25 Best Old Bay Recipes

This list of 25 Old Bay recipes will make sure your dinners are full of flavor and will bring the southern charm straight to your kitchen, no matter where you are.

We all know it by sight: that little yellow and blue metal tin full of Creole flavor. 

Old Bay is a flexible blend of seasoning that tastes great in dozens of dishes. 

You are sure to find something to fit your fancy on this list full of recipes from classic crab to air-fried pickles.

Break out your Old Bay and prepare yourself for some fantastic flavor in every recipe!

1. Creamy Old Bay Shrimp Salad 

This creamy cold shrimp salad is a delicious summer snack or meal! 

Cooked shrimp cooled and tossed with mayo, white wine vinegar, Worcestershire, celery, scallions, and of course Old Bay.

These ingredients come together so well, and flavors meld when chilling. 

2. Easy Crab Cakes Recipe 

Classic crab cakes are a creole essential. This crab cake recipe is so simple to put together and is certainly a crowd-pleaser.

I could eat crab cakes for a meal on their own, but these are fantastic with a salad, or tangy coleslaw on the side!

3. Chex Mix Recipe with Old Bay

We love making our own Chex Mix and this recipe adds the seasoning we love: Old Bay.

Feel free to play around with the amounts of your favorite mix-ins for this one. The best part of homemade Chex Mix is you’ll always have plenty to share.

4. Baked Old Bay Fries with Quick Aioli 

If you love well-seasoned fries, you might want to make a double batch of this recipe.

These are so flavorful, and the aioli sauce is the perfect finisher for these Old Bay fries.

Bake them for a tasty snack, or as a side for your favorite fish or burgers.

5. Smoked Salmon Deviled Eggs 

Deviled eggs are one finger food that never lasts long at our family gatherings. These smoked salmon deviled eggs are so sophisticated and delicious.

Don’t worry, if you struggle to get perfectly peeled boiled eggs like me, you can make a flavorful and fabulous egg salad with this recipe, too.

6. Old Bay Bloody Mary 

I fell in love with the delight of Bloody Marys many years ago. There’s something to be said about a drink that’s also a snack. 

Old Bay is the perfect addition to flavor your bloodies, and goes with whatever garnish you like! Anything pickled is delicious in a well-balanced bloody. 

In this recipe, you’ll use V8 for the juice base, but I like to mix in a bit of Clamato as well. It goes so well with the flavor profile of Old Bay! 

7. Old Bay Chicken Wings   

Buttery chicken wings tossed in Old Bay? I’m totally down. 

This recipe is finger-licking good, no ranch required. These are so easy to throw together for dinner or your next football party. 

8. 3-Ingredient Crispy Seasoned Red Potatoes 

Tired of your plain roasted potatoes? 

All it takes is one little twist to make your next potato side dish a total winner. Can you guess what it is? You got it! Old Bay. 

9. Grilled Corn with Old Bay Mayo 

Grilled corn is a summer staple, and adding a kick of Old Bay to corn is a delicious spin on this classic.

Don’t forget the napkins, as you’ll need them after eating an ear of this spicy mayo corn on the cob. 

10. Beer Battered Air Fryer Fried Pickles 

I might not be southern, but I know a great fried pickle when I see one. I never realized how simple it is to have crispy fried pickles in the air fryer!

We love to kick this recipe up a notch and use spicy dill pickles, but you can use traditional dill if you prefer a more mild appetizer. 

11. Crab Salad Recipe 

Much to my demise, most inland states don’t serve crab salad, so finding one I could whip up in my own kitchen was key.

This recipe is so easy to make and brings the bay right into your home.

You’ll combine imitation crab, celery, red onion and green onion, mayo, lemon juice, and Old Bay seasoning. 

12. Old Bay & Bacon Peanuts  

Do yourself a favor and whip up a batch of these perfect peanuts for your next snack. Be warned, you won’t want to stop eating them!

You’ll love how great your house smells when you roast your peanuts tossed in Old Bay, butter, cayenne, and a dash of sugar.

