Southern Fried Salmon Patties: This is fish even the kids will enjoy eating. Simple, quick, easy to make and tastes even better between two slices of bread or in a bun. Add a little mayo or whip up your own special sauce and you’ve got supper on the table in no time flat.
We didn’t eat Salmon Patties a lot when I was growing up, but I’ve always enjoyed the taste. Of course I like pretty much anything that I can slap between two slices of loaf bread. I’m totally hooked on sandwiches of about any kind, always have been.
As an adult, I’ve learned to enjoy salmon in various ways. I like it baked in the oven, fried in a skillet, or my favorite…smoked on a grill. It’s a bit pricey on the fish side of things, but something I enjoy whenever I can.
The really nice thing about these Salmon Patties is how simple and quick they are to prepare. I’m using a canned salmon and ingredients that are pretty much a staple in any kitchen. I try to keep a can or two in the kitchen cabinets all the time. You’re basically just going to mix it all up in one bowl and fry them up in the skillet. You can prepare the mixture and refrigerate it for several hours before cooking if need be. It makes a great main dish meat or a quick and easy sandwich, which ever way you want to go. So, if you’re ready….Let’s Get Cooking!
You’ll need these ingredients. It might look like a lot in the picture, but it’s mostly seasonings.
Open up the can of salmon and dump it in a colander in the sink. Let any liquid drain off for a minute or two. If you look closely, you’ll see some bones. They are edible but I like to remove the bigger ones, especially the big round ones from the spine area. It’s just a little crunch that doesn’t sit right in my mouth sometime so I take them out. It’s your option, but again, they are edible so you don’t have to be concerned about them.
Use your hands or a fork and flake the salmon up into large chunks.
While the salmon is draining, chop up the bell peppers and the onion.
Place the flaked salmon in a large mixing bowl.
Add two whole eggs to the bowl. We’ll just dump in all the other ingredients and mix it up at the end. Mixing each ingredient in one at a time will turn the salmon to mush. You want to try and keep some large chunks in the mixture.
Add the chopped onion to the bowl.
Add the chopped bell pepper. I’ve mentioned this before, but I buy bell peppers during the summer months and chop and freeze them. They just get pretty expensive around here during the winter months. When I can get them 5 for 1.00 during the summer, I buy a few extra, prepare them, then freeze them in plastic bags. I can usually take out what I need for a recipe and let them thaw for a few minutes and that step is done. Of course, I love fresh ingredients whenever they are in season.
Add the corn meal. The meal acts as a binder to help hold the ingredients together.
Add the salt.
Add the garlic powder.
Add the mayo. The oil serves as another part of the binder to help hold things together when we shape the patties.
Add the Worcestershire sauce.
Add the Texas Pete Hot Sauce. It’s not really going to add any heat to the patties, just a little flavor. Of course, you can add more if you like.
Add the ground black pepper.
Break up one slice of regular white loaf bread. You can crumble it up or leave it in large pieces like I did. Bread crumbs will work fine. I don’t recall mama ever using bread crumbs back in her day. She’d just take a slice or two of bread and break it up into the patties. She’d do the same with her meatloaf. Seeing those pieces of bread in the finished product just brings back fond memories for me. The bread is another binder for the mixture.
Use a fork or spoon and gently mix all the ingredients together. Don’t over work it, just get it all combined.
Add the flour. I usually adjust this amount depending on how moist the mixture is at this point. You don’t want it so dry it doesn’t stick together but then again, you don’t want it all mushy wet either. Just sprinkle in a little flour at a time and mix again until you get a good consistency.
You should have enough mixture to divide and shape into about 4 patties. You’ll just scoop out enough in your hand to shape it as you would a hamburger patty. You can make them larger or smaller as you like. Just shape them into rounds and set them aside for a few minutes.
Go ahead and sprinkle the tops with a little paprika at this point.
Preheat your skillet to about medium and then add some shortening or oil to fry the patties.
You should be able to get all four patties in the frying pan at one time. Cook them over medium heat.
Brown the bottoms and then carefully flip them over and brown the other side. Don’t overcook them, just let them brown well on both sides and you should be good to go. The more they cook, the drier they’ll be when you serve them. You’ll also want to serve them pretty soon after you remove them from the pan as they will cool down pretty quick. Just take them out when done, place on a couple of folded paper towels to drain for a minute, then serve.
Serve and Enjoy!
See how easy that was, just like making home made burgers in the kitchen. You can serve these as the main course along with some mashed potatoes and another side of your choice. Or, place them between a couple slices of bread or on a bun for a great sandwich. You can add a little more mayo or maybe even create your own sauce. There are lots of choices available as too which sauce to use. I like my “Secret Sauce” that we used with the Fried Green Tomatoes Recipe as well.
This is just a basic recipe for Salmon Patties. Experiment with some other herbs and spices after you’ve tried these and let us know in the Comment Section below what you come up with.
A local restaurant in my area serves them for lunch every Monday. I’ll pick them up along with some mashed potatoes, pinto beans and cornbread for lunch sometimes. I hope you’ll give these a try and that you really enjoy them. Here’s the printable recipe for it all.
