Salmon Cakes
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
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
You May Also Like
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
Powered by 
- 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.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Can I freeze raw Salmon Cakes?
Hi Colleen, I’ve never frozen these, but I think it should work. I’d initially put them on a baking sheet and freeze until firm. Then wrap each one in plastic wrap and put them all in a resealable freezer bag.
The recipe turned out exactly how it looks in the instructions and was very easy to follow and pull together. My husband said he really liked these and I liked them too — I do however think they were my least favorite thing from Jenn and that fresh salmon is better other ways, hence the 4 stars. For salmon cakes I’ll be sticking with my recipe that uses canned salmon and roasted sweet potatoes.
Omg these were amazing. I had some frozen salmon filets in the freezer that honestly weren’t great, so was looking to use them up somehow. I made a few changes though: I don’t like celery so I used yellow bell pepper and I also prefer using peanut oil to fry things (I know it’s bad for me) but OMGGGG these were legit amazing. Thank you for the recipe! Everything I’ve made from this blog so far has been great!
These are outstanding…in fact I am making them for dinner tonight for the upteenth time!
Jenn does it again!! These are so so good!! This is my new favorite recipe!!! Only change I made was that I used Ian’s gluten free panko! Thanks for sharing!
Another perfect recipe! We love Salmon but were looking for something a little different. My son likes crab cakes so we figured this was a good compromise. So good! Pretty easy to make, the fresh ingredients (dill especially) really make the dish. We served them on a fresh salad and had fish chowder on the side. Can’t wait for the cookbook and so glad to support such a useful site Jenn…keep up the good work every recipe has been a winner.
Good, but second time around I stretched the expensive salmon by adding fake crab, some brad crumbs, and for a little kick, sirracha. Also, I used leftover salmon instead of raw. I use an egg to bind it together. I precooked an freeze. Later, heat in microwave, and then quickly re-crisp in hot pan.
Just love these! Served them at a dinner party and they were immediately gone. Exactly the right herbs and spices. The only thing I did differently was use my own breadcrumbs, just as I had them handy (bake my own bread with bread machine every day)
Another recipe, another home run. These salmon cakes were beyond delicious. I have so much faith in your recipes that I made a double batch, for my first try. It’s gotten to the point that when I’m stumped for an idea for a meal, I just open your web site and pick a recipe. Thank you for sharing them.
Beautiful! I chose instead to bake at 450F for 15 minutes (tinfoil guard). Served with a salad of mixed greens, strawberry, dried cranberry and apple/poppy seed dressing. Yum! Only two of us eating these scrumptious cakes so tomorrow I will thaw Jenn’s potato/leek soup I have in the freezer and serve it along side of the cakes.. or plunk a cake in the middle of the soup itself and break it up like I would “crackers”. Oh, boy!
These are so delicious! I made the recipe exactly as written except for using the Umbrian olive oil I import to saute them. I served them for Easter as an appetizer with deviled eggs and avocado slices. Dill sprig garnish. I am going to make them again and again. Such a flexible recipe. Appetizer, salad or main course. Salmon pairs so well with so many sides.
Another hit from Jen! Grazie Mille