I’m so used to salmon cakes that seem to have more filler than salmon and often have little flavor that can be identified as salmon, so I was intrigued by the notion of making my own.
And this recipe from America’s Test Kitchen looked pretty simple and sounded very tasty.
But I made a major mistake. The recipe calls for skinless salmon, and I thought I could skin the salmon myself.
Wrong!
I shoulda let the fishmonger do it. It wasn’t as simple as I thought it would be and I ended up removing nearly as much salmon meat as skin.
Lesson learned.
The recipe makes eight salmon cakes, two per serving, so I froze some for later use.
I made my own tartar sauce by just mixing mayonnaise, lemon juice, and relish together and it came out pretty good.
3 tablespoons plus ¾ cup panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1 scallion, sliced thin
1 small shallot, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¾ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
Pinch cayenne pepper
1 (1¼-pound) skinless salmon fillet, cut into 1-inch pieces (NB: If buying a skin-on salmon fillet, purchase 1⅓ pounds fish.)
1. Combine 3 tablespoons panko, parsley, mayonnaise, lemon juice, scallion, shallot, mustard, salt, pepper, and cayenne in bowl. Working in 3 batches, pulse salmon in food processor until coarsely chopped into ¼-inch pieces, about 2 pulses, transferring each batch to bowl with panko mixture. Gently mix until uniformly combined.
2. Place remaining ¾ cup panko in shallow dish. Using ⅓-cup measure, scoop level amount of salmon mixture and transfer to baking sheet; repeat to make 8 cakes. Carefully coat each cake with bread crumbs, gently patting into disk measuring 2¾ inches in diameter and 1 inch high. Return coated cakes to baking sheet.
3. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Place salmon cakes in skillet and cook without moving until bottoms are golden brown, about 2 minutes. Carefully flip cakes and cook until second side is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer cakes to paper towel-lined plate to drain for 1 minute. Serve the salmon cakes with lemon wedges and/or tartar sauce.