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These delicious Air Fryer Salmon Patties have a crispy outside with flaky, perfectly cooked salmon inside and are packed with flavor. They can easily be made gluten-free, and are a tasty freezer-friendly make-ahead weeknight dinner.
These quick and tasty Air Fryer Salmon Patties are the best weeknight dinner. Ready in under 20 minutes, they’re baked and not fried and still taste amazing. Oh, happy day!
If you’re looking for a gluten-free/paleo/keto version of this recipe, check out our Gluten Free Salmon Cakes. You’ll also find detailed instructions in that post on how to cook these bad boys on the stovetop.
What to Serve With Air Fryer Salmon Cakes
For veggies, try Roasted Frozen Broccoli, Healthy Coleslaw, Garlic Butter Green Beans, Kale Chopped Salad, or Roasted Frozen Cauliflower.
Need some tasty carbs to round out your plate? Try Wasabi Mashed Potatoes, Garlic Butter Rice, Air Fryer Biscuits, Cheesy Garlic Bread, or Red Lobster Biscuits from Scratch.
Equipment Tips
I used this air fryer, this mixing bowl, and this Misto for spraying olive oil on my salmon cakes. The canned salmon was from Costco, and it was their Wild Alaska Pink variety.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Make a bulk batch of our homemade seafood seasoning and use some of it for these patties.
- Don’t skip the step to spray the panko before assembling the salmon cakes. This gives you the tastiest and crispiest coating!
- You can use regular breadcrumbs in place of panko. Start with 1 cup and add more if needed.
- Use a fork to break apart the salmon prior to cooking, as clumps of fish can prevent the salmon patties from holding together during cooking.
- To freeze: place unbaked salmon cakes on a baking sheet lined with parchment or waxed paper. Freeze for 3 hours, and then transfer to freezer-safe storage (these are my favorite). Freeze for 3-6 months. You can bake frozen salmon patties at the same temp, but add 2-3 minutes of cooking time.
- Want to make this a meal prep dream? Use prechopped frozen garlic and frozen onions. You can add the onions to the mixture still frozen but will want to partially heat the garlic to break it apart.
MORE DELICIOUS AIR FRYER Dinners
Air Fryer Salmon Patties
Ingredients
- 2 cups canned salmon {~16 oz}
- 1 1/4 cup panko
- 1 tbsp olive oil {divided}
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup celery {finely diced}
- 4 cloves garlic {finely diced}
- 1/4 cup red onion {finely diced}
- 2 tbsp Frank's Red Hot
- 2 tbsp Old Bay Seasoning {or another seafood seasoning mix}
- 1/2 cup mayo {or plain Greek yogurt}
Instructions
- Place a piece of parchment or waxed paper on a baking sheet or large plate.
- Drain the water from the salmon, and add the salmon to a mixing bowl.2 cups canned salmon
- Use a fork to break up the chunks of salmon.
- Add panko to a small bowl and spray it with olive oil to coat.1 1/4 cup panko, 1 tbsp olive oil
- Add panko, eggs, celery, Frank's, garlic, onion, Old Bay, and mayo to the salmon and stir to combine.2 eggs, 1/3 cup celery, 4 cloves garlic, 1/4 cup red onion, 2 tbsp Old Bay Seasoning, 1/2 cup mayo, 2 tbsp Frank's Red Hot
- Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to scoop some of the mixture into your hands. Make a small patty and set on the baking sheet. Repeat until you've made 12 patties.
- {optional}: Freeze patties for 20 minutes. This will help keep everything together when you flip them.
- Preheat air fryer to 350F for 3 minutes.
- Remove the tray from the freezer and liberally spray the tops of the patties with the remaining olive oil. Let it sit for 2 minutes.1 tbsp olive oil
- Without overcrowding the basket, carefully place the salmon patties in the air fryer.
- Bake at 390F for 5 minutes. Flip and bake for an additional 2 minutes.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I know I’m late to the party with this, but we make these several times a year (and have been for years since the original recipe was posted). We make a combination of the OG salmon cakes and the air fryer recipe – depending on what we have on hand. We often double the recipe as the kids love it that much. The air fryer method makes meal prep a breeze. We pair with roasted broccoli or brussel sprouts and our version of colcannon with horseradish added (it’s on my list to try your wasabi mashed potatoes), Always delicious. Always the first of the prepped meals the kids take. Not going to lie – not all of the cakes make it to the containers!
Katherine, thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review. I’m thrilled to hear how much you and the kiddos like them!
The colcannon dish sounds INCREDIBLE!