Tasty Salmon Cakes with Canned Salmon
Salmon Cakes are tasty and healthy. Made with canned salmon these are also easy and economical!
Who’s trying to get more salmon in their diet? I can tell you that I am!
I used to try to get my healthy omega-3 fatty acids by taking fish oil supplements. But now I’m a pretty strong advocate for getting your nutrients directly from foods where possible.
Of course fatty fish consumption is lauded for lots of benefits like reducing heart disease, and it may also help reduce the incidence of dementia. Experts recommend eating a 3-4 ounce serving twice a week. Fatty fish include salmon, tuna, herring, and sardines among others.
Now typically salmon cakes are made with fresh salmon, but canned is more economical, easier and more convenient. And, I figure, the salmon gets mashed up anyway, so why not leave the expensive fillets for other dishes!
Why You’ll Love This!
Flavorful. With the rich flavor of salmon accented by tasty peppers and seasonings, Salmon Cakes are a taste delight!
Easy. Sautee some veggies and seasoning, add some salmon and binders (egg, mayo, bread crumbs), How easy is that!
Healthy. For more info on omega-3 benefits, take a look at this Cleveland Clinic post. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/17290-omega-3-fatty-acids
Step by Step Overview
Melt butter and sautee the onion, celery, red and yellow bell peppers, parsley, capers, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and seasoning over medium heat. Cook until the vegetables are soft, approximately 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature (I popped the pan in the freezer to speed this.)
Combine cooled vegetable mixture, salmon, bread crumbs, mayonnaise, mustard, and eggs and mix well.
Shape into 10 small cakes. I found that smaller, thicker patties worked the best. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Fry the salmon cakes for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden.
Variations
If you do want to add a sauce, check out my Garlic Aioli or the remoulade I serve with my Cajun Zucchini Fritters.
For other great ways to use canned salmon, take a look at this tasty Salmon Cheese Ball Appetizer or my Easy Salmon Melt
And if you’re really in the mood for more fish cakes, there’s always my whitefish based Danish Fish Cakes (Fiskefrikadeller).
Tips & FAQs
I remove the skin and larger bones from my canned salmon, but you don’t need to. The skin has a lot of omega-3s and the bones have calcium so are actually quite healthy. It is possible to buy cans of salmon (6 ounce like tuna cans) without skin and bones, but the price point is higher.
Be sure to get the vegetables tender in the initial sautee, with special attention to the celery. I missed on this my last attempt and every time I crunched into a slightly harder bit all I could picture was a giant salmon bone.
I mentioned it earlier but wanted to reiterate that I was happier with the patties that were more like small, thick hockey pucks. Those that were thin like fast food burgers were harder to flip and more likely to fall apart.
If you’re worried about the egg cooking through you can check that the temperature reaches 165 F using an instant read thermometer. Since the salmon is canned and ready to eat, that isn’t an issue.
New Years Resolution Recipes
- Black Bean Taco Wraps from That Recipe
- Creamy Vegan Lentil Soup from Magical Ingredients
- Orange Glazed Salmon from Creative Cynchronicity
- Salmon Patties with Canned Salmon from Art of Natural Living
- Steak Caprese Salad from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
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I’ll take the skin!
Salmon Cakes with Canned Salmon
Ingredients
- 16 ounces canned salmon skin removed
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3/4 cup onion diced (1 small onion)
- 1 cup celery diced (4 stalks) or celery root
- 1 cup ripe bell pepper diced (I used 1 red and 1 yellow pepper)
- 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley minced, or 1T dried
- 1 tablespoon capers drained
- 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco or equivalent
- 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- dash salt, pepper or to taste
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup light mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- 2-4 Tablespoons olive oil approx, for frying (or other oil)
Instructions
- Melt butter and sautee the onion, celery, red and yellow bell peppers, parsley, capers, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and seasoning over medium heat. Cook until the vegetables are soft, approximately 15 to 20 minutes. Cool to room temperature (I popped the pan in the freezer to speed this.).
- Combine cooled vegetable mixture, salmon, bread crumbs, mayonnaise, mustard, and eggs and mix well. Shape into 10 (2 1/2 to 3-ounce) cakes. I found that smaller, thicker patties worked the best.
- Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Fry the salmon cakes for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden.
Notes
Nutrition
Updated from the original published April 2, 2014.
I grew up eating salmon patties as we called them. The first time I made them I grabbed the whole canned salmon. It took everything in me not to toss my cookies when removing the skin and bones. I was a picky kid. Needless to say, I splurge on the chunk style in water.
It seems hard to believe there was a time in which we didn’t know one another, Inger — but that is obviously the case here! I never saw this post! I love salmon cakes. My mother, a child of the depression, always used tinned salmon when we were young, especially for creamed salmon and peas on egg noodles. And, with the quality of many tinned fish these days, there is no reason not to use it. I plan to try this very soon. We are trying really hard to do at least two vegetarian nights and two fish/seafood nights each week. Sometimes, we do more!
You should look at my Horseradish Crusted Salmon then for the seafood David. It’s a favorite and so easy (and if I recall correctly no garlic to work around even 🙂 )
These sound very summery, I didn’t realise how versatile salmon is!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Looks delish! We usually have zucchini patties (also called pancakes or fritters) as a side dish when we eat salmon. Our ‘sauce’ is a mix of mayo, Dijon mustard, lemon juice and dill weed.
Sounds delicioius! I will soooo need to remember the zucchini fritters when summer rolls around!
A great recipe. I’ve made salmon cakes with fresh salmon, but it makes so much sense to use tinned.
This actually made me glad my kids don’t eat tuna (or salmon) sandwiches (so I needed to look for something different)!
Marion and I have been eating a lot of fish this Lent season, Inger. She is a firm believer of having cans and cans of salmon and sardines in the pantry. I may just surprise her with some “tasty salmon cakes” for dinner on Friday. GREAT idea! Thanks so much for the inspiration!
Glad to help you with a solution to your salmon glut. Especially after I failed to help you out on the cranberry sauce last winter (but that recipe will be posted for this Christmas I promise). I guess there are worse things than too much in the pantry, right Louise!
I’m sure Marion will be over stocking cranberry sauce first chance she gets, Inger. I haven’t even told her we are having tons of company in July, lol…(My daughter and her family are coming to visit which means everyone will be coming to PA:)
I asked Marion about the Salmon Cakes and she is fine with it except, she wants to do the cooking, lol…
I suppose there are worse things but, today I counted 7 jars of pickled beets and 12 pounds of pasta!
These look delicious! I used to make salmon cakes for my kids when they were younger…you just inspired me to try them again.
They reheat very well too Kathy, so if it makes too much, leftovers are great. And I guess that would get you your second fatty fish serving for the week then!
Looks so good. I want to try this. I hope your winters are thinking about spring, but maybe not quite yet. Tonight, the weather forecast warns of stormy weather coming our way. Not looking forward to that!
I thought of you when I saw the forecasts–you seem to be in the thick of it. We have been fortunate this time–the worst weather south, snow north and just rain for us (which hopefully doesn’t freeze). Stay safe.