Salmon patties hold a place near and dear to my heart. Growing up on James Island, I learned so much about Southern food from family friends and play aunties. And this dish is no exception: I’ll throw this in with fried cabbage, red rice, and shrimp and grits as being one of my favorite Charleston plates. Fish and grits is a very Southern breakfast item, especially here in Charleston, and canned fish isn’t frowned upon by locals. Personally, I’m not above canned proteins since I grew up eating canned sardines, salmon, and potted meats. Humble times, y’all. If it’s good, I’ll eat it.

You can definitely use fresh salmon here but honestly, go with the canned. You’ll be surprised at how great it holds up and why so many people enjoy it. The gravy is pretty easy-peasy, if you’ve made any of my other gravies on the blog, you’ll be just fine. I season mine up with sazón, so it’s not super traditional, but I like the twist with the simple flavors of the patties and the creamy grits. Let’s get cooking!

Salmon Patties

Cook time: 20 minutes

Serves: 2-4

1 14.75 can salmon, flaked (save 1-2 tbsp of the liquid)

1/2 medium yellow onion, very finely diced (the other half of the onion will be used for the gravy)

3 large garlic cloves, minced into a paste

Large pinch kosher salt

Large pinch black pepper

1/4 cup Italian-style bread crumbs

1/4 cup milk

1 large egg, beaten

Vegetable oil, for searing

Simple Onion Gravy

2 tbsp butter, unsalted

1/2 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced

Kosher salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

Sazón spice blend, to taste

3 tbsp all-purpose flour

3 cups of water or broth

Old Bay hot sauce, to taste (see note)

Grits, cooked, for serving

Note: I ordered the Old Bay hot sauce directly from their website a few months ago, so you can check there or your local store for it. If you cant find it, simply use another sauce. My roommates and I love all kinds of hot sauces in the house, so we have a variety of brands that we rotate between. As for the grits, you can find some solid pointers for creamy grits right here.

Preheat oven to 200ºF.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the canned salmon, diced onion, minced garlic, kosher salt, and black pepper. In a small separate bowl, mix the bread crumbs and milk together until they form a moist paste. Preheat your skillet for the salmon patties over medium heat with enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom of the pan.

Going back to the salmon mixture, using a fork, add the soaked bread crumb paste and beaten egg to mix together. Combine everything and form the mixture into patties, roughly about the shape and size of a hamburger patty. If the mixture is too dry, add a little bit more of the liquid from the canned salmon. You want the mixture to be moist but just tight enough with the bread crumb binder to not fall apart. For this particular batch, I got 5 patties. Make them how small or large you like. Your choice!

Once all of the patties are formed, set them aside for about 5 minutes to set and to allow your pan to finish heating up. Next, sear the salmon patties on each side until they’re golden brown, flipping only once. Once the other side is golden brown, place the salmon patties on a silpat or parchment paper lined sheet pan. Place them in the preheated oven to keep warm while you work on the gravy.

In the same pan that you seared the salmon patties, add the butter and let it melt. Then, add the sliced onions and sauté them until they’re slightly translucent and the edges start to brown, about 6-10 minutes. Season with kosher salt, black pepper, and sazón spice blend to your liking; about a pinch of each will do, stirring well. Then, sprinkle the onions with the flour and stir well, making sure all of the flour is absorbed and cooked through, about 2-3 minutes (it should look like an oniony-paste situation as photographed below). Then, gradually add the water, stirring well to make sure you don’t get any lumps. Bring to a boil and adjust your seasoning and then a few shakes of your favorite hot sauce (the Old Bay hot sauce works well with seafood) and reduce the heat to low to keep warm.

To serve, enjoy the salmon patties with cooked grits and the gravy spooned on top. I love hitting my plate with some more hot sauce before mixing everything together.

¡Buen provecho!