Salmon Cakes
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Made from fresh salmon and dill, these salmon cakes are as elegant as crab cakes but so much more affordable to make.
Photo by Johnny Miller (Clarkson Potter, 2021)
When I told my friend and Once Upon a Chef right hand, Betsy Goldstein, about these salmon cakes, she said, “Hmmm…I think I’ll wait until some of the reviews roll in to try those.” I laughed because I knew she was thinking of the version made from canned salmon that many of us grew up on. I promise: these are a whole different animal. Made from fresh raw salmon and seasoned with Old Bay, they’re as elegant as crab cakes yet so much more affordable to make. What’s more, they can be made entirely ahead of time and reheated.
I love these salmon cakes for brunch over a green salad with vinaigrette, but they also make a delicious dinner alongside rice pilaf and roasted asparagus. Either way, they are wonderful with my easy homemade tartar sauce.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Salmon Cakes
Step-by-Step Instructions
To begin, finely dice the salmon into 1/4-inch pieces (or smaller). It’s important that the pieces are not too large or the cakes won’t bind together easily.
Set the salmon aside and, in a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, lemon juice, mustard, Old Bay, salt, and pepper.
Whisk to combine.
Add the diced salmon, ¼ cup of the panko, the scallions, the celery, and the dill.
Gently mix until uniformly combined.
Place the remaining 1 cup of panko in a shallow dish or pie plate.
Using a 1/3-cup measure, scoop the salmon mixture and form into a compact cake about 1 inch high. Place the salmon cake into the reserved panko and gently coat it all over in crumbs.
Repeat with the remaining mixture to form about 9 cakes. (At this point, you can refrigerate the cakes for up to a few hours before cooking, if you’d like.)
Heat the oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Place the salmon cakes in the skillet and cook without moving until golden brown, about 2 minutes.
Carefully flip the cakes and cook until second side is golden brown, about 2 minutes more. Reduce the heat to medium if the cakes are browning too quickly.
Transfer cakes to a paper towel–lined plate to drain. Repeat with the remaining cakes (no need to change the oil).
Serve warm with tartar sauce and enjoy!
Video Tutorial
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Salmon Cakes
Made from fresh salmon and dill, these salmon cakes are as elegant as crab cakes but so much more affordable to make.
Ingredients
For the Salmon Cakes
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, from 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1¼ lb skinless salmon fillet, finely diced into ¼-inch pieces (see note)
- 1¼ cups panko bread crumbs, divided
- ¼ cup thinly sliced scallions, from 3 to 4 scallions, light and dark green parts
- ⅓ cup finely diced celery, from 2 stalks
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- Salad greens with vinaigrette, tartar sauce and/or lemon wedges, for serving (see note)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, lemon juice, mustard, Old Bay, salt, and pepper. Add the diced salmon, ¼ cup of the panko, the scallions, the celery, and the dill. Gently mix until uniformly combined.
- Place the remaining 1 cup of panko in a shallow dish or pie plate. Using a ⅓-cup measure, scoop the salmon mixture and form into a compact cake about 1 inch high. Place the salmon cake into the panko and gently coat it all over in crumbs. Repeat with the remaining mixture to form about 9 cakes. (At this point, you can refrigerate the salmon cakes for a few hours until ready to cook, if you'd like.)
- Heat the oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Place half of the salmon cakes in the skillet and cook without moving until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Carefully flip the cakes and cook until second side is golden brown, about 2 minutes more. Reduce the heat to medium if the cakes are browning too quickly. Transfer cakes to paper towel–lined plate to drain. Repeat with the remaining cakes (no need to change the oil). Serve warm.
- Note: If buying a skin-on salmon fillet, purchase 1⅓ pounds of fish to yield 1¼ pounds of fish after skinning.
- Make-Ahead: The salmon cakes can be fully cooked and refrigerated up to several hours ahead of time. To reheat: preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the salmon cakes in the oven and cook until crisp on the exterior and warm throughout, 10 to 15 minutes. The cakes may also be frozen for up to 3 months; defrost in the refrigerator before reheating.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cooked salmon cakes can be frozen for up to 3 months. Once cool, lay them out on one (or more) foil-lined baking sheet(s) and cover them loosely with plastic wrap. Freeze the patties in a single layer for about an hour, then remove them from the freezer. Wrap the cakes individually in plastic wrap and then put them together in a freezer bag or airtight container. Before serving, defrost in the refrigerator before reheating.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 1 salmon cake
- Calories: 280
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 6 g
- Sugar: 0 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 14 g
- Sodium: 222 mg
- Cholesterol: 37 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Comments
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I didn’t try salmon cake yet but The vinaigrette is out of this world! Had it with an arugula mixed green salad, sliced green apples, halved walnuts and crumbled feta. My hubby is in love! I love all your recipes- can you please share more dressing/vinaigrette recipes?
Hi Asra, glad you enjoyed the vinaigrette! You can find more salad dressing recipes by scrolling through this recipe section. Hope you find some options you like!
Thanks I saw these . This vingarette GEM was hidden in your salmon cake recipe though. Are there other hidden vinagrette recipes that you can point me to?
No more hidden gems, Asra 🙂 This vinaigrette is actually the same one from this salad. It’s my go-to!
I look forward to trying these. I just wanted to say that i love that on your site users only review recipes that they have actually tried, and that your system allows all to comment more generally!
I hate going to blogs where everyone has given 5 stars saying the recipe LOOKS great versus actually being able to vouch for it.
Amazing yummy dish. Since my wife is gluten-free this was an easy to modify recipe substituting the panko for a gluten-free version of panko from Kinnikinnick. No other changes needed.
Just made these delicious salmon cakes, big success! Thanx Jen!
Hi Jenn, thank you for another great recipe! I made these last night from our own caught, frozen B.C. Coho salmon. They were so good! And the easy tartar sauce topped them off! I served them with your Asian Slaw with peanut dressing which is one of our favorites. Perfect dinner!!
Hi Jenn,
I made these lovely salmon cakes last week for a light dinner and we really enjoyed them. A nice change from crab cakes, which we love. Definitely will make them again. I made your au gratin potatoes yesterday to serve with our prime rib and they were decadent. Almost could have passed on the prime rib and made a meal of the potatoes! I think we’re about ready for a food detox:-)
Happy New Year from California!
I made these as an appetizer for Christmas and personally thought they were overly salty and just average tasting.
After multiple ‘sample tests’ with our family we decided to omit the final panko crust and simply sear them in a non-stick pan on both sides without oil. It worked well though it didn’t pack the usual wow factor I get from recipes on this website and I didn’t get any accolades for this one.
I am new to the site and happened up on this recipe which looks wonderful! Can I use frozen salmon? We live on the coast in the deep South and fresh is almost never available. Can’t wait to try this and many more!
Sure, Sandra. This is a great use for frozen salmon. Welcome to the site!
I made these for dinner and we all enjoyed them. It was a different way to prepare salmon than the same old recipes I use. My 6 year old really liked them too. She put hers on a Kings Hawaiian roll. This was an easy weeknight recipe. I’m thinking these will make nice holiday appetizers if I make a mini size. Thanks for the recipe.
These were very tasty, although I’m going to guess I fell victim to not having chopped my salmon small enough, because mine didn’t stay together well. Regardless, they were good enough for me to try again to master them.
Hi Jolie, Sorry you had trouble with them staying together. You do need to finely chop the salmon – if you have a food processor, you might find it easier to chop it in there in 2 or 3 batches (just be careful not to purée it).