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Garlic & Zest

Gourmet Cooking at Home!

Crunchy Salmon Cakes

Crunchy Salmon Cakes
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If you do much cooking, you’ll understand this dilemma:  Your fridge is dotted with an almost comical assortment of odds and ends.  You know, those special ingredients purchased for other recipes, but the recipe only calls for a portion of that special ingredient and the remnants are now shoved to the back of the fridge.  Waiting — searching for inspiration.   Like these crunchy salmon cakes.

 

diced salmon

I found myself with about a quarter pound of smoked salmon leftover from when Emily was home (she’s a big fan of bagels, cream cheese and smoked salmon), but she wasn’t here long enough to finish it up.

 

salmon with lemon zest and spoon

I also happened to have a piece of fresh salmon, that had actually been sitting in the fridge for several days — one of those use or lose it situations…

 

breadcrumbs in food processor

Forced to make a play, I opted for salmon burgers.  Normally, I would use canned salmon, but I thought the combination of fresh and smoked would be even better.  I made my own fresh breadcrumbs — which is to say — I took two hot dog buns out of the freezer, let them thaw and ran them through my food processor with some parsley.  Hey – the recipe calls for bread — hot dog buns are bread.  Don’t get fussy.

 

salmon cake binderMayonnaise, whole grain dijon mustard and chopped capers along with an egg and the breadcrumbs act as the binding agent.

 

salmon mixture in a bowl.

The most important part is to finely dice the salmon (both fresh and smoked).  It’ll make it easier to form the cakes.

 

 

aioli with hot sauce and dill

I like tartar sauce, but for these stellar cakes, I went with a tangy, herbed aioli.  No need to make a special trip to the store, you’ve probably got everything you need in your refrigerator.  Mayonnaise? Check.  Garlic?  Check. Lemon? Check.  Hot sauce?  Of course.

 

Crunchy Salmon Cakes in a pan

After the ingredients were combined, I chilled the mixure to make it easier to shape into patties and refrigerated them again to firm up before giving them a dusting of panko breadcrumbs for a crunchy exterior.

 

Crunchy Salmon Cakes on a plate with lemon and capers

 

As usual, Scott was my guinea pig taste-tester and he LOVED them.  So did I.  We didn’t have much dinner conversation that night, just lots of nodding and satisfied grunts.

 

Crunchy Salmon Cakes on a plate with fork

Do yourself a favor and don’t wait until it’s an “odds and ends” day to make Crunchy Salmon Cakes.

 

aioli in a dish with napkin

Crunchy Salmon Cakes with aioli, dill and capers

Crunchy Salmon Cakes
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5 from 7 votes

Crunchy Salmon Cakes

Not your average salmon cakes!  When you combine fresh and smoked salmon together it changes the profile completely.  Trust me, you need this!
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 40 minutes
Servings 6
Calories 432kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 pounds fresh salmon diced into 1/4" cubes
  • 4 ounces smoked salmon diced into 1/4" cubes
  • 1 lemon divided, zested
  • 2 pieces bread
  • 1/4 cup parsley leaves
  • 1 egg lightly beaten
  • 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1 tablespoon whole grain dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon capers chopped
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 cup panko for coating salmon cakes
  • 2-3 tablespoons olive or canola oil for frying

for aioli

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 1/2 lemon zest
  • 2 teaspoons dill chopped
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • a few dashes of hot sauce optional

Instructions

  • In a bowl, combine the diced salmon and half of the lemon zest. Reserve the other half of the zest for the aioli -- set aside.
  • Place the bread and parsley leaves in a small food processor and pulse to make parsley bread crumbs.
  • Transfer bread crumbs to the salmon and lightly fold the breadcrumbs and lemon zest into the salmon to evenly distribute.
  • In a small bowl combine the mayonnaise, dijon mustard, capers, kosher salt and black pepper and stir well.
  • Add the mayonnaise mixture and egg to the salmon and fold in well to combine. Chill the salmon for 30 minutes to an hour before continuing.
  • Meanwhile prepare the aioli. In a small bowl combine the mayonnaise, garlic, the other half of the lemon zest, dill, lemon juice and hot sauce. Stir to combine and refrigerate.
  • Divide the salmon into six equal parts and form patties out of each.
  • Place panko in a shallow bowl and place a salmon cake on top, lightly pressing so the panko sticks to the salmon. Flip the salmon cake over and press panko into the other side.
  • Place a skillet over medium heat to preheat the pan. (I used a cast iron skillet, but non-stick and regular fry pans work too.) Add a tablespoon of oil - oil should slick across the surface of the pan and moire. Work with no more than 2 salmon cakes at a time. Fry on one side for 2-3 minutes. Place one hand on top of the salmon cake and carefully edge a spatula under the cake. Gently turn the cakes over and continue to fry for an additional 2-3 minutes. Set cakes on a tray lined with paper towels. Continue with the other cakes.
  • Serve salmon cakes with lemon wedges and top with aioli.

