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These keto salmon patties are a quick and easy dinner made with canned salmon! Ready in under 15 minutes, they are flavorful, juicy, and crispy on the outside!
Looking for more low carb seafood recipes? Try my Chilean sea bass, baked salmon in foil, grilled Red snapper, and baked haddock.
Canned fish has quite a bad wrap, but when used correctly, it can be transformed into something delicious. My keto salmon patties are one example and a dish my family enjoys at least once a week!
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
- Ready in 5 minutes. From prep to plate, these patties take just five minutes to cook. You can make it while someone sets the dinner table.
- Affordable. Canned salmon is much cheaper than fresh salmon and when used in patties, tastes just as good.
- Almost zero carbs. By swapping out bread crumbs for a keto alternative, these have virtually no carbs!
- No fishy taste. What I love about this recipe is how it NEVER tastes fishy. Canned fish has an unfair stigma to have a fishy odour or flavor but not this one- It tastes delicious that even non-seafood fans would love it!
Ingredients needed
- Canned salmon– Use a good quality salmon packed in springwater or brine, NOT oil or flavored oils.
- Salt and pepper– To taste.
- Bread crumb substitute– I like using keto bread crumbs, but you can also blend up some toasted keto bread. If you don’t have either on hand, use almond flour.
- Eggs– room temperature eggs.
- Mayonnaise– Skip the sugar-laden store bought kind and make your own keto mayonnaise.
- Worcestershire sauce– Adds a lovely flavor and works so well with salmon.
- Parsley– Adds some greens and a lovely robust flavor.
How to make keto salmon patties
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Make the salmon cakes mixture: Mix the salmon, salt, pepper, and keto bread crumbs. Adds the remaining ingredients and mix well until combined.
Step 2- Shape the patties: Using lightly wet hands, shape the mixture into equal sized patties.
Step 3- Cook and serve: Add oil or butter to a non-stick pan and place it over medium heat. Once hot, cook the patties for 3-4 minutes, flipping halfway through. Once cooked, serve immediately.
Can I use cooked salmon?
If you’d like to use cooked salmon, make some air fryer salmon, cast iron salmon, or sous vide salmon (these three have minimal seasonings and cook up very quickly) and let it cool to room temperature. Once cool. flake it with two forks and use in place of canned salmon.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Ensure you drain your salmon very well to ensure that the mixture won’t be soggy.
- Do not use flavored canned salmon or salmon packed in oil. This will affect the overall flavor and texture.
- Do not over-fry the patties or else you risk them drying out. Once they are golden around the edges and firm to the touch, they are ready to eat!
- Change up the flavors with spices or seasonings. Add some curry powder, taco seasoning, or Cajun seasoning.
Storage instructions
To store: Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator, covered, for up to five days.
To freeze: Place the cooked and cooled salmon patties in a ziplock bag and store it in the freezer for up to six months.
Reheating: Microwave the patties for 10-20 seconds or reheat in the pan until warm and crispy around the sides.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is just 1 gram of net carbs in each of these homemade salmon patties.
Adding flour (like coconut or almond) or keto bread crumbs prevents the patties from falling apart. They soak up excess moisture while keeping the patties juicy (never dry!).
More salmon recipes to try
Keto Salmon Patties
Ingredients
- 15 ounces canned salmon packed in water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup keto bread crumbs or almond flour
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup parsley finely chopped
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, add the salmon, garlic salt and pepper and mix well. Add the remaining ingredients and mix until a thick batter remains.
- Form the mixture into 12 equal sized patties.
- Add oil in a non-stick pan. When hot, add the patties and cook for 3-4 minutes, flipping halfway through. Repeat the process until all the patties are cooked.
- Serve immediately.
These are delicious!!!! I prefer to use pork rinds crushed up!!! Yummmm!!!!
They fry up beautifully!!!
SO worthwhile to make and eat these…and FAST!!!!!
Virtually zero carbs when using plain pork rinds!!!
They do not have any fishy taste, in our opinion!!!
These are flat-out DELISH!!!!
Thank you, Big Man’s World!!!! I often find myself using YOUR recipes more often than anyone elses!!! You KNOW what you are doing!!!
Easy and very delicious!
These salmon patties were so delicious and easy to make. They remind me of eating salmon patties my mom made when I was growing up.
love all of Arman’s recipes, so easy and turn out perfect every time.
Do you think an egg substitute like flax meal plumped up with water would work in place of the egg in this recipe? I’m on the hunt for camping recipes that don’t need a cooler.
Try one of these- https://thebigmansworld.com/egg-substitute-for-baking/
Hello – do you have the nutritional information for this recipe? Also – do you consider all four patties 1 serving?
Thank you!
