Perfectly cooked and just a little crispy on the outside, these air fryer salmon patties are the best easy and healthy meal. We share exactly how to make salmon patties in the air fryer with canned salmon in this easy recipe.
Step by step instructions for perfect salmon patties in the air fryer
The air fryer is the perfect cooking appliance for salmon patties. You’ll be enjoying these healthy, crispy and low-carb friendly salmon cakes in about 15 minutes!
- Just prep the ingredients and place them in a bowl
- Quickly mix the ingredients to evenly distribute, but don’t overmix
- Spray the air fryer basket with cooking oil
- Form the salmon mixture into patties and carefully place them in the basket
- Cook at 400° Fahrenheit for 10-12 minutes
- Dig in!
Air fryer cooking tips
Every air fryer is a little different, so here are a few tips on how to use your equipment for this recipe.
- Preheat your air fryer if it requires preheating.
- Don’t stack the patties in the basket. Give them a little room for the air to circulate and crisp up the edges.
- Work in batches if needed depending on the size of your air fryer basket.
- There’s no need to flip the patties. Just place them in the basket and close the lid.
- Don’t overcook! Check the patties frequently at the end of the cooking time. You want them to be warmed through but not dried out and overcooked.
- Carefully remove the patties from the basket with a thin spatula when they are done. Using a spatula at least the width of the patties helps prevent them from falling apart.
What about cooking frozen salmon patties in the air fryer?
We’ve got you covered on this one too!
Do this if you are making salmon patties from scratch:
- Follow the recipe below and form your salmon into patties.
- Stack the patties, placing a piece of parchment paper between each one. Place them in a container or ziploc and freeze.
- When you’re ready to cook the patties, spray the air fryer basket with cooking oil.
- Place the frozen salmon patties in the air fryer basket. Don’t stack them, only place as many as you can fit in a single layer.
- Cook at 400° Fahrenheit for 12-14 minutes, or until the patties are warmed through.
Do this if you are cooking store-bought frozen salmon patties:
- Spray the air fryer basket with cooking oil and place the frozen salmon patties directly in the air fryer basket. Again, don’t stack them, only place as many as you can fit in a single layer.
- Cook at 400° Fahrenheit for 10-15 minutes, or until the patties are warmed through.
Note that store-bought salmon patties are usually very thin, so check them after 10 minutes and see if they are cooked through. If not, add 1-2 minutes and continue cooking until they are done.
What to serve with these low-carb and keto salmon patties
We love to eat these salmon patties with either fresh greens or roasted veggies and a generous dollop of chipotle aioli. Here are some other serving options:
- With eggs (scrambled, over-easy or hard-boiled) are all great!
- In a wrap or on a keto-friendly bun.
- With any of our low-carb side dish recipes.
- Over some cauliflower rice.
Your turn to make some easy fresh or frozen salmon patties
We’ve provided instructions for both, so you can cook it either way! We know you’ll love this easy and tasty recipe that you can serve in so many ways. If you try it be sure to leave a comment to let us know how it goes and take a pic to share on Instagram. Tag us @realsimplegood, we love to see what you’re making!
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How to Make Air Fryer Salmon Patties
Ingredients
- 2 (2) cans wild salmon, drained, (6 oz cans)
- 1 (1) egg
- 1 clove (1 clove) garlic, minced, (or sub about 1/2 tsp garlic oil)
- 2 tbsp (2 tbsp) green onion, finely diced
- 2 tsp (2 tsp) arrowroot starch
- 1 tbsp (1 tbsp) lemon juice, (about 1/2 lemon or sub apple cider vinegar)
- 1 tsp (1 tsp) dried dill
- 1/2 tsp (1/2 tsp) sea salt
- 1/2 tsp (1/2 tsp) ground pepper
- avocado oil or olive oil spray
Equipment
Instructions
- To make the salmon patties, prep garlic and green onion as noted. Add all of the ingredients for the salmon patties, except the avocado oil spray, to a medium size bowl. Mix everything together with your hands, but avoid overmixing. Just combine the ingredients evenly.
- Spray the air fryer basket with cooking oil. Form the salmon mixture into 3 evenly sized patties and place them in the basket. Leave a little space between the patties if you can.
- Cook at 400° for 12-14 minutes. The patties should be a little brown and crispy on the outside and warmed through on the inside.
- Scoop the patties out of the air fryer basket and serve.
Notes
- Spray the air fryer basket with cooking oil and place the frozen salmon patties directly in the air fryer basket. Again, don’t stack them, only place as many as you can fit in a single layer.
- Cook at 400° Fahrenheit for 10-15 minutes, or until the patties are warmed through.
Perfect salmon patty recipe. Quick and delicious, served with waffled hashbrowns and a runny egg! Saving this one to make again… and again!
Glad you enjoyed this Jessica, thanks for coming back to leave a rating and review 🙂
can you use panko breadcrumbs instead of arrowroot starch?
We haven’t personally tried that but it should work.
Has anyone tried an egg substitute in these?
We’ve made them without the eggs but not with an egg substitute. They turn out fine but are likely to fall apart a little bit. Just make the patties and set them right in the basket to avoid handling them twice and flip them carefully.
So easy to make and so yummy!
Simple, delicious, and the perfect quick Whole30 meal!
These were so easy and perfectly seasoned!
We love hearing that you enjoyed them! Thanks for giving our recipe a try!
Tasty and nutritious, this is a new favorite fish dish!
It’s a forgiving recipe, as I used frozen salmon steaks (grilled & flaked before adding to recipe) instead of canned and added chopped parsley, nutritional yeast and mushroom powder and they cooked perfectly and taste delicious.
Air-fried cauliflower tots and pesto were a perfect pairing with the salmon patties. I intend to buy some canned salmon to keep on hand for another run soon.
This is great! We love hearing that it worked out so well for you! Thanks for trying another one of our recipes and for taking the time to come back to our site and leave a review! We’re so grateful you’re part of the RSG Life community!
How much nutritional yeast did you use? That sounds like a great addition.
Please check your nutritional info. Numbers might be off?
Otherwise,, it looks delicious. I’ll have to try it!
Thanks for pointing that out, you were right. The initial calculation wasn’t calculating right for the salmon. I’ve updated the nutrition info now, I hope you enjoy these!