Easy Salmon Patties

This salmon patties recipe, which calls for canned salmon, makes the most delicious salmon cakes we’ve tried. They are budget-friendly, easy, and seriously tasty!

When we set out to create a recipe for salmon patties, all three of us (Adam, Chef Richard, and I) were a little skeptical. The goal was to create crave-worthy, seriously tasty patties made with canned salmon, and after making these on repeat for a while, we think we did it!

Richard had the most experience with salmon patties. He grew up in the South with a mom who regularly made salmon patties for dinner. While he appreciates his mom’s efforts, he didn’t have much to say about the patties, so this one was an uphill battle. Well, we told him to go away and make the canned salmon patties (sometimes called salmon cakes) of his dreams. He stayed skeptical at first, but, as usual, he knocked it out of the park. We all fell in love and agreed that these are a must-make for you!

Key Ingredients

• Canned Salmon: We’re partial to Wild Alaskan pink salmon, which tastes great and is affordable. Just like when I buy canned tuna for tuna salad, I prioritize sustainability and look for smaller producers or cans with an MSC certification. Wild Planet is widely available and is a brand we’ve tested this recipe (with great results). If you do not have canned, but have leftover cooked salmon, it works nicely in this recipe, too (leftover baked salmon or poached salmon would be lovely in this recipe).
• Onion and Bell Pepper: These add flavor and texture. The key is to chop them finely so they blend into the patties. I used red bell pepper in the photos, but orange or yellow are great, too.
• Garlic: One garlic clove is perfect. We like to grate it finely with a microplane. If you do not have a microplane, mince your garlic as finely as you can before adding it to the other ingredients.
• Mayonnaise: This keeps our salmon moist and acts as a binder. Homemade mayonnaise is lovely, but use what you have on hand.
• Egg: As the patties bake in the oven, the egg firms up and begins to hold them together.
• Dijon Mustard: This adds some flavor and cuts through some of the fishy taste in the salmon. Whole-grain mustard would be a good substitute.
• Spices: The secret to the best patties. You’ll combine Cajun seasoning, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper.
• Parsley: I love the pop of fresh flavor and green color, but you can leave this out if you’d prefer.
• Breadcrumbs: Panko is perfect since it is so light. Homemade breadcrumbs work nicely, too. Crushed saltines (like we use for crab cakes) are also great.

Find the full recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Salmon Patties

Tip 1: Drain the salmon. Most canned salmon will come packed in water or oil. Before making these patties, drain the excess liquid from the can, otherwise your mixture will be too wet.

Tip 2: Mix everything, but the salmon and breadcrumbs first. In a mixing bowl, stir together the onion, bell pepper, garlic, mayonnaise, egg, mustard, spices, and parsley until a mostly smooth sauce forms. It will be pretty wet. We don’t want to overmix the salmon, so holding off on adding it at this point is really helpful.

Tip 3: Gently fold in the salmon. Flake the salmon into the bowl and use a large spoon to fold it in. Again, the mixture will seem loose and wet (you may even think it looks too wet).

Tip 4: Add the breadcrumbs last. Now sprinkle over the breadcrumbs and fold them in. They will begin to absorb some of the moisture in the bowl, but things will still be pretty wet (do you see a pattern here…don’t worry about the moisture).

Tip 5: Refrigerate for 30 minutes. So that the breadcrumbs and salmon have a chance to absorb some of the moisture from the other ingredients, place the bowl in the fridge and leave it there for 30 minutes. The chilled mixture is much easier to form into patties. We use the same trick in our crab cake recipe.

Tip 6: Don’t cook these in a skillet. These are intentionally more moisture-heavy than other recipes, which means cooking them in a skillet is tricky (they fall apart). All of the extra moisture is welcome once you bake the patties, and keeps them tender and delicious. These patties will not turn out dry, promise!

Instead of cooking these in a skillet, you’ll form them into patties and bake them in the oven. They still brown nicely, but the oven is a more delicate, hands-off way to cook them. You’ll bake them for about 15 minutes, then flip them, and continue baking for 10 to 15 more minutes. The initial 15 minutes are enough to firm them up, so flipping them is really easy, and they won’t crumble on you.

Tip 7: Trust the process. To make these truly delicious, we need all the extra moisture from the mayo, egg, and mustard. Plus, so they aren’t bready, we don’t want too much breadcrumb filler. These two things combine to make a pretty loose, wet mixture. Forming the patties is a tad messy (nothing a quick hand wash can’t fix, though).

Keeping the moisture level high means your salmon patties turn out juicy, moist, and really delicious. So, if you’re making these and questioning things, don’t. Once you get them into the oven, they will firm up nicely.

Serving Suggestions

These are seriously so tasty. In our photos, we’ve served them with our dill sauce, which is perfect. Our homemade tartar sauce is great, too! If you have kids and they love ketchup, homemade ketchup is always a winner.

I love these on the side with more summery sides like coleslaw, vinegar coleslaw, red potato salad, corn salad, avocado salad, and macaroni pasta salad. They are also excellent when added to the top of a salad (here’s all of our salad recipes for inspiration). If you’d prefer a more of a hot plate, consider a side of roasted potatoes, roasted broccoli, or sautéed broccoli (all of which would be really delicious dipped into the creamy dill sauce I suggested above).

More Salmon Recipes

• Salmon Burgers (coming soon)
• Poached Salmon
• Lemon Dill Baked Salmon
• Cedar Plank Salmon