These quick and easy Salmon Patties are a snap-to-make, made with simple pantry ingredients that can be whipped up in 20 minutes, perfect for midweek meals. With a video!
When I rise up, let me rise up joyful like a bird. When I fall, let me fall without regret like a leaf. ~Wendell Berry
These easy Salmon Patties are made with simple pantry ingredients designed for busy weeknights when time is short. Serve them up with a fresh salad or crunchy slaw, and dinner is ready! In addition to the basic Salmon Patty recipe, the recipe includes three different flavor variations – Asian-Style Salmon Cakes, Mediterranean Salmon Cakes and Nordic-style Salmon Cakes.
how to make salmon Patties! | 60-sec video!
Salmon Patties Ingredients
- Salmon- Canned wild salmon (or sub-leftover cooked salmon)
- Eggs – Eggs are the binder here, giving structure and airiness
- Onion-green onions, or sub-red onion
- Panko or bread crumbs
- Fresh herbs– dill, basil, parsley, chives, tarragon, or cilantro
- Lemon Zest– to add a little brightness
- Mayo
- Salt & pepper
How to make Salmon Patties
- Simply choose the variation of salmon cake you want to make and mix the ingredients in a large bowl.
- Form two cakes.
- Coat the cakes in panko or sesame seeds
- Pan-sear and keep warm in the oven.
Salmon PattY Variations
- Nordic Salmon Patties with dill and capers and a Creamy Dill Sauce. Shown above.
- Asian-style Salmon Patties with sesame seeds, ginger, cilantro and green onion. Shown below.
- Mediterranean-Style Salmon Patties with dijon mustard, lemon zest, garlic & herbs.
Once you make the salmon patties, I know that you will come up with your own creative variations!
Use this basic Salmon Patty recipe as a base for your own versions. I’m so excited to see what you create!
Fresh wild salmon always makes for the best salmon patties, either cooked or raw, but in a pinch, good quality canned wild salmon pulled from the pantry can be a total lifesaver!
An egg and panko bread crumbs serve as the main binder here. A little mayo also helps. Feel free to experiment with gluten-free bread crumbs or even gluten-free flour. A flax egg will also work in a pinch, although I prefer the lightness the real egg gives the cakes.
Yes, salmon patties can be made ahead and be stored in the fridge, to pan-sear later. Store on a paper towel. You can even pan-sear them ahead and either refrigerate or freeze.
What to serve with Salmon Patties:
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Salmon Patties Recipe (Video)
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Main, Fish, Pantry
- Method: Stove top
- Cuisine: Northwest
- Diet: Kosher
Description
This recipe for Salmon Patties is designed for weeknight dinners when time is short. Of course, fresh salmon always makes for a better salmon cake, but in a pinch, canned salmon, pulled from the pantry can be a lifesavor! Here are three variations – Asian Style, Mediterranean style, and Nordic Style!
Ingredients
Basic Salmon Patty Recipe (see variations below)
- 1 can wild salmon (7-8 ounces), drained (or feel free to use leftover cooked salmon)
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon mayo (this makes for a lighter, fluffier and more bindable texture)
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (or onion powder)
- 1/4 cup panko, (or toasted bread crumbs) see notes
- 1– 2 scallions, sliced (or sub 2–3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion)
- generous pinch salt and pepper (about 1/8 teaspoon each – see notes)
- 1–2 tablespoons olive oil.
See variations below.
Instructions
- Drain salmon well.
- Mix all ingredients together in a medium bowl using a fork. Let stand 5-10 minutes.
- If the mixture seems wet, add a little more panko (up to 1/3 cup total)
- Divide mixture into 2 larger patties pressing together with your hands. If you like a crispy crust, dredge in more panko and/or sesame seeds before searing. At this point you could refrigerate for later, laying on a paper towel.
- Heat olive oil or butter (or a mixture is nice) in a skillet over medium heat. Sear the salmon cakes for 4-5 minutes on each side until beautifully golden and slightly puffed. (The puffed center tells you the egg is cooked through.)
- Serve with the suggested sides, the Quick Creamy Sauce or on their own with a side salad.
Notes
Salmon Patty Variations
Asian-style: add 1-2 teaspoons ginger paste (or finely chopped ginger) and 1/8-1/4 cup chopped cilantro to the cakes. Add 1-2 tablespoons sesame seeds to the panko mixture. Serve with Asian Slaw or Asian Cucumber Salad.
Mediterranean-style: add 1 minced garlic clove, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard, and 2 tablespoons chopped parsley. Serve with Leafy green salad.
Nordic style: add 1 tablespoon capers and 1/8-1/4 cup chopped dill. Serve with a Quick Creamy Sauce (below).
