M. T. Dremerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I believe it is just a food dye, to give it that crab-like appearance.

      replyreport