Lemon Garlic Tuna Cakes are the best and easy patties made with canned tuna, lemon juice and zest, garlic, onion, breadcrumbs, eggs, mayo and shredded Parmesan. Quick and delicious tuna cakes for lunch or light dinner!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
I am all about easy lunches and light dinners but only if they have lots of flavor. The garlic-lemon combo is definitely one of my favorites to use. My Creamy Lemon Garlic Chicken is so delicious, I wanted to make another dish with this flavor pair. I know it works great with vegetables, like my Lemon Garlic Roasted Potatoes. This time, I added it to my best easy tuna cakes. They were a huge hit! Best tuna cakes I've ever made!
These Lemon Garlic Tuna Cakes can be made ahead of time or even frozen after frying. They are a great option for a delicious lunch or a light dinner. Serve with tartar sauce, simple aioli, or in a sandwich. The combination of garlic and lemon gives these tuna cakes plenty of flavor. Coating lightly in breading before frying makes them moist inside and crispy on the outside.
Ingredients:
- tuna: from a can, drained from the water;
- bread crumbs: they help ingredients to bind and keep the cakes moist;
- onion and garlic: add flavor;
- lemon zest: the best way to add citrus flavor to a dish;
- egg: necessary for the ingredients to bind and prevent the cakes from falling apart;
- Parmesan cheese: adds cheesy flavor;
- seasoning: salt, pepper.
How to make tuna cakes?
- Start by draining canned tuna from water. I use a small colander to do that.
- Next, mix it with a large egg, breadcrumbs, finely chopped onion, minced garlic, lemon juice and zest, salt, pepper, and dried parsley.
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- Combine the remaining breadcrumbs and grated cheese in a shallow dish. Scoop ¼ cup of tuna mixture, form into a patty, and lightly coat with the breading mixture.
- Fry the cakes in a pan with oil, until nicely browned on each side. Remove from pan and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve with spinach or other greens, an additional lemon wedge, or even simple aioli.
How to make them crispy?
My secret to making these delicious tuna cakes crispy on the outside is to lightly coat them in breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan cheese mixture. It makes the cakes moist inside and perfectly crispy on the outside.
What to serve with tuna cakes?
These tuna cakes are very flavorful thanks to the citrus and garlic, but if you want to dip them or drizzle them with a creamy sauce, you can make aioli by whisking together mayonnaise with lemon juice, salt, pepper, and a dash of hot sauce. You can also use my homemade Tartar Sauce.
Recipe FAQs:
Yes! It's great to make a larger batch of tuna cakes, cook (or bake), and cool completely. Then arrange them on a large baking sheet and freeze for 2 hours. Next, remove them from the sheet and place in a ziploc bag. Seal well by squeezing out as much air as possible. Label the bags and place them in a freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat before serving.
Yes, tuna cakes can be prepared and stored in the fridge for up to 4 days. They make for a quick and easy lunch or light dinner on a busy day.
Yes, these tuna cakes can be easily cooked in the oven. Simply arrange prepared tuna cakes on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake in 375 degrees F oven for about 18 to 20 minutes.
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If you like this recipe and make it, let me know in the comments below! Don't forget to rate it if you enjoyed it!
Lemon Garlic Tuna Cakes recipe
Ingredients
- 10 oz. tuna in water two 5 ounce cans; well drained
- 3 garlic cloves grated
- ¼ cup finely chopped white onion
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup plain breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 4 tablespoons plain breadcrumbs
- 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
Instructions
- Start by draining canned tuna from water. I use a small colander to do that.
- Next, combine it with garlic, onion, salt and pepper, lemon juice and zest, egg, breadcrumbs, mayo, ¼ cup of grated Parmesan cheese and dried parsley. Mix well.
- Combine remaining breadcrumbs and grated cheese in a shallow dish. Scoop ¼ cup of tuna mixture, form into a patty and lightly coat with breading mixture.
- Fry cake in pan with oil, until nicely browned on each side. Remove from pan and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve with spinach or other greens, additional lemon wedge or even simple aioli.
Notes
- To freeze: cook (or bake) and cool completely. Then arrange on a large baking sheet and freeze for 2 hours. Next, remove from the sheet and place in a ziploc bag. Seal well by squeezing out as much air as possible. Label the bags and place in a freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat before serving.
- Please note, that the nutrition value can vary depending on what product you use. The information below is an estimate. Always use calorie counter you are familiar with.
Danita Shearer says
Delish and easy! I use a little dill instead of parsley.
Serve with tartar sauce. About 4 points on WW.
Kim says
Made these with no changes. Excellent! Will definitely be making these again.
Myra says
Hi Anna, I just made these Tuna Cakes for supper and an aioli to go with them. Simply delicious!
We are eating more fish these days and cutting back on red meat.
Will be making this recipe again.
Thank you!
