Fresh Salmon Cakes
These salmon cakes are the product of salmon fillets from Skipper Otto that I bought just before the holidays thinking I was going to make a tonne of gravlax…nope, didn’t get to it. So, now I’m playing with ways to use up eight rather large fillets. I may still make some gravlax but I have to find a whole whack of fresh dill and replenish my kosher salt supply first!
I found a couple recipes for salmon cakes made from fresh salmon but the one I liked best was from Marie at prouditaliancook.com. See her original recipe for Healthy Fresh Salmon Cakes. I tweaked it a bit.
Ingredients
- 1-1/2 lbs. fresh (or defrosted frozen) salmon filets, skin removed and hand chopped into small chunks. Do NOT use a food processor, you’ll lose the texture.
- 1 celery stalk, minced
- 1 small onion, minced (about 1/2 cup)
- 2 green onions, finely sliced
- 1 half large red pepper, minced
- zest of 1 lemon
- 2 Tbsps capers, rinsed and dried
- 1 tsp teaspoon Old Bay seasoning – if you don’t have any you can either make your own (Old Bay DIY) or use another fish seasoning you like.
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- handful of Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped
- ⅓ cup mayo
- ⅓ cup panko bread crumbs with extra to coat the top and bottom of the cakes
- 1 tablespoon of Djon mustard
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Sauté all the minced onions, peppers, and celery in a bit of olive oil until translucent. Turn off heat and add the garlic and green onions. Let the mixture cool down completely.
- Into a large bowl add the hand chopped salmon, the cooled veg, mayo, lemon zest, Panko, Dijon, Old Bay, parsley and salt and pepper to taste.
- Gently fold the ingredients together until well mixed.
- Form your salmon cakes into 3×1 inch deep patties and place on a tray lined with baker’s parchment.
- Refrigerate uncovered for at least 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 450F.
- Drizzle the bottom of an oven-safe frying pan with olive oil.
- Coat your fish cakes in a little extra Panko and place in the heated frying pan.
- Sauté the cakes until lightly golden (3-4 minutes per side) and finish them off in the oven (6-8 additional minutes).
Serve with Rémoulade or tartar sauce or a fresh squeeze of lemon juice. I served this up with Carrot fries, brown basmati rice, and a simple green salad.