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When I’m not pan-frying salmon with our favorite homemade fish seasoning blend, I’m pulling out this simple, budget-friendly pantry recipe for salmon patties. They come together in 10 minutes and are even delish as cold leftovers!
One of the best ways to increase the omega-3sin your diet is to eat more fish, especially salmon.
A lot of people have an aversion to preparing fish in their homes, and for good reason, I think. It’s easy to mess it up, and tough, soggy, or dry fish are all pretty gross. You never want to waste money on good food just because you’re not quite sure how to prepare it!
My confession: As a young wife and even after starting Kitchen Stewardship®, I’d never bought any salmon other than canned salmon. It was just too pricey and I wasn’t sure what to do with it.
This salmon patty meal was my mother’s standby for a Friday night when my dad (old-school Catholic) was not eating meat and my mom (non-Catholic) had to roll with it.
Salmon is super high in omega-3 fats (related: health benefits of omega-3s), low in saturated fat, and at $1.99/can before even being on sale, canned is a really a frugal source of protein.
RELATED: How to Find Sustainable Seafood.
Unlike other canned foods, fish holds almost all of its nutrients when cooked and canned. The entire entree can be served for under $3, especially if you reclaim bread heels to make bread crumbs. I typically serve salmon patties with:
- Cream of potato soup (under $1 for a great big pot, using leftover veggies from the freezer)
- Homemade biscuits (even with organic, whole wheat pastry flour and organic, extra virgin coconut oil or high quality butter plus my homemade yogurt (or milk), a batch of these biscuits is still under a buck for a dozen of them)
… rounding out the meal total to $4.25 for 6 people, with cents to spare for a quick salad and honey on the biscuits.
The first time I made these, I called my mother for the recipe and made a triple batch for a group of 15 women (and their kids) at a pregnancy resource meeting.I didn’t know what to expect when opening the can of salmon, and I spent 15 minutes per can trying to pick every bone out!
I was worried I would kill someone if they choked on a bone or something.I told all the ladies that they probably shouldn’t try this one at home, too time-consuming and annoying.
Then I found out that you do not need to get out every little rib bone – they are soft enough to eat and actually recommended. Even the backbones have huge health benefits and are one of the BEST sources of dairy-free calcium you can find! Sheesh.
It may look gross coming out of the can, but put on your big-girl (or big-boy) pants and mix it up – the final result is so pretty!
The Salmon Patties really only take about 5 minutes to mix up and 5 more to fry up.Quick and easy!
Homemade Salmon Patties
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- Author: Katie Kimball and Creative Cooking in 30 Minutes
Description
When I’m not pan-frying salmon with our favorite homemade fish seasoning blend, I’m pulling out this simple, budget-friendly pantry recipe for salmon patties. They come together in 10 minutes and are even delish as cold leftovers!
Ingredients
UnitsScale
- ~1 lb. canned salmon (make sure it’s wild Alaskan salmon)
- 1/4 c. chopped onion or 1 Tbs. dried minced onion or 2 tsp. onion powder
- 1/2 tsp. Real salt (Use the code kitchenstewardship for 15% off of your first purchase)
- 1 well-beaten egg (see notes for egg-free option)
- cayenne pepper to taste
- 1 Tbs. chopped parsley (dried is fine)
- 1/4 c. crushed crackers (homemade crackersif you want to control the ingredients) orbread crumbs (dry oatmeal works too for gluten-free or almond flour for grain-free)
Instructions
- Remove skin & backbones of salmon (or not, your choice – lots of calcium in the bones actually!!!).
- Pull apart the fish with a fork in a medium bowl.
- Add seasonings, crushed crackers/bread crumbs/etc., onion, egg, and parsley.
- Mix well.
- Shape into 2″ patties.
- Saute in hot butter, ghee, coconut oil, tallow, or lard in a cast iron skillet till golden brown on both sides (usually about 2-3 minutes per side).
Notes
Added Bonus: Leaving some bones in adds calcium and minerals! Gross, but healthy… (My Mom says that finding a little circle of the back bone within a salmon patty was like finding a treasure when she was young. It was soft and just part of the patty. So why did she remove all of the bones when I was a child?)
Egg-free Version:Use a “flax egg” in place of the egg, and it all works fine. Stir 1 Tbs. ground flax with 3 Tbs. warm water, then put in the refrigerator for 10 minutes as you prepare everything else. (Works the same with ground chia seeds!)
Time Saver: It’s easy to get a small amount of onions if you already have them in the freezer (or use dried).
Cost: $3.00 or less (using Meijer brand pink Alaskan salmon 14.5 oz, reg price)
From a helpful comment: Another way to sneak veggies into salmon patties is to mix in finely chopped carrots and/or red pepper. I chop up the onion, carrot and red pepper pretty fine, then heat w/ olive oil just long enough to get the kitchen smelling awesome (I add the red pepper last so it doesn’t lose much flavor). Then let that stuff cool enough to not cook the egg and finish the patties. Yum.
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This is a pretty basic recipe that’s probably even right on the salmon can.But you have to have the courage to go buy some if you never have before.
I’ll take the hit of the 15-minute bone-picking expedition for you just so you can feel comfortable buying, preparing and eating salmon!
You can do it!Eat more fish!Be sure to read more about how to buy safe salmon, and check out Mary’s version of air fryer salmon patties, too!
Other Easy, Healthy Recipes to Save $$$:
- Spicy Fish Seasoning
- Potato Salad with the Kids
- Homemade Refried Beans
- The Best Scrambled Eggs Ever
- Crockpot Tuscan Beef Stew
- Tuscan Bean Soup
- Garlic Soup
- Homemade Guacamole
Unless otherwise credited, photos are owned by the author or used with a license from Canva or Deposit Photos.
Category: Faith Nuggets, Real Food Recipes, Save Money
Tags: egg, meatless, onions, salmon
