A delicious Air Fryer Salmon Patties recipe in 20 minutes! Using pork rinds instead of bread crumbs for the crust results in a crispy outside and tender inside. Make ahead and freeze for later. Air Fryer Salmon cakes are healthy - gluten-free, low carb, and keto-friendly.
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🎥 Recipe Video
Why You'll ❤️ Salmon Patties in Air Fryer
"This recipe came about when I was standing in my pantry staring at a can of salmon wondering what the heck to do with it. The perfect solution: an easy salmon patty recipe in my air fryer! An easy, tasty, and healthy recipe was born, LOL!" 🙂 -Kori
If you love fish and shellfish, be sure to make these easy recipes: Air Fryer Crab Cakes (From Fresh or Frozen) and Parmesan Crusted Air Fryer Tilapia. Enjoy!
Quick and Easy
Only 11 ingredients (including salt and pepper) and less than 15 minutes cook time in your air fryer, and you'll be enjoying these air fryer salmon patties.
No Oil No Mess
Making salmon cakes in an air fryer is a breeze - they are simple to make and easy to clean up (no oil to deal with).
Make Ahead Freezable
You can make air fryer salmon patties ahead of time and freeze for later. You can then cook the frozen salmon cakes in your air fryer when you are ready! Instructions for cooking frozen salmon patties in the air fryer are below.
Healthy
Interested in keto? Get my FREE keto food guide and grocery shopping list. It's an excellent glance guide you can print off for your fridge or save the pdf on your phone when you are out and about!
🥘 What You'll Need
Here are the ingredients you'll need to make air fryer salmon patties:
Canned Salmon - canned cooked salmon is very convenient! Make sure to pick out any bones and skin if needed!
Parmesan Cheese - Use the finely grated parmesan cheese.
Mayonnaise - I used avocado oil mayonnaise but any favorite mayo will do.
Egg -the binding ingredient in this recipe
Fresh Chives - I used fresh in this recipe but you could substitute dried. You can also use finely chopped green onion. Rule of thumb for herbs: 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon dried
Fresh Dill - fresh dill has a slightly better flavor than dried, but you can substitute dried dill.
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Kosher Salt or Sea Salt
Ground Black Pepper
Original Flavored Pork Rinds - I wanted a little more texture in this recipe so I used regular pork rinds and crushed them in a plastic bag. This gave me a variety of larger pieces and finely crushed - making the perfect crust! Feel free to use seasoned panko breadcrumbs if you are not following a low carb plan, or you can use pork panko that's already crushed.
Olive Oil Cooking Spray - I use a good quality 100% extra virgin olive oil spray to coat the carb cakes evenly - it works like a charm! If you don't have spray, you can drizzle olive oil over the top.
Optional - lemon wedges and Creamy Dill Dressing for serving with your patties
🔪 How To Make It
Here's how to air fry salmon patties! You are going to love this recipe. 🙂
Crush The Pork Rinds
Preheat your air fryer to 360 degrees F for 5 minutes.
Place 2 ounces of pork rinds in a plastic bag and crush using the backside of a bowl or a rolling pin until they are crushed.
You can finely crush or leave some larger bits and pieces mixed in, which is my favorite way. You'll love the crunch they give to the salmon patties!
Place pork rinds in a bowl.
Mix All Ingredients
Tip: Be sure to remove any bones and skin from the salmon before making your patties.
In a large bowl, mix the canned salmon, parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, egg, chives, dill, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper together.
Make the Patties
Divide mixture into fourths and firmly press together, forming 4 equal sized patties that are approximately 1" thick. (Be sure to firmly form the patties)
Press each salmon cake into the bowl of pork rinds. Remove and then press the coating firmly into the patty. Repeat with the second side.
Air Fry
Place the salmon patties in an air fryer basket and spray the tops with olive oil cooking spray.
Air fry 5 minutes, turn the patties over, and spritz the other side with olive oil spray. Continue cooking an additional 5 minutes, or until golden brown and heated through.
Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
🥗 How To Serve
Here are a few delicious ideas of what to serve with air fryer salmon patties:
Serve with lemon wedges, creamy dill dressing, and garnish wish fres parsley or chives. Homemade cocktail sauce is also good!
Meal idea! Serve air fryer salmon patties with this Seafood Pasta Salad (Use Pasta or cauliflower, and a side of Air Fryer Green Beans (or this frozen green bean version), Asparagus in Air Fryer, or Air Fryer Cabbage.
Serve as an appetizer or starter. You can make smaller appetizer-sized patties by reducing the cooking time. Don't forget the dill sauce for dipping!
📖 Variations
Here are a few ways to customize your air fryer salmon patties:
- Use crab meat in place of canned salmon.
