Avoid Buying This Imitation Crab Brand Unless You Enjoy An Overly Fishy Flavor

Despite its name, imitation crab isn't actually fake fish meat. It's typically made from "surimi," a paste comprised of various different types of fish — usually Alaskan pollock and other white fish — that is then formed into a crab shape. As for whether imitation crab is any good, it all depends on the source, whether it's a local Japanese restaurant, a corporate grocery store, or an imitation crab brand and distributor. To determine who makes the best surimi out there, Chowhound tried nine different imitation crab brands and ranked them from worst to best.

Sadly, the clear loser in this process was Louis Kemp Crab Delights Imitation Crab, which you can easily find at any Walmart and Target store for less than $5. Putting aside the fact that you can buy a pound of something that purports to be seafood for less than $5, which is highly disturbing on its own, this particularly try-hard brand of imitation crab did a disservice to other imitation crab brands.

To its immense credit, Louis Kemp Crab Delights Imitation Crab does its best to imitate crab; it just does a terrible job of it. The experience of eating this variety was off-putting from the outset, with an overly fishy, artificial taste, and a lingering, weirdly sour aftertaste. The word "sour" is one you never want to associate with crab, real or fake. In fact, we even had to chew on some ginger to get rid of that unpleasant aftertaste before continuing with the rest of our taste test. 

While the Louis Kemp Crab Delights Imitation Crab is far from an actual delight, other brands fared much better in our ranking. Notably, our top three choices — Sajo Premium Crabia, Fresh Fresh Imitation Crab Meat Sticks, and Kani Kamaboko Premium Gold Imitation Crab Stick — all come from the frozen aisle at H-Mart, an Asian supermarket chain with nearly 100 locations across the country.

But the question remains: Is imitation crab any good? In the case of these three, the answer is a resounding "yes!" But unless you enjoy overly fishy, try-hard imitation crab with a sour punch that lingers, we'd suggest staying away from Louis Kemp Crab Delights. One experience with this disconcerting mess might leave you, like Chowhound, questioning your life choices and reaching for a palate cleanser.