It’s difficult not to love Costco’s crab dip: It’s got a little crab, a little cream cheese, and a lot of yum. If you don’t have a Costco nearby, or you don’t have a membership to the big-box store, you can hack it with just two ingredients — imitation crab and some French onion dip — to get your dip on.
To make it supremely dippable and spreadable, look for a creamy onion dip. Some brands can be found in the refrigerator aisle at the grocery store, while others, such as Lay’s French onion dip, live in the chip aisle (or at your favorite online marketplace). Empty your chosen dip into a medium-sized serving bowl to give yourself enough room to mix in the imitation crab meat after you’ve had a chance to prep it. Start by shredding it, which you can do easily by just pulling it apart. Next, cut it up so that you’re not trying to stuff the French onion dip with long strands of faux crab meat. That said, the length you cut the crab is up to you, a decision informed by how you intend to use the dip; shorter strands work better for small crackers, for example, while longer strands should stay pretty well on toast. You get the idea.
Taking Costco’s crab dip to the next level
This crab dip is the bomb on its own, but it positively tickles the tongue when a few goodies are added to it or the basic recipe gets tweaked a bit. To that end, a squirt or three of sriracha puts a little nip in each bite while toppers such as bacon bits, sprinkles of shredded cheddar, crumbles of blue cheese, shaved almonds, and crispy fried onions count among the yummiest for this dip.
As for tweaking the recipe, swapping out the onion dip for a creamy spinach and artichoke dip or bacon cheddar ranch dip brings forth different flavor combos. Or, if you love the French onion dip but want to amp it up a notch, stir in some softened cream cheese to make it taste even closer to the original. Finally, if you think your crab is getting a smidgen lonely in the dip by itself, open up a can of Bumble Bee miniature shrimps and toss those in. You could also skip the crab and try some salmon dip instead. It’s a true gift from the sea in every bite.