I have made this recipe a few times and love it. can you suggest how to make the patties stay together? Mine tend to fall apart. (I’ve added panko crumbs or extra can of salmon to make it more meaty but no luck)
Hi Lauren! Thanks for the feedback! I find that I need to ensure the salmon is completely drained, along with the zucchini- I squeeze the moisture out of them. Also, cooking them first on low heat really helps 🙂
I made these last night and found the favors to be pretty flat. There’s plenty of heat from the madras curry and the red pepper flakes, but that’s about it. I would add onion, garlic, and large handful of fresh cilantro. Maybe some cumin.
To salvage these burger as they were, my daughter mixed up a sriracha aoli and I made my husband some garlic butter for them.
But I must say though, Arman, your photos are beautiful.
Sorry to hear that Sondea- The Madras powder I use has a salt blend in it which tastes amazing- I should have made it more clear in the post 🙂 Thanks for advising of your changes- They sound great!
I needed to thank you for this fantastic read!!
I certainly enjoyed every bit of it. I have got you book-marked
to look at new things you post…
These look amazing…so amazing I might actually open a tin of salmon….
You had better 😉 Thanks Michelle! 🙂
I have wild caught canned salmon in my pantry and have been looking for a recipe…This recipe sounds perfect. Thank you! Do you think these would freeze well for later use? As in uncooked patties, freeze them and then cook as and when we want? My first time here …love it 🙂
Hi Sandhya! Thanks for stopping by! To be honest, I think they’d be best for you to cook then freeze- That’s what I do when I make a big batch. Freezing them prior would create too much moisture!
I use both fresh or canned salmon. Your recipe sounds great #recipeoftheweek
Thank you! Hope you try it out, Claire!
These look awesome! Definitely pinning for later. Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks, Chelsea- hope you enjoy it 🙂
I love when you sneak veggies into things. This makes me want your Sweet Potato and Cheddar pancakes, with all their hidden veggie goodness (cauliflower, spinach, sweet potato, cheese…mmm, cheese). You have a knack for veggies my friend, even if you insist on non-veggifying them.
Ohhhhh buddy. I have a legit Meg-dedicated recipe coming up soon (I hope). It has four veggies hidden, cheese and all things… Meg.
As much as I want to, if I brought cans of salmon into my dorm, I would probably be evicted.
Salmon is definitely my number one fish, and I love fish in patty/cake form! I want theseeeeeee.
LOL do it! And blame your room mate!
i so wish you lived in the states so i could send you sizzlefish! you’d make an awesome addition to their recipe team! just sayin… MOVE HERE! hehe
I wish I did too 🙁 Lettuce know if sizzlefish want to hire an international kid :p
We LOVE salmon over here! This salmon patty recipe looks great~ I love all that spinach in there!
Thanks Kelly- a way to sneak in a tonne of greens!
A thousand “yums!” I love cooking with canned salmon. I tend to use breadcrumbs (eeks) but will try your version for sure! Thanks for another great recipe.
Ohhh nothing wrong with breadcrumbs Liz haha! My recipe adaption used breadcrumbs! 🙂
These look awesome! We don’t eat a lot of canned fish because we have a fish monger on speed dial. The A Team liked canned tuna. And our family’s favorite fish is salmon so you really need to come visit!
YES! I get so envious when I see salmon on your menus! I’ll be eating it as much as I can when I’m there!
When I was younger aka prevegan I was alllll over canned tuna. I would eat it with Wheat Thin crackers like nobodies business. That sounds really good right now actually…
…..Imagine if I could convert you out of veganism.
Hurrah! Thanks for this recipe. It is definitely right up my alley. I am already a fan of your tuna patties so I’ve no doubt I’ll be happily chomping on these too. I eat canned tuna a lot, like almost everyday. Mercury be damned. It’s just so easy and versatile and delicious.
I do love salmon. I am from Seattle, after all. However, the best fish I ever ate was halibut cheeks. I only had them once. They were at a specialty food store and I hope to have them again. Phenomenal! Even my father, who is no fan of seafood, was impressed. Salmon is always pricey, even more so as we get into the winter months. I have purchased canned salmon on a couple of occasions (costs two or three times that of a can of tuna) and had to force myself to gag it down. (I hate wasting food.) However, I bet your recipe will solve the problem and then I can enjoy salmon year round. Happy Omega 3 dance! 🙂
YES! Let’s both enjoy our mercury poisoning together! Try finding canned salmon without the bones- they are ones which are great to start with!
i loveeee the idea of these patties!
So good! Hope you try it out!
Ah, to have fresh seafood every day! Ah-may-zing. Buying salmon is really expensive here in Malaysia too- not wild. Canned is expensive as well, because it’s imported. I do splurge on a big piece every week though for one of our dinners- because it’s too good (health wise and taste wise!) not to have in a weekly rotation.
