This easy and delectable recipe combines fresh fish with a few simple ingredients to make salmon cakes with balsamic sauce.
From the moment I knew we’d be visiting my home state of Oregon during salmon season, I had my heart- and my taste buds- set on enjoying all kinds of fresh salmon awesomeness. My mom lives right on the Santiam River, which can be prime salmon-catching waters. I spent several weeks dreaming of the goodness we could cook up with fresh-caught fish.
My mom suggested making salmon cakes with balsamic sauce. I don’t have much experience preparing fresh fish, but I do have plenty of experience eating a variety of fish and seafood cakes, and I love balsamic vinegar. I immediately knew she had to make the recipe and I had to share it here.
My mom is a phenomenal cook; I never doubted these salmon cakes would be anything but extraordinary. The recipe is fairly simple and can be easily adapted to be gluten-free. Basically, she begins by poaching the salmon and mixing up the easy three ingredient sauce. She usually uses red wine vinegar instead of balsamic, but I love balsamic and this is my blog, so we’re going with it.
No spices or seasonings are added to the breadcrumbs; they really aren’t necessary because the fresh salmon is the star. You could go crazy and add garlic, diced onion, or the fresh herbs of your choice, but these salmon cakes really are perfect just the way they are.
We enjoyed the salmon cakes plain with the sauce for dipping. The salmon cakes would make great sliders, though; my mom suggests tossing chopped cabbage with the balsamic sauce to serve on top. You could also make the cakes smaller- bite-sized- if serving at a party.
