These delicious, easy to make salmon cakes can be made with fresh salmon or canned for an easy weeknight dinner. They make an herby, flavorful meal that is both healthy and simple to do!
Whether you are using fresh salmon or canned, these cakes make a wonderful nutritious meal. Salmon is good for you for so many reasons. It is rich in protein, vitamin D, and calcium. It is also full of healthy fats such as Omega-3s which contribute towards a healthy heart and body.
This Salmon Cakes recipe produce salmon patties that are moist and tender but don’t fall apart too easily. They are similar to other seafood cakes like crab cakes and Shrimp Cakes, except the hero here is salmon.
Fresh, wild salmon definitely provides the best flavor and its something we always have in our freezer but canned salmon also works great with this recipe.They are also so simple to whip up using pantry and fridge staples so there is no need to run to the grocery store. Perfect for those busy weeknights when you need to get dinner on the table quickly with what you already have on hand!
These easy salmon cakes make a quick, yummy meal. We love to serve them with a salad like a Healthy Caesar Salad, potato wedges, or on a bun to make a salmon burger. I recommend making bigger salmon patties for salmon burgers (this recipe will yield about 4-5). They are SO GOOD! These go great with homemade tartar sauce, too, so I highly recommend whipping some up.
Why we love these salmon cakes:
- This easy salmon patty recipe is delicious!
- Making Salmon Cakes is really simple and takes only 20 minutes from start to finish!
- This recipe uses ingredients you likely already have in your fridge and pantry.
- While fresh salmon cakes are the best they can get (using fresh or frozen salmon), you can make it with canned salmon too.
- They’re nutritious.
- They can be enjoyed as is with a simple side salad or potato side dish, for example, or made into larger Salmon burgers.
Ingredients in Salmon Cakes
- Salmon: you can use fresh (cooked) salmon or a large can of salmon for this recipe. It is a great way to use up leftover cooked salmon from last nights dinner if you have it!
- Veggies: red bell pepper and green onions.
- Bread crumbs; you can use regular bread crumbs or Panko bread crumbs.
- Eggs: helps bind the salmon patties together.
- Mayonnaise: adds moisture to the patties.
- Fresh parsley
- Dijon Mustard
- Lemon: lemon zest adds a little lemony zing to the cakes. I also recommend serving these with lemon wedges as the bright lemon flavor compliments these well.
- Seasoning: salt and black pepper. I kept the seasoning simple here but you can add other seasonings to spice things up. If you like heat, you can add a little cayenne pepper, for example. Or add other flavorings like lemon pepper seasoning, Old Bay seasoning, paprika, other dried herbs or fresh herbs. Dried dill or fresh dill is especially good in these.
- Olive oil: for pan frying. You can substitute another oil such as avocado oil, grape seed oil, etc.
**Note: Ingredient quantities and full instructions are in the recipe card at the end of this post.**
How to make Salmon Cakes
- Break up the salmon. Place the cooked salmon in a large mixing bowl and use a fork to break it up into small pieces.
- Mix all of the ingredients together. Add all of the remaining ingredients except for the olive oil to the bowl and mix together until well incorporated.
- Form patties. Scoop out a portion of the salmon mixture and use your hands to form it into a patty. Repeat with all of the salmon mixture.
- Pan fry. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a few salmon patties to the skillet (or as many as you can fit in the pan you are using, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. You will need to cook them in batches). Pan fry the salmon patties for 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
- Optional: Serve with lemon wedges so anyone who wants to can squeeze a bit of lemon juice on them.
Storing leftovers and reheating
Once cooled, leftover salmon patties can be placed in an airtight container and stored in the fridge for a few days.
To reheat them, heat a little olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and add the patties. Lower the temperature to medium-low heat and reheat the salmon cakes, flipping on both sides until heated through. I recommend keeping the heat on the lower side if you are heating slightly thick patties so you don’t burn the outside before the inside has been heated.
Can you freeze these salmon cakes?
Yes, you can easily freeze these salmon cakes. Once they are cooled, you can place them in a freezer bag or a freezer safe container. For added protection, you can also wrap them in plastic wrap. You can thaw them and reheat them as mentioned in the section above or you can place them on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake them in the oven from frozen.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!
-Cathy
Salmon lovers, you may also enjoy these salmon recipes:
Salmon Parcels
Herb Butter Salmon
Baked Pesto Salmon Recipe
Almond Crusted Salmon
Salmon Cakes
Ingredients
- 2 cups salmon cooked (can use fresh or canned)
- 1/2 red pepper diced
- 1 green onions chopped
- 1 cup bread crumbs regular bread crumbs or Panko bread crumbs
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons parsley minced
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- zest of 1 lemon (Optional: lemon wedges to serve)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- olive oil for frying
Instructions
- Place the cooked salmon in a large mixing bowl and use a fork to break it up into small pieces.
- Add all of the remaining ingredients except for the olive oil to the bowl and mix together until well incorporated.
- Scoop out a portion of the salmon mixture and use your hands to form it into a patty. Repeat with all of the salmon mixture.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a few salmon patties to the skillet (or as many as you can fit in the pan you are using, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. You will need to cook them in batches). Pan fry the salmon patties for 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
- Optional: Serve with lemon wedges.
Notes
Note: Metric ingredient measurements are provided as a courtesy using a third-party calculator and are rounded to the nearest unit. The recipes provided on this site have not been tested with metric measurements and their accuracy cannot be verified.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is based on third-party calculations and is an estimate only. Accurate nutritional facts will vary based on the particular brands used, portion sizes, measurement accuracy and more.