The bacon in this recipe elevates the flavor, but the peanuts are great on their own.

13. Stovetop Old Bay Popcorn 

The invention of bagged popcorn is great, don’t get me wrong, but if you’ve never made your own stovetop popcorn, you are missing out!

Simply pop your popcorn kernels in safflower oil, then toss with butter and Old Bay. It’s basically an instant win. 

14. Old Bay Salmon Cakes 

This recipe is a twist on traditional crab cakes, and it’s prepared with salmon instead.

You can use frozen salmon for this recipe, if you don’t have access to fresh salmon.

The veggies, Old Bay, and bread crumbs do a great job of bringing out the salmon flavor for these fried fish cakes. 

15. Crab Rolls 

If you love crab salad, you’ll have to give this crab roll recipe a try.

The crab meat is tossed in a creamy, buttery sauce, and, of course, it’s seasoned with the obligatory Old Bay. This is a much better way to use hot dog buns any time of year.

16. Crab Soup 

Creamy crab soup is an incredible way to warm up in the fall or winter. Promise me you’ll keep this one on your list to try!

This recipe features a classic white butter roux, raised with half and half, and seasoned with dijon, and Old Bay.

You’ll want to use the freshest crab possible to make the most of this recipe.

17. Easiest Crawfish Boil Recipe 

At least once in your life, you’ll have to try a crawfish boil. Disclaimer: once you’ve tried it once, it won’t be a “once in your life” kind of thing anymore!

This recipe will easily walk you through this traditional southern recipe.

Though there isn’t a wrong way to enjoy a crawfish boil, it’s best served for a crowd, piled high on the table in front of you. No plates required!

18. Easy Shrimp and Crab Quiche 

Brunch is a whole lot better when it’s made with Old Bay. This seafood quiche is a hit for everyone, and it will bring the bay straight to your breakfast table.

You’ll love the elevated Creole flavors in this quiche, and the sophistication of seafood for breakfast.

19. Maryland Hot Crab Dip 

With Old Bay coming right from Maryland, there’s no shortage of Maryland-style foods featuring this spice blend. 

This creamy crab dip is robust with flavor and could be a meal in itself.

I’m sure it’s intended to be an appetizer, but I have no shame in serving this crab dip and bread or crackers for dinner. 

20.  Old Bay Shrimp Scampi Pasta  

I’ve never been disappointed by a big bowl of shrimp scampi pasta, and this one is no exception! 

This recipe calls for olive oil rather than butter, so do what you want with that information. Of course, nobody will know if you use butter, as you would with traditionally prepared scampi.

21. Vegan Crab Bites 

You won’t need to be a vegan to enjoy these eco-friendly, delicious vegan crab bites. 

In this recipe, you’ll replace crab meat with hearts of palm. These are so easy to make with pre-made shells, but feel free to start from scratch if you have a recipe you love!

22. Spinach Stuffed Flounder 

Flounder is a more delicate fish that produces less fishy recipes. The Old Bay plays so well with the creamy spinach stuffing in this recipe. 

The stuffing is prepared with three types of cheese, and, of course, spinach!

23. Frogmore Stew 

Whether you call it a low-country boil or Frogmore stew, you’ll have to try this recipe.

Shrimp, corn on the cob, potatoes, and smoked sausage all boil together in a bath of Old Bay and butter in this recipe. 

24. Shrimp Cocktail 

Shrimp cocktail is one of those appetizers that can’t really be compared with any other.

These shrimp are of course prepared to Maryland standard, and the homemade cocktail is restaurant-quality.

Don’t worry, you’re welcome to use store-bought cocktail sauce as well if you’re whipping these up in a hurry.

25. Pickled Shrimp 

This is the first pickled shrimp recipe I have tried, and I loved it!

Like all pickled foods, the longer these sit, the more flavor you’ll find.

If you haven’t thought of it already, go ahead and try these in the Old Bay Bloody Mary recipe I shared with you earlier. 

I’m sure you can imagine how delish these shrimp are after bathing with Old Bay, capers, jalapenos, mustard seed, and thyme.