Delightfully crispy on the outside, tender, moist, and flaky on the inside, my easy fish cake recipe will be the perfect way to enjoy fish with a twist!

These flavorful fish cakes make a wonderful stand-alone entree or even a great fish sandwich or wrap. 

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What Are Fish Cakes?

Crunchy on the outside and moist on the inside, these fish cakes will be a meal that the whole family will love!

Fish cakes are just as they sound, fish that is prepared with other ingredients and then formed into round cake-shaped patties.  

Typically fish cases are fried in a skillet in shallow cooking oil but they can be baked in the oven or even cooked up in your air fryer. 

This recipe was inspired by the MOST POPULAR recipe here on my blog, my Crispy Chicken Cakes. That recipe is excellent and I get emails from readers on almost daily saying how much they love them. 

So instead of chicken, we’ll be using some great cod fillets that we cook first then combine with other ingredients that will help add so much flavor and help bind them together. 

Here’s All You’ll Need:

• Fresh or Frozen Cod fillets

• eggs

• almond flour

• parmesan cheese

• spices

• real mayo

• lemon juice

As you can see fish cakes are made from simple ingredients that are easy to find or substitute if you need to. You’ll just toss all the ingredients together press them into nice size patties and fry. 

Are Fish Cakes Low Carb?

Typically you can find some fish cakes that combine potatoes and fish for the base of the patties, but since we are keeping this recipe low carb I’ll be leaving the potatoes out and using some different binders.

Low-carb flours like almond flour or even an oat fiber work great along with the eggs and mayo to help bind these fish cakes together while keeping them low-carb and Keto friendly. 

If you don’t need them to be gluten-free or low carb you can totally use some binders like flour or even bread crumbs, but in this low-carb version, I’ll be using almond flour and eggs. 

I have also used a combination of part almond flour and a little coconut flour and that works too but I’m just not the biggest fan of coconut flour in savory recipes. 

Can Fish Cakes Be Made Ahead or Frozen?

Yes, this fish cake recipe is perfect for either making it ahead by a couple of days or even for the long term in the freezer. 

I often make them up the night before or the morning before I serve them and just put them in the fridge to set and firm up as I go about my day. Then pull them out at dinner to cook. 

I also make a double back sometimes and freeze one batch for another night. It is easy to do this recipe either way. Let’s talk about how these can be prepped ahead!

To begin, you’ll fully assemble the fish cakes according to the recipe card at the end of this post, place them in a single layer on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and freeze them. 

Once the fish cakes are frozen you can take them out of the freezer and put them in a thick freezer bag or container.

Since they were frozen individually it will be easy to just pull out how many you need without defrosting them all. 

To cook them, simply thaw and cook as instructed.  You’ll have a delicious and healthy dinner in a flash!  The best part is these Low Carb Fish Cakes will keep for about 3 months in the freezer if stored well.

Can Fish Cakes Be Reheated?

The simple answer is yes, you can reheat any leftover fish cakes. There are a couple of ways that this can be done depending on the desired outcome. 

One of my favorite ways is in the air fryer or in a skillet that has been sprayed with cooking spray because I feel like this keeps them the crispiest when they’re straight out of the frying pan.

For the air fryer, I just use the reheat button that mine machine came with. That reheats them and also helps maintain the crispy exterior.

So try reheating them at about 350 for 5 minutes at a time until you reach the perfect temperature.

Hover, if you are in a hurry and don’t mind the fish cakes being softer with less of a crutch then by all means you can reheat them in the microwave for a couple of minutes.

Recipe Tips & Variations

Can I substitute the cod in this recipe?
Yes, you certainly can! If you don’t like cod or you don’t have any on hand. You can swap it out for really any flaky type of fish you prefer like salmon or tuna.

Do I need to chill the mixture before frying?
Another yes! Do not skip this step friends! I know it takes some extra time but trust me you will regret not doing this if you skip it. Chilling the mixture helps the fish cakes to hold their shape when pan-fried.

What can I use as a low-carb binder if I have a nut allergy?
Another great option to help hold your fish cakes together is oat fiber. Don’t freak out on me I’m not talking bout higher-carb oat flour here. Oat fiber is just the fiber that has been pulled from oats and it ends up being zero net carbs per fourth cup because the carbs are all fiber. If you use oat fiber start with only 1/3 cup and see how it mixes up. If you need more just use a few tablespoons at a time until the fish cakes hold together. Oat fiber is very absorbent and you’ll need much less than you would use of almond flour. 

Make them as the recipe card says or modify them to your liking, but just get in the kitchen and make these because you’ll be so glad you did!

Yield: 9 Fish Cakes

Crispy Fish Cakes

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

These healthy fish cakes take flakey cod filets to the next level when seasoned and formed into hearty patties and fried to perfection.

Print

Ingredients

• 28 ounces of cod or any white fish
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup of almond flour
• 1/4 oat fiber or coconut flour
• 1/4 cup of real mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 3 tablespoon of Parmesan Cheese
• 2 teaspoon of dill weed
• 1 teaspoon of parsley
• 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• Avacado oil for frying

Instructions

1. Cook the cod filets until they are slightly underdone. This way the fish won't dry out during the frying process. It will flake apart when it is ready.
2. Let the fish cool slightly then flake it up into a large bowl.
3. Add in all the other ingredients and mix until the fish and other ingredients are combined very well. If the mixture seems too wet to stick together you can add a couple of tablespoons of almond flour or oat fiber/coconut flour at a time to help, but don't add too much or the cakes will be very dry after cooking.
4. Use a large ice cream scoop to portion out big fish cakes and pat them into a flat patty. The patties will be fragile at first but will set after chilling.
5. Chill the fish cakes in the freezer for about 30 minutes to help them set up so they don't fall apart doing cooking.
6. Heat a skillet with about 1/3 inch of Avacado Oil in it over medium heat and place fish cakes into the hot oil.
7. Cook the fish cakes until they are golden brown on the first side which takes about 5 to 7 minutes, then flip and cook for an additional 5 or so minutes until the second side is golden and the center temperature reaches 160 degrees.
8. Repeat the process until all the fish cakes are cooked and served hot.
9. See the blog post for instructions on how to store the fish cakes and how to freeze them.

Nutrition Information

Yield

9

Serving Size

1 fish cake
Amount Per ServingCalories 242Total Fat 13gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 10gCholesterol 106mgSodium 181mgCarbohydrates 4gNet Carbohydrates 2.5gFiber 1.5gSugar 1gProtein 28g

I am not a nutritionist. If you have strict dietary needs I always recommend using an online nutrition calculator to calculate your totals using your exact brands you're using in this recipe as values may vary per brand.

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Keri Bucci

I am a southern girl through and through that loves to laugh, cook, read and spend time with family. My passions outside of home schooling my son are ministering to those in need and creating art in the kitchen! Every day is an adventure in our little house and I wouldn’t trade it or the chance to share here with you for anything!