I see its low in cholesterol and awfully high in protein in comparison to regular fish like salmon.
So what’s the catch? (No pun intended)
Imitation crab meat is lower in protein compared to most fish, since it contains a large amount of carbs (from added corn starch and added sugar). More than half of the calories in imitation crab meat are from carbs.
I love kamaboko 🍥! Which is the Japanese version of imitation crab meat. It’s a little bit less process than the western version. But it’s not meant to be eaten as an entree but just like a garnish or appetizer. There are some excellent brands from Japan that produce very high quality minimally processed kamaboko but it’s more expensive to get than just salmon.
It’s ok to eat once in a while! But you should try to get your protein source from whole food sources that don’t contain a lot of additives.
It’s is heavily processed, has 1/3 the protein of salmon, has considerably less vitimans, HUGE amount of sodium (comparably), has carbs from starch, has low levels of omega-3s. All in all, garbage, nutritionally, compared to whole salmon.
Pretty sure imitation crab is a bunch of fish processed and ground up into chunks. I would guess most of the normal fatty oils in the fish used to make it are removed during the process. I may be wrong though.
With the amount they have to put into imitation crab, at least in the US, tells me most of what’s healthy about fish isn’t there anymore. I’d say anything made of meat that becomes bread texture is far worse than a salmon filet, I’ll even always recommend that salmon instead while I’m at work.
According to this
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/imitation-crab#imitation-vs-real-crab
imitation crab has less sodium than real crab.
Not sure why you would compare crab meat to salmon. Imitation crab meat is mostly white fish parts blended together with lots of preservatives like a hot dog, but even real crab meat isn’t that similar to salmon. They are very different fish.
It’s not as bad as everyone in here is making it out to be. Yes, it’s processed and has starches and higher sodium than whole raw fish, but it’s not poison. I find the term ‘processed food’ to be a kind of a boogeyman, it’s likely not going to have the red flags of processed proteins like sodium nitrite/nitrate but you might find MSG, sugar and sodium benzoate (not terrible). If you’re making sushi or a crab salad, go for it, but it also shouldn’t be a staple in your diet, there are healthier choices.
Imitation crab is pretty much just fish paste formed into the shape of crab meat. I don’t really see the difference between eating imitation crab and just eating those fish.
It is definitely not the worse thing for you and is a good alternative to those allergic to seafood if they want to eat crab. But it usually has some sort of binder in it too that could make it better or worse for you.
It has a load of carbs and sugar added to it. After they roll the fish paste in a ball, starches are added to give it some soliditary. Then sugar. I discovered this only recently, and it made a lot of sense since philadephia rolls were one of my favorite sushi rolls as a kid but I’d always feel bloated after.
I really like the stuff once the in awhile. Prefer salmon though. I’m curious about the mercy content, assume it is lower than actual fish due to the added ingredients but who knows. Definitely not as healthy as fish but I do enjoy the taste!