- Add up to 2 tablespoons of finely chopped red bell pepper.
- Want a little more spice? You can add a few drops of hot sauce.
- Add 1 teaspoon of dijon mustard or lemon juice for a little more tang. Whether I add this depends on the brand of mayonnaise you use. Some mayo is tangy, so you don't need to add mustard or lemon juice. (I used Better Foods Avocado Oil Mayonnaise).
- Experiment with seasoning blends.
- Swap out different herbs. The dill is a key flavor in this recipe, so I don't recommend replacing it unless you don't like to dill it at all. Parsley makes a great substitute for chives if you prefer.
💭 Top Tips
- Firmly press the patties together - this will help prevent them from falling apart.
- Make sure to use a good quality 100% olive spray when coating the salmon patties.
- Each air fryer is a little different so adjust your cook time as needed.
❓FAQs
Making salmon patties healthy is as easy as using your air fryer. This recipe uses no breadcrumbs and was created to be gluten-free, low carb, and keto-friendly.
Preheat the air fryer to 350 degrees. Place the salmon cakes in the air fryer basket and cook until heated through - about 4 to 5 minutes.
Yes, you can air fry salmon patties! 🙂 Here's how:
Preheat the air fryer to 360 degrees and place the patties in the basket. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes per side. Flip patties once, and for a crispier crust spritz with 100% olive oil spray after you flip them.
Note: each air fryer is a little different so adjust your cooking times as needed.
Yes! Here's how to cook frozen salmon patties in air fryer:
Preheat the air fryer to 350 degrees and place the frozen salmon patties the air fryer basket.
Cook approximately 10 to 15 minutes until warmed through, flipping the patties halfway through.
Note that each recipe, air fryer, and size of patties vary and may alter the cooking time. Adjust time and temperature accordingly.
Absolutely, salmon is fine on keto. 3 ounces of salmon contains 0 carbs, 4 grams fat, 19 grams protein, and only 112 calories.
For more information download by FREE printable Keto Food List and Grocery Shopping List
✔️ More Air Fryer Recipes
- Air Fryer Fajita Spiced Chicken Wings
- Air Fryer Fried Green Tomatoes
- Air Fryer Turkey Burgers
- Keto Air Fryer Chicken Tenders (Air Fryer + Oven)
- Parmesan Crusted Air Fryer Tilapia
- Air Fryer Crab Cakes (From Fresh or Frozen)
📋 Recipe
Air Fryer Salmon Patties
Ingredients
- 1 (14.75-ounce) can of salmon, bones removed
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese
- 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 large egg
- ½ tablespoon fresh chives or ½ teaspoon dried
- ½ tablespoon fresh dill or ½ teaspoon dried
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup crushed pork rinds
- olive oil cooking spray
- optional: lemon wedges and [creamy dill sauce]
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 360 degrees for 5 minutes
- In a medium-sized bowl mix crabmeat, parmesan, mayonnaise, eggs, chives, dill, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
- Form 4 patties about 1" thick.
- Place pork rinds in a small bowl then press each salmon cake into the bowl of pork rinds. Firmly press coating into the patty then repeat with the second side.
- Add salmon patties to the air fryer and spray with olive oil spray.
- Air fry 5 minutes, carefully turn the crab cakes over, and spritz the other side with olive oil spray.
- Cook an additional 5 minutes, or until golden brown and done.
Video
Notes
General Notes
How to Reheat Salmon Patties in Air Fryer
- Preheat the air fryer to 350 degrees.
- Place salmon cakes in the basket and cook until heated through - about 4 to 5 minutes.
How to Make Frozen Salmon Patties in Air Fryer
- Preheat air fryer to 350 degrees and place the frozen salmon patties in air fryer.
- Cook approximately 10 to 15 minutes until warmed through, flipping the crab cakes halfway through.
- Note that each recipe, air fryer, and size of salmon patties vary and may alter the cooking time. Adjust time and temperature accordingly.
Nutrition
© 2023 Seeking Good Eats™
Super simple and tasty air fryer salmon patties! Healthy salmon patties that are gluten-free, low carb, and keto friendly. This salmon patties recipe makes an easy dinner idea for busy weeknights. It can also be made ahead and frozen for later - just cook frozen salmon cakes in air fryer! 🙂
Robin says
Delicious! Will definitely make these again and again
Kori says
Thank you so much! I'm super happy you loved the air fryer salmon patties! If you like those, you'll love my Air Fryer Crab Cakes too! 🙂
Lisa says
I really liked this recipe, but don't have pork rinds... To keep it gluten free, I coated the patties with potato flakes to create the crust. The air fryer made it perfect!!
Kori says
Thank you so glad you loved the salmon patties! I love your idea with the potato flakes it's perfect for those not following low carb. 🙂