While sardines are impressively nutritious, most people don’t like their stronger fish taste, especially when they come in a tin. In today’s recipe, I will show you how to make Canned Sardine Fish Cakes, which is one of my favourite ways to enjoy this fish. This recipe is gluten-free, Whole30 and Paleo-friendly.
Ah, sardines! Just like with the nutritious liver, you know you should eat more of them but it’s hard to enjoy this fish compared to a more subtle tasting salmon or cod.
Personally, I don’t mind the strong flavour but I do have a few tricks up my sleeve for how to eat sardines.
My Sardine Fish Cakes
Sardine fish cakes (or fishcakes if you want to be more grammatically correct) are a delicious and nutritious way to enjoy this small but mighty fish.
Combined with carrots, potatoes, onions and some grain-free flour, these fish cakes are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. To complete the meal, this recipe includes a tangy and garlicky aioli and a simple green salad to balance out the flavours. You can also make an easy tartar sauce.
Whether you’re a fan of sardines or looking for a new way to incorporate them into your diet, this dish is sure to satisfy. So get ready to fire up the stove, and let’s start cooking!
Note: Fresh sardines, grilled and sprinkled with salt and parsley are TOTALLY different to their tinned brothers and sisters. So, the recipe is for canned sardines as that’s the one most people avoid due to the stronger flavour (and all those little bones).
Benefits Of Sardines
Before you turn your nose on this recipe, consider (just for a second) just how nutrient-dense sardines are. They are packed with vitamins and minerals such as B12, zinc, selenium and calcium, and are super high in omega-3 fatty acids and protein.
Plus, they are super sustainable and low in mercury compared to bigger fish. They are some of the best foods to eat to support your mitochondrial health (your cells), to fight inflammation, and to support bone density.
How To Make Sardine Fish Cakes
These sardine fish cakes are made with canned sardiens, white potato, onions and carrots and just a touch of paleo-friendly flour such as cassava or tapioca. There is an egg inside as well, but you could potentially get away without it.
I personally eat white potato and it’s widely eaten within the paleo and real food community (it’s Whole30 approved!), but you are welcome to use sweet potato instead. I often make fishcakes with sweet potatoes.
White potato is full of starch (the good kind, actually) and gives these patties a lovely, soft texture and helps to cut down that fishy flavour. Another thing that lifts these fishcakes to a pleasant sphere is the garlic aioli and lemony salad served on the side.
You can easily whip up both while the fishcakes are frying. All in all, it’s a very nutritious dinner or lunch! I sure hope you give these guys a go and maybe…just maybe…you too can start to enjoy sardines.
More Fish Cake Recipes
Full Recipe
Find the full list of ingredients, instructions, and a nutritional breakdown below. If you have questions or cook this recipe, please let me know in the comments, and make sure to rate this recipe so it’s easy for others to find.
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Ingredients
For fishcakes
- 4 medium white potatoes peeled and cut into large cubes
- 1 carrot grated
- 1/2 onion red or white, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cans sardines in spring water, about 200 g / 7 oz.
- Zest of 1/2 lemon
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon chopped pickled jalapeños can be omitted, or you can add a teaspoon of chilli sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- A generous pinch pepper
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons cassava or tapioca flour or 1 tbsp coconut flour
- 2-3 tablespoons macadamia oil olive oil, coconut oil, ghee for cooking
For aioli
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 garlic clove grated
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
For the salad
- 1 head gem lettuce diced (about 4-5 cups shredded)
- 1 large cucumber diced
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place potato in a pot and cover with cold water, add half a teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, then cook for 15 minutes until soft. Strain and transfer the cooked potato to a mixing bowl, mash it roughly and allow to cool down.
- In the meantime, sauté the onion and carrots in a tablespoon of olive oil for 2 minutes, until softened. Transfer to the potatoes and cool all vegetables for 15-20 minutes.
- Add the rest of the fishcake ingredients, except for the flour, and mash together really well. Finally, add the flour and mix through.
- Shape the mixture into small patties and arrange on a plate or a tray. You can store these in the fridge overnight covered with some Clingfilm or you can cook them right away.
- Heat a few tablespoons of coconut oil or macadamia oil (or ghee) in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the fishcakes and cook for 4-5 minutes each side, until golden brown crust forms.
- While the fish cakes are cooking, combine the aioli ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Toss the salad with the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper and set aside.
- Serve the fishcakes with a dollop of aioli and salad on the side. Enjoy!
Wow! what an idea ! What a concept ! Beautiful .. Amazing …!
I am going to try with sweet potato rather than white potato to best meet paleo low carb
yum! Would you be able to then freeze these once cooked? Interested in using them for baby led weaning. Thanks!
You should be able to freeze them for 2-3 months. Reheat in the oven from frozen or defrost in the fridge overnight and then reheat in the oven or pan-fry to get that crispiness back.
This recipe is amazing, Irene! You have never steered me wrong!
One thing I would advise is to go ahead and omit the egg if you are only making half the recipe. I found the egg to make the batch somewhat runny, but I’m sure it’s just fine in the full batch.
Glad you enjoyed it, Lorraine, and thank you for the egg tip for those making a smaller batch.
excellent ARTICLE, I WILL TRY
Thank you!
Made these today, delicious. It is a good way to get people to eat some vegetables too. Thank you for the recipe!
Thanks, Martha 🙂 Glad you enjoyed them.
It says 4 medium potatoes, about how many cups does that end up being? And can we use leftover mashed potatoes? Thank you.
I’d say about 2.5-3 cups diced potatoes. Yes, you can use leftover mashed potatoes, about 2 cups. To be honest, it doesn’t have to be super precise. Some days I make these with less potato and more fish, other days it’s more potatoes. Still works.
I haven’t tried these yet but I probably will. I would add capers, and if I did that would possibly leave out the mustard.
Yes, absolutely. Mustard is optional, just gives it a little kick and acidity. Capers would be a great addition. I sometimes chop them up and add them to the aioli/sauce, but they can go inside the patties as well.
thanks Irena for all the great info re sardines, and ways of preparing them.
I’ve been a fan of sardines for years, though haven’t tried your recipes yet. They look scrumptious.
In The Seven Sisters series of books by Lucinda Riley, one of the 8 books has a story about a famous dancer in Spain who only ever ate sardines as her main source of nutrition. She could stay up for hours dancing, night after night for years on end. She really got me thinking how good sardines are for the whole body/mind/health. Something I sensed yet never knew till I read your post.
I have some frozen fresh sardines which I’ll turn into one of your dishes later this week. Awesome site, thank you again.
These were a geeat concept! Also great for babies ( I removed the chilli) great way to add sardines into diet
We make these all the time but sub sweet potatoes in for white ones. They’re always delicious!
Thank you 🙂