Name: Kani Salad (Easy Japanese Crab Salad)
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: 8 ounces surimi leg style imitation crab meat (crab stick); ½ of an English cucumber*; 1 ripe mango; 1 green onion, white and green parts; ½ cup corn kernels (from frozen, canned, or fresh cut); 1 tablespoon sesame seeds (white or black); 2 tablespoons kewpie mayonnaise; 1 tablespoon soy sauce; 1 tablespoon rice vinegar; 2 teaspoons lemon juice; 1 teaspoon mirin (rice wine); 1 teaspoon sriracha

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe·5 from 1 review

Kani salad is the Japanese crab salad you love at Japanese steakhouses and sushi restaurants in America. This light, refreshing salad is quick and easy to make at home!

Kani salad is easy, flavorful, and has the best combination of textures! It’s made with imitation crab legs, crunchy cucumbers, sweet chunks of mango, pops of sweet corn, and a creamy dressing.

I’ve been making this salad for years, and it’s a family favorite in our home. We serve it in rice or poke bowls, as a side dish, and as the surf component to surf and turf. Try it with a Tokyo Sunset Cocktail for a perfect pairing!

You can add more sriracha to add heat to this salad or add tobiko or masago for another satisfying layer of crunch.

You’ll love how fast it comes together. There’s no cooking or complicated steps. The hardest part of making this is shredding the crab stick. But it’s super easy to do once you get the hang of it.

What is Kani?

Kani is the Japanese word for crab. It usually refers to imitation crab meat. You’ll see kani on the menu in Japanese steak houses or your favorite sushi restaurants. It’s used in sushi rolls, crabstick salad, and kani salads like this!

Ingredients

Imitation crab legs, a mango, half of an English cucumber, corn kernels, a green onion, half a lemon, and bowls of seasonings.

Kani Salad Ingredients

Surimi leg-style imitation crab meat is the kani in this Japanese crab salad. You’re looking for the crabstick-style imitation crab. It’s easy to shred and has the best texture to create the thin strands in this salad. I’ve made this with the flake or lump-style crab when I had some that I needed to use. If you go that route, I recommend dicing the cucumber to match the texture for nice bites.

English cucumber offers a crunch contrast to the crab stick. It’s cut into thin sticks to mimic the strands of kani. Make sure you use an English cucumber. They’re crunchy, thin-skinned, and not as seedy as a garden cucumber.

Corn kernels add another layer of texture and flavor to the salad. You can use drained kernels from a can, thawed from frozen corn, or fresh-cut corn from a cob.

Fresh mango adds a soft, silky texture and a tropical sweet flavor. It works so well to balance the crab and cucumber.

Green onion adds a herby, oniony flavor and a nice pop of color.

Sesame seeds add a mild nutty flavor and a little extra crunch to the salad. You can use white or black sesame seeds.

Kani Salad Dressing

Kewpie Japanese mayonnaise is easy to find in most grocery stores. It’s worth buying authentic kewpie for kani salad. It’s creamy, made with egg yolks instead of whole eggs, and a little sweet. It has a very distinctive flavor that is different from whole egg mayo. A bottle will keep for a long time, and you can use it in other Japanese-inspired recipes like spicy salmon salad.

Soy sauce adds a salty, umami flavor to the dressing.

Rice vinegar is tangy and mild. It brings home the Japanese flavor profile in this dressing. You can find it in the Asian section of most grocery stores.

Freshly squeezed lemon juice adds a hint of citrus and acidity to balance the dressing and make the flavors pop.

Mirin is a sweet Japanese rice wine. You can find it in most grocery stores in the Asian food section.

Sriracha adds a hint of spice to the dressing. It doesn’t make it hot. It simply adds complex flavor. If you like it hot and spicy, you can add more sriracha. I like adding it as a topping to control the heat on individual portions.

Optional Topping Ideas

Extra sriracha to make it as hot and spicy as you like!

Sliced avocado adds a creamy texture, healthy fat, and extra fiber.

Tobiko and Masago are two types of fish roe that are commonly used in sushi. They’re those little red or orange balls that pop in your mouth. They’re one of my favorite parts of sushi, and the texture they add to kani salad is perfection. Whichever one you can find will work beautifully.

I can sometimes find tobiko or masago in the frozen section of Asian grocery stores. But folks, I live in the heart of southern Appalachia. I’m over 6 hours from the ocean and 2 hours from an Asian grocery store. I don’t usually have roe on hand. I’m guessing it’s difficult for many of you to source. So, I consider this optional!

How to Make it

Check out the recipe card at the end for ingredient amounts and full instructions.

Patting imitation crab legs dry with a paper towel.

Imitation crab legs shredded into thin pieces.

First, pat the imitation crab meat dry using paper towels or a clean kitchen towel. Then, use your hands to pull each stick apart into shreds.

Next, julienne the English cucumber into thin strips, dice the mango, and slice the green onion.

Shredded crab stick, cucumber sticks, corn kernels, diced mango, sliced green onions, and black sesame seeds in a bowl.

Whisk all the dressing ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Then add the prepared salad ingredients to the dressing and toss to combine.

Serve immediately.

Storage and Make Ahead

If you decide to make ahead, keep the dressing separate and combine just before serving.
You can refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 days, but the cucumber will lose its crunch over time. Make sure to stir any leftovers before serving.

Serving Tips

Kani salad is a quick and versatile dish you can serve as an appetizer, side dish, lunch, or dinner entree. Here are some of my favorite ways to serve it.

You can totally eat kani salad by itself. It makes a perfect light lunch.
Make a rice bowl by adding a scoop to steamed or seasoned rice with extra sriracha and sliced avocado.
Serve it as a starter or side dish for Japanese teriyaki or hibachi. Try pairing it with teriyaki chicken, steamed broccoli, glazed carrots, steamed rice, and shrimp sauce!
Use kani salad as an for your poke bowl.
As a side dish! On sushi night or as part of your mainland Hawaiian lunch plate.
Serve it with steak for a fun take on surf and turf.
Use it as a dip with crackers.

Pro-tip: If you’re serving it as a dip, cut the strands of kani and cucumber into short pieces before adding them to the salad.

Did you love this kani salad? Consider giving it ⭐5 stars⭐ using the stars in the recipe card or in the comments section at the end of this post!

Kani Salad (Easy Japanese Crab Salad)

What is Kani?