I love crab cakes. It’s not a secret. And when you combine crab cakes with an air fryer I come close to losing my mind.

Does anyone remember the salamander? You know, the broiler thingy found in most “classy” kitchens? Back in the day seeing a salamander in the kitchen on your first day and no crab cakes on the menu meant one thing: RUN. Quit now. Your paycheck is going to bounce. On the other hand, if you had one and crab cakes you were probably safe. You could also conduct crustacean experiments when the manager had a rare day off.

On one such day I decided to throw a crab cake in the convection oven “just to see what would happen.” Holy cow what a glorious experiment (and experience).

And it’s come to this. Air fryers and crab cakes. Just like that, around twenty years later I plop a few crab cakes heavily dusted with Old Bay into an air fryer.

What a glorious experiment.