Nutrition

Calories: 432kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 94mg | Sodium: 602mg | Potassium: 564mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 315IU | Vitamin C: 14.6mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 1.9mg

More Savory Seafood Dinners:

 

Northern Neck Crab Cakes
Northern Neck Crab Cakes
Wine and Garlic Mussels with Sausage
Easy Poached Shrimp Salad Sandwiches

 

Don’t Forget To “Pin It” For Later!

 

Easy Crunchy Salmon Cakes have a panko breading with both fresh and smoked salmon for depth. Top with fresh lemon dill aioli! Best salmon cake recipe EVER!

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Entrees// Fish// Seafood21 Comments

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Comments

  1. Sam says

    December 28, 2019 at 8:10 PM

    Fantastic. Made a couple times. Very repeatable and tweakable for different tastes. Thank you.

    Reply
  2. Liz says

    October 12, 2018 at 5:40 PM

    These were delicious! I ate the leftovers cold which might be weird but they were amazing that way too! Thanks so much for the recipe.

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      October 13, 2018 at 6:32 PM

      So glad you enjoyed them!

      Reply
  3. Carol says

    September 15, 2018 at 8:08 AM

    Recipes sound great, but I can’t seem to put them on Pinterest from your site. Why not?

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      September 15, 2018 at 8:38 AM

      There should be two ways to Pin it to the site — directly under the first photograph are social share buttons and one of them is for Pinterest. Or you can scroll down to the Pinterest “Pin” at the bottom of the article and there should be a Pinterest button that hovers in the top left corner of the image. You should be able to click either of them to save it.

      Reply
  4. Leeann says

    March 26, 2018 at 8:34 PM

    Should the salmon be cooked first?

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      March 27, 2018 at 6:48 AM

      no the salmon is raw, it cooks as you pan fry the patties.

      Reply
  5. Liz @ I Heart Vegetables says

    October 11, 2017 at 9:15 PM

    My husband loves salmon so I know he’d enjoy having these for dinner!

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      October 12, 2017 at 3:26 PM

      Let me know how he likes them, Liz!

      Reply
  6. Christina Shoemaker says

    October 11, 2017 at 8:08 PM

    These look so tasty! I love that you used capers! 🙂

    Reply
  7. Patty @ Spoonabilities says

    October 11, 2017 at 8:03 PM

    These look so delicious. I love the crunchy crispy coating!

    Reply
  8. Sarah says

    October 11, 2017 at 7:45 PM

    These look and sound so good! I’ll definitely have to give them a try soon! Yum!

    Reply
  9. Christine says

    October 11, 2017 at 7:13 PM

    Oh my, those salmon cakes looks scrumptious and so crunchy! Yum! The sauce goes perfectly!

    Reply
  10. Kim @ Three Olives Branch says

    September 27, 2016 at 8:28 PM

    These look delicious! My hubby would absolutely love these!

    Reply
  11. champagne-tastes says

    September 27, 2016 at 8:26 PM

    This sounds amazing!!! I love ‘leftovers’ recipes– sometimes they turn into the best recipes! These salmon cakes look gorgeous

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      September 28, 2016 at 8:25 AM

      Thank you!

      Reply
  12. Lynn | The Road to Honey says

    September 27, 2016 at 7:26 PM

    Isn’t it amazing how you can take abandoned ingredients and turn them into something wonderful? And these salmon cakes are certainly that. I just adore that crunchy panko crust on the outside and I bet the mustard and capers give it such a nice zing.

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      September 28, 2016 at 8:25 AM

      One of my favorite things is to use leftovers to make something else fabulous!

      Reply
  13. kushigalu says

    September 27, 2016 at 5:01 PM

    I love salmon. This looks delicious. Thank you for sharing the recipe

    Reply
  14. Ilona @ Ilona's Passion says

    September 27, 2016 at 5:00 PM

    I’ve never made salmon cakes and I see that I am missing out. Love it!

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      September 27, 2016 at 6:19 PM

      Salmon cakes are always a treat!

      Reply

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Meet Lisa

Lisa

Calling all cooks! You don’t have to be a gourmet chef to get a delicious, healthy meal on the table! At Garlic & Zest, I’ll show you how to make hundreds of seasonal, fresh recipes and indulgent comfort foods with easy step-by-step instructions and photos to help you master the dish.

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