Nancy says
These are absolutely delicious! I modified by subbing almond flour and coconut flour in place of the breadcrumbs so the fact that they didn't hold together well is all on my shoulders. But I will definitely be working on that because the lemon garlic flavor is perfect!
One other question, we had some frozen albacore tuna, so I poached that first and used 10 oz, but that seemed like a lot more than would come out of two cans. Does anyone know if I should still use 10 oz when subbing regular tuna for canned?
Sandy says
Thanks for posting about using frozen tuna. I would rather do that, too.
DawnieB says
The 5oz can weight includes the water it's packed in. The drained tuna is less than 10oz. Probably 6-8 oz for two drained cans.
Cathleen says
This recipe sounds delicious. Grated Parmesan is mentioned more often in the text than shredded. Grated is listed in the ingredients, but the photos show shredded Parmesan. Which is it? Is it in the same form in the tuna cakes and in the breading?
Patti says
I've had this recipe saved for awhile and finally made them tonight. I had looked through the comments to see if anyone had air fried them and didn't see one, but I love my air fryer so gave it a shot. Prepared the cakes as directed, preheated my air fryer, cooked them at 375 for 10 min., flipped them over (no problem) and cooked for an additional 5 min. They were very good - husband approved 😁 . Probably not as crisp as fried in oil, but crispy enough to be delicious. Made a simple aioli and green salad to go with.
Anita Ryan says
I made these tonight and they were delish! Even my picky eater gobbled them up!
I see they are 142 kcal per serving but nowhere did I find the serving size? I assumed just one..
Annie says
Enjoying the dish while I write! Fabulous recipe. I didn't have Parmesan in the fridge, and it was still lovely without it. Will have to try with parmesan another time!
Sher says
Fool-proof recipe! Have made it a few times and because my partner's gluten intolerant, I sub the breadcrumbs for gluten-free flour and it works well. He also isn't a fan of tuna but when I first made this, he finished everything.
I think the lemon zest really makes this a standout, so don't skip that! Going to try baking this instead of frying to reduce the amount of oil used.
Anna says
That's wonderful! I am so glad you both enjoyed it! Thank you, Sher!
cleveland sam says
The recipe was spot on. My son and I tried it and the cakes were deeeeeelicious.
Anna says
Thank you so much for making my recipe!
Candice Quadros says
I made these last night and they were incredible!
I loved the fresh burst of lemon and zest made it.
I used almond meal as I'm gluten sensitive and while they didn't hold well while forming, they fried up beautifully.
Thank you for sharing this delightful recipe!
Maria A Rodriguez says
This is the best Tunafish patty recipe EVER!!! My husband loved it so much that he asked if he can help me the next time, I totally agree, LOL!!
Delicious and flaky, with a bit of zing from the zest and lemon juice, this recipe is a winner.
Thank you for sharing💖
Anna says
Thank you so much, Maria! I am so happy to know you both love the tuna cakes! Yay! That's wonderful!
Darinmims says
Can you use fresh yellow fin tuna for this recipe
Samira says
I made these with gluten-free Kinnikinnik panko bread crumbs and they were sooo good! Thanks so much for this recipe!
Englishgirl.in.Zermatt says
This is an amazingly simple, quick and delicious recipe and so good we made it two nights in a row! This is definitely something we will be adding to our regular plan and is also campervan friendly! Thank you so much!
Anna says
I am so glad the tuna cakes were a success! Thank you for making my recipe!
Michael Driscoll says
Hello
As a survival type bachelor I just started cooking at home so certainly never commented on a recipe.
Fantastic!
As a survival level bachelor I of course started preparing lemon garlic tuna before realizing I had no lemon (or mayo). Google said vinegar and Greek yogurt and I figured well you probably won’t die.
Did rest and I cannot tell you how good it turned out. Just like you said moist inside crisp outside. And the tang from the vinegar may even have been better than the lemon. Restaurant quality in my opinion.
Never dreamed that I would be talking like Martha Stewart. Keep up the good work.
Karen says
This is excellent. I used 4 pouches of tuna, and I only had the lemon-flavored pouches. I used more olive oil to pan sear. They were delicious! Thanks for this recipe. I'll never spread tuna on bread again!
Anna says
Hi Karen! That's fantastic! I am so glad you enjoy the tuna cakes.
Kim says
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe, Anna! I make tuna salad all the time for lunch, and these cakes look like a nice upgrade from cold sandwiches. I'll bet they'd even be good on a bun!
Anna says
They sure are! Thanks, Kim!
Ruby DeLaCruz says
I’ve made these once before and am making again tonight. Any suggestions of sides to serve with these tuna patties? Rice, veggies, 🤷🏻♀️
Grateful Gram says
I served cole slaw with mine.
Lila says
Thank you! That sounds great. I was going to do salad greens with marinated artichokes, lemon wedge, and fried capers.
Annie says
I did rice and roasted vegetables (tomato, broccoli, zucchini) with olive oil and lime.