I love this idea- I’ve never made salmon patties before, but I imagine the curry powder is a great addition! I’ll pin so I remember to try when I’m back in the States in Dec. (and to remember to pack my bags with canned salmon, lol!).
So glad that you treat yourself once a week on it 😉
YES- The curry powder really provides delicious flavours! (That would be a very interesting suitcase haha!)
When I lived in Australia, I refused to buy canned salmon as I was not paying that much for tinned food. Good to see prices haven’t gotten any cheaper – stupid Australia!
Seriously! It is ridiculous how expensive even the home brand salmon is!
salmon is and always will be my favourite fish. Whether it comes from a can or not. Although trout is a close second…but I don’t think that comes in can form.
Ohhhhhh SMOKED TROUT is delicious.
I feel like I’m a horrible HLB for not liking fish, but… I don’t like fish. I -want- to like it, but I just can’t get over the smell and texture 😯 Can I make almond butter patties? Is that a thing? It should be…
How dare you not like fish. I am bringing you a seafood platter.
Salmon is my favourite fish too. I definitely prefer the fresh fillets, but I occasionally buy the canned kind to make salmon salad sandwiches or salmon cakes. Love that you packed some veggies into these!
YES! I think for things like salmon salad or sandwiches- using fresh fillets are a waste!
Your math skillz are impressive. WHY IS SALMON SO EXPENSIVE?!
Hahahaha. Please email my high school maths teacher.
WHEN you come to Australia, you’d think salmon was as cheap as bottled water in America. 🙁
Seafood is the only meat I eat And I do like canned fish, but I prefer the vacuum sealed package variety of tuna and salmon. It’s easier. But I love sardines (most people think I’m nasty), but sardines are always canned. Living in a coastal region, I have lots of favorite fish–mahi, swordfish, flounder, etc. I also love shrimp and oysters. Those salmon patties look devine! I’ve got a date night dinner menu of swordfish and mango chutney on the agenda for tomorrow night. But I’ll hold onto this one! We love salmon—-canned is underrated. It gets 2 thumbs up from me!
I love sardines too- glad to see another sardine fan on here! I hope you try this out 🙂
I love salmon and I have a can in the pantry as we speak! Those patties sound delicious, I might just make them for lunch today!!!
Hope you try it out, Jen!
Love love salmon! But like with you, it’s so expensive here, even though our waters produce so much of it!!
I have only bought tinned salmon once and it was full of bones and totally put me off. Do you just eat the bones or do you have boneless there?
The bones are actually really good- they are high in calcium and pretty soft- you can get the ones without bones but I think those are even more expensive!
I’ve never tried canned salmon before. This recipe is a perfect idea for me, though, because I’m the only one that likes salmon, so I can make these for myself without spending lots of money. I do have plenty of canned tuna and chicken that’s been sitting in our pantry for a really long time.
Ohhh try it out with canned tuna- it is delicious! I have a chicken parmesan pattie recipe I reckon you’d love if you have canned chicken. Besides..cheese. Hello.
I agree with you completely that fish in water is pretty tasteless and not my style either. Thanks for sharing this recipe, it sounds really good. It looks really good too of course.
Thank you, Hollie!
Say what now? Salmon and zucchini, together in one bite? Sign me up!
YES. and the curry is just an added bonus 😉
Hmmm…I can’t say that I’ve ever had canned salmon. Not entirely sure whether they even sell it in the US. They probably do…but I’ve never looked. But after seeing these delicious patties, I’m totally inspired to give it a shot! We made a quick and tasty canned tuna fish salad earlier this week, and I’ve been nom-nom’ing that for lunch on sandwiches. Oh, and your maths are solid. #Respect
Haha, you guys probably have even better stuff canned- Try it with tuna- I often use that when I’m poor which is 99% of the time!
And cheers- in your face, high school maths teacher.
I’m not normally a can person, but these look fantastic…will have to check the aisle and try this!
Thank you- I hope it converts you 😉
No shame! I always get canned salmon! It’s just so easy and convenient too!
Thanks, Rebecca!
Hi fish buddy! Salmon is with a doubt the best fish on earth! We don’t have it canned and I’m not sure if I should be sad because I can’t make this recipe or happy because it’s a shame to can this beautiful fish. There is plenty of canned tuna though which is what I’m going to use for this recipe, or target make the tuna patty recipe , lol. I like the charred look of those patties!!
“that something so delicious once started in a can.” I had to laugh at this sentence, it sounds like in a fairytale 😀
So you cook? You must be a real man! 😉
Ohhh Fish Buddy- I like that 😉
It is a shame to can this fish, but sometimes, it isn’t too bad- you can try it with tuna (I often interchange it up!). Hahaha this is the Cinderella story of seafood.