Basic Crispy Salmon Fish Cakes

These salmon fish cakes are a kind of a blank canvas. Mash potatoes and peas together then add salmon, lemon zest, and whichever herbs you like. They aren’t posh, but they’re a delicious quick and easy pantry meal full of subtle flavours. 

Fish cakes are one of those dishes, just like fish pie, that grab my attention on a menu.

The only thing is, in recent years fish cakes on menus are usually fancy. Typically they’re Thai fish cakes. These are delicious and I order them in a heartbeat, but whatever happened to plain old fish cakes – just fish and potato with a few flavourings and a lovely crispy exterior?

So this is the sort of fish cake I wanted to recreate.

Ingredients in these simple fishcakes

Because these are so simple, what I was aiming for was a recipe with a nice ratio of salmon to potato i.e. not too much potato, and some nice additions that don’t overshadow the delicately-flavoured fish.

So all I add into these is:

• fish and boiled, squished potato

• frozen peas (boiled with the potato for the last few minutes)

• lemon zest

• chopped parsley or other fresh herbs (I like basil and oregano if I have it)

• mustard

• chili flakes (purely optional)

• sharp cheese

• mayonnaise (to bind everything together)

I’ve used salmon of course, but that doesn’t mean you have to. Any kind of fish will do.

Smoked fish would work brilliantly, or even canned/tinned tuna.

How to make them step-by-step

• The first thing you do is boil potatoes and peas together, then mash with butter. This forms the base of your fish cakes.

• Then you add the fish.

• If you need to cook the fish, the easiest way to do this is to microwave it in milk.

• Flake the fish into the potato mixture!

• Add some flavours. In my recipe I’ve included lemon zest, fresh herbs (whichever you have, really), mustard and a handful of tasty cheese.

• I add a few chili flakes to an ‘adult version’, skip it for a kids’ version!

• After shaping the mixture into fish cakes, roll in panko breadcrumbs (or any breadcrumbs really) and pan fry until crispy.

Delicious. And so easy.

Top tips

1. Add some mayonnaise to the mixture to help bind it together. Now the fish cakes are easier to shape and they hold together well while cooking.
2. Don’t waste the milk you cook the fish in if you decide to microwave fresh fish in milk as suggested. Freeze it and use it for the sauce when you make this fish pie!

How to serve fish cakes

We love eating these with this healthy Greek yogurt brussels sprouts coleslaw and a fresh salad on the side. That’s really all they need. Or use a simple store-bought coleslaw.

Try this quinoa salad with feta, fennel and blueberries. It’s just incredible and would go really well with the fish cakes.

More things to know (recipe FAQ)

More easy fish dinners

• Liking the fishy vibe in this post? This lemon butter salmon with potatoes and asparagus is another popular recipe on the blog. If asparagus is out of season, just substitute with broccoli!
• Want even more fish recipes? You have to try this Greek baked fish!
• This easy tuna salad is a great quick and easy dinner for when it’s too hot to turn on the oven. We make this again and again and it never disappoints!
• This baked panko cod with lemon butter sauce is ridiculously easy and delicious. You could say it’s a posh fish and chips!
• Crispy fish pie! (Just trust me on this one – it’s easy and delicious!)
• Last but not least, this lemony tuna spaghetti is a delicious quick and easy pantry meal that’s on the table in just 20 minutes.

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Basic Crispy Salmon Fish Cakes

Fish cakes! These are nothing fancy, but are full of delicately flavoured salmon and fresh, subtle flavours. My favourite part is the crispy exterior – mmmmm!

4.5 from 6 votes

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Prep Time 30 mins

Cook Time 10 mins

Cuisine British

Servings (click to change) 4 -5 people (based on 2 fish cakes each)

Author Helen

Equipment (affiliate links)

• ▢
  ‘Gorilla’ potato masher
• ▢
  Kitchenaid stainless steel ‘flex turner’

Ingredients (UK/Australia? Click below for grams/ml)

cups/ounces – grams/ml

for the fish cakes

• ▢ 14 ounces potatoes peeled and diced (about 4 smallish potatoes)
• ▢ ½ cup peas frozen (2½ ounces)
• ▢ 1 tablespoon butter
• ▢ 9 ounces salmon I used 3 portioned fillets (or use another kind of fish, or canned/tinned salmon or tuna)
• ▢ 1 lemon (zest & squeeze juice over to serve)
• ▢ 2 teaspoons mustard any type
• ▢ 1 handful parsley fresh & finely chopped (or use other fresh herbs such as basil and oregano)
• ▢ 1 handful grated cheese about an ounce (I used a sharp cheddar but any strong cheese works e.g. parmesan)
• ▢ 1 pinch chili flakes optional
• ▢ 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• ▢ salt and pepper

for the crispy coating

• ▢ 3 tablespoons flour (roughly)
• ▢ 1 egg whisked
• ▢ 4 tablespoons breadcrumbs (roughly) I used Japanese panko, but any work

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Instructions

 

• Cook the potatoes in salted boiling water until tender (about 15 minutes). Add the peas for the last few minutes. Drain then return to the pan and lightly mash with the butter (I prefer to leave the potato a bit ‘chunky’). Tip into a large bowl.
• Meanwhile, put the salmon in a microwavable dish with 100ml milk, then cover with plastic wrap and microwave for 2 minutes or until just cooked (a thicker piece of fish might need a minute or 2 longer).
• Flake the salmon into the bowl with the potato, then add the lemon zest, mustard, fresh herbs, cheese, chili flakes, and mayonnaise. Add a generous grinding of salt and pepper and mix well.
• Cool the mixture for a while in the fridge (half an hour is fine), then take golfball-sized amounts of mixture and shape into 8 to 10 fish cakes.
• To coat the fish cakes, put the flour, egg and breadcrumbs in separate dishes, then roll the fishcakes first in the flour, then in the egg and lastly in the breadcrumbs. Place on a plate or baking tray ready to cook.
• Heat up a good drizzle of oil in a frying pan, then pan fry the fishcakes for about 5 minutes on each side or until golden and crispy. Serve immediately.

Notes

Freezing the fish cakes

These fish cakes freeze really well. Simply freeze them between layers of baking paper in a Tupperware. When ready to eat, defrost in separate layers then cook as from fresh.

What kind of fish to use

I used salmon but any fish would work. I think smoked fish would work especially well. You could even use tinned fish (which would probably be cheaper!).

If cooking fresh fish…

Don’t waste the milk you cook the fish in if you decide to microwave fresh fish in milk as suggested. Freeze it and use it for the sauce when you make this fish pie!

When pan frying the fish cakes…

Don’t be tempted to keep moving them around. Leave them for around 5 minutes on each side so that they can get nice and crispy. 

Nutrition

Calories: 265kcalCarbohydrates: 17gProtein: 18gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 87mgSodium: 219mgPotassium: 429mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 395IUVitamin C: 23mgCalcium: 44mgIron: 2mg

Tried this recipe?Let me know if you liked it!