Mexican Syle: add 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, 1 teaspoon lime zest, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano and 1/2 teaspoon chili powder. Serve with Chipotle Mayo, Avocado and Mexican Slaw!
Quick Creamy Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons mayo
- 3 tablespoons sour cream or yogurt
- squeeze of lemon
- pinch salt and pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped (or sub scallions, cilantro or Italian parsley)
Panko: Use unseasoned panko. Gluten-free is just fine! Seasoned breadcrumbs seem to add an unsavory bitter taste.
Salmon: Try to use the best quality canned wild salmon you can find- this does make a difference.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 salmon patty
- Calories: 298
- Sugar: 0.9 g
- Sodium: 584.3 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated Fat: 3.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 4.2 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 36.5 g
- Cholesterol: 177.4 mg
This was really yummy. It’s going into my recipe collection!
The salmon cakes were super delicious and came together so fast. An easy, healthy weeknight meal. We paired our salmon cakes with roasted veggies!
Perfect, thanks!
These are fantastic! I found this recipe online recently and have made them several times in the different variations as you have suggested. All delicious! I do use fresh salmon that I lightly grill first and then flake into the mix, works a treat 🙂
YUM! I made this a second time with home-canned tuna, and it was just as good!
If I start with fresh salmon, must I cook it first? Or can I grind it raw and proceed with the recipe? Thank you!
That is a good question. If you do try it raw, adjust cooking time, and cook a little longer.
Great recipe! The whole family loved it! The best suggestion for this was drenching them in a mix of panko and sesame seeds just before frying!
I made this Asian style with a small salad and some avacado. Loved the sesame seed ‘breading’ especially. I’m excited to try the other styles and also try as burgers.
My absolute favorite last-minute weeknight healthy dinner! Basic ingredients, and so many variations to try. Tonight with lemon zest and dill, and thanks for the tip about extra bread crumbs for a crunchy cake. I think next time I will double the recipe!
Can you use something else besides mayo to bind? I want to try these but don’t love mayo!
Egg?
I prepared this recipe tonight. I used fresh salmon which was not cooked. We ate it with the asian cabbage salad. It was really delicious!
Oh great to hear! Thanks for sharing!
I just made them with tuna and it was delicious!
What a nice way to use canned fish and an easy food prep for the week ahead !
Which canned salmon do you think is the best? I’d like to be eating more of it but don’t care for the taste.
I also have a hard time with the flavor at times- prefer fresh! Trader Joes has some that is OK 🙂
Planning to try this tomorrow!
Can you make the cakes ahead (day before) and then pan fry them when you’re ready to eat them? Or should they be mixed and then immediately pan fried? Thanks!
You can make ahead!
Yum they were good! Had a tin of salmon that seriously needed using and hey presto. Had with aisan slaw which was also delicious, Thanks!
Awesome! Glad it worked out!
Delicious! I used fresh salmon and steamed it until it was flaky. Everything else I followed pretty much exactly for Asian style. OMG. I’ll be making this again; thank you!
Even Better with fresh fish I bet!
Tasty! I used ~1 cup mashed potatoe as the binder and added in half an onion (gratedon a box grated so it disappears) and skipped the garlic powder (that always tastes bad to me). I like the idea of seeds instead ofnusing panko for the coating! Looking forward to trying the nordic variation!
These are my new favorite busy weeknight go-to! Nordic style with a salad and quick oven fries tonight – high in protein and super fast. Thank you for this recipe!
Im so glad you like them Angie!
These were so delicious! I made them slightly smaller (so got 3 out of this recipe) & had them in buns as burgers. Totally gonna make these again.
I made the nordic version with albacore tuna and my husband and I both loved them. Easy and pleasey!
My whole family loved the salmon! We used almond flour instead of breadcrumbs but other than that followed the recipe. Loving the inspiration from this beautiful blog!
I love these! Am making 8 at a time and freezing them for a quick lunch or dinner. Also delicious as a ‘burger’ with sriracha mayo.
Thanks- so to good to know these are good for meal prep! Appreciate the comment and rating. 🙂
Can I sub Greek Yogurt for the mayo in the burgers? Not a big mayo fan.
hi Isabelle, you could try, but I haven’t personally tried it, so not sure how it will turn out. Please let us know what you think, if you try it with yogurt. My guess is it should be fine!
Very nice, easy to make. Made the asian version together with the Asian slaw. Which was also very good.
Oh perfect Jacqueline! Thanks for sharing and rating!
A delicious recipe thank you.
Awesome, thanks for the comment and rating!
I’ve made tuna cakes or patties but for some reason it never occurred to me to try it with salmon before! Now I for sure need to give your recipe a chance!