it's fine, but best to think of it as a standalone food, not an imitation... which i believe the japanese do. nothing compares to real crab, but there are some things you can only do with surimi.

now, on a related topic, what about that processed squid thing they do?

mmMMm!

Not nearly as good as real crab, but sooooooo good in its own rights!

I guess it's easier to make fake than improve the real thing.
Frank Purdue made a chicken with all tits and no ass.
Why can't they fool with mother nature some
more and make a crab that stays soft and is 5lbs
of lump meat? No one really knows what we eat any more
do we?

mmmmmmmmmm, california rolls...

other than that, I am not so impressed

It doesn't really taste like real crab, but it's delicious. Once I start eating some the whole package is as good as gone.

Nah just give me the real stuff!

would like another option in the Poll, will eat it, but prefer the real thing. Krab is convenient, and cheap, however Canned Crab (by the Tuna) is much better, and neither compare to fresh. Depending on what you want to do with it it is ok to use, but it is much sweeter than meat should be.

I'm not sure why they even have the word CRAB in it's name...tastes nothing like it, looks nothing like it and not made from it...hmmm

Imitation crab meat has it's purposes. For me though it is in a whole other category than regular crab meat. If a particular dish calls for crab meat than I will go get the real thing. However for stuff like a regular california roll, then yeah surimi is the way to go.

I love imitation crab meat...mmmmm

All I can say is DAMN STRAIGHT!

i don't think it compares to the real stuff. it's not horrible, but it sure as hell ain't crab meat! kinda like black bean burgers - i like 'em, but they don't even approach a replacement for a whopper.

I used to like it until I overdosed on it one day when I was wasted. now I get sick thiniking about it.

LUV IT!!!

I hate this stuff with a passion! It tastes nothing like crab, the texture is the main problem for me, I can't even describe it.

That stuff is Awsome! I used to eat it like peanuts when I was a kid. Its perfect to make sushi with cause its already in the perfect sizes you want and you can strip them easily like stringy cheese.

i'll have to admit - used right in salads and whatnot it can be quite good.

Well.....Surimi HAS been around for over 800 years....so you have to admit: That's one HECK of a shelf life!! (Kind of like Twinkies...)!

I love krab.

This stuff doesn't compare to the real thing. I don't like it because I eat it all the time. Real crab on the other hand, is not so common.

I guess it doesn't help that I know a person who works for a company that makes this stuff. Yecchh.

this stuff isn't too bad, especially for the price...no comparison to the real thing, of course, but not bad nonetheless

It's cheaper, and it tastes ok. Like crab but with too much sugar. It's also a little watery. Real crab is best - by far. It has its uses.

Funny note, here in Portugal we call it delícias do mar which literally means delicious things from the sea. lol

It's not bad ... it's not great.. but it tastes nothing like crab... doesn't have the texture of crab... and when used in recipes that would call for crab (like a crab and artichoke dip I have) it'd not even close to what it tastes like with real crab...

the only time i ever had the fake crab meat was in a safeway sushi roll.
and i felt sick for hours after eating it. Imitation crab is the only "meat" in any of their sushi and i doubt the rice or veggies made me sick.
thumbs down

bleh. I hate that stuff

I actually read all the replies so I think I can post this on here, all too many people are saying it tastes nothing like real crab, while this may or may not be true, it is not the topic at hand. The original question was do you like it? I myself prefer real crab over the imitation, but in answer to the question I do love imitation crab meat.

The link posted above is a nice read about the product in question. If used in a seafood salad or with other ingredients added to it, many people cannot honestly tell the difference except maybe for you folks from Maine like above, who has lived and grown up on the real thing only. You folks who do not like it, try some recipes and the such and I bet you might be suprised it is not all that bad.....

Damn you guys I just called the gf and now we are going out to Red Lobster for dinner :)

So I have this question about imitation crab meat...I have always been deathly allergic to shellfish..so crab easily fall under this category.. Anyway, do crab and imitiation crab meat share the same chemical properties that in turn, upon ingestion would cause a severe (think nearly death reaction within a very, very short period of time) reaction?? I've been afraid to try so maybe someone might have some insight...

And IS it the chemical property in shellfish or is my body just not producing an enzyme to break it down...help.

Immitation crab meat is made from Pollak, a fish. So it probably doesn't react the same as shellfish (but ask a doctor to make sure).

How bad can it be? The Nipponese have been making and eating the stuff since the 1500s.

Thanks Charlatan! I just might do that.

In a salad it is ok. Real crab is better though.

I usually steam it and slather it in melted butter. Yum! No, it's nothing like real crab meat, but it's cheap and fairly tasty. Usually it's made, I think, of whitefish. *shrug*

In response to rlynnm, watch out because there is some real crabmeat involved in the making of imitation crab meat. I don't think it's a great idea to experiment, sorry. Read the link on what goes into the imitation stuff and it's there.

" 6. Forming the crab meat
The frozen surimi is converted to imitation crab meat through various steps. First, it is warmed to about 25°F (-4°C), then sliced into coarse flakes. In a process known as comminution, the surimi flakes are then mixed together in a stone bowl grinder with other ingredients in the crab meat recipe. These ingredients include starch, salt, natural crab meat, egg white, and flavors. This mixture results in a thick surimi paste, which is then transferred to a holding tank."

Thanks for the info tippler..I kinda thought that but I wasn't sure. Sometimes I get the gusto to try it, 'just to see' but I dont know, I get flashbacks of that time in the hospital where my tongue had swollen (girth-wise) so much you couldn't see the bar on my t-ring. I was prescribed medication by syringe just in case I got another reaction but I, luckily, haven't had the chance to use 'em....

[B][I]Imitation crab meat is aight...i can't eat it in large quantities. I usually only eat in my salads...toss it in with the ham and turkey meat, drown it in some ranch dressing...that's the only way to go as far as i'm concerned.

The one place I went to served imitation crab meat as an alternative to serving shellfish. They actually used tuna, ( if you held it in your mouth like gum instead of chewing, then you could get a faint taste of it ), confirmed by the cook. But essentially it was a great taste, not "exactly" crab, but a crab like tasting tuna with alot of spices. Was good by itself and in the California Rolls.

yum yum gimme some

We get all sorts of real crab here. Chili and pepper crab are very popular.

I don't think the locals would really go for pollack dressed as crab when the real thing is so plentiful.

Good for California rolls...

Sushi on teh cheap!

There is good and bad. I kind of like the bad... but there is a brand called "smart crab" (also make fake lobster) which has no artificial flavors or colors, and far better than the other stuff.

I eat imitation crab all the time, sure its not the same as real crab, but theres just something about it I like. I usually just put some in a cup toss some butter on top and nuke it for 20 seconds in the micro. Simple and tastes great.