Tuna Patties are packed with flavor and have the best texture — crisp on the top and bottom with a soft (never dry or hard) interior. These patties are so quick and easy to make (thank you, canned tuna!) and sure to be a family favorite! Serve your patties over a quick (two-ingredient) slaw and a tasty tartar sauce.
Tuna Patties
A can of tuna can be transformed into some pretty stellar meals–like these website-favorite Tuna Stacks, this one-dish Tuna Casserole, or this personal favorite Mediterranean Tuna Salad to name a few. We love these easy patties, and if you’d like to try a slightly more sophisticated recipe, how about these Salmon Burgers?
And today we’re tossing a few cans of tuna with some fresh herbs, some panko breadcrumbs, a couple of eggs, and a few other ingredients to bring you a new favorite — a fresh and tasty Tuna Patty.
These are the best Tuna Patties — they’ve got a crisp top and bottom with a soft succulent interior — no dry/hard/flavorless patties here! Also, this recipe is fairly quick and easy to make and a great make-ahead meal — the patties can be assembled ahead of time and cooked later when you’re ready to eat.
What Can I Mix With A Can Of Tuna?
A few of the ingredients are worth diving deeper for this Tuna Patty recipe:
- Canned tuna packed in olive oil. My personal favorite is Genova’s® albacore tuna. Tuna packed in olive oil is richer and has a fresher flavor. Plus, this brand of tuna doesn’t disintegrate into the patty blend — it holds a chunkier shape much better (this is important for texture).
- Use panko breadcrumbs. Panko is similar to regular bread crumbs, but it creates a much crunchier, crispier, lighter, and more delicate result.
- Parmesan cheese. Parmesan from a can will be too salty and overpowering in these patties. Use the freshly grated — sandy-like consistency from the store. Here’s exactly what we use and we’ve also tested this brand.
- Fresh herbs. Our favorite combo in these Tuna Patties is fresh dill, green onions, and flat-leaf parsley. The combination of the three flavors creates a much more nuanced (and delicious!) taste. Be sure to get flat-leaf (as opposed to curly) parsley — the flat-leaf type has much more flavor.
Do You Put Egg In Tuna Patties?
Yes! The eggs are important for flavor, texture, and binding of the ingredients so you don’t have a patty that falls apart.
How To Make Tuna Patties
- Mix together all of the ingredients except the tuna.
- Add drained tuna and gently mix to incorporate — we want to keep the chunks of tuna which will yield a superior texture.
- Form the patties and chill them (perfect time to make the accompanying elements!).
- Sauté or bake the patties and serve!
What Do You Eat With Tuna Patties?
Hands-down, our favorite way to enjoy these patties is on a bed of two-ingredient coleslaw (keeping things simple!) with a quick homemade tartar sauce (so worth the extra couple of minutes!).
We grab a bag of coleslaw mix and some fresh (refrigerated) coleslaw dressing (We love Litehouse; not sponsored) and toss the two together until the mix is sufficiently mixed. (Here’s a homemade Coleslaw recipe if you’d prefer to make it from scratch.)
Other ways to enjoy these patties: on a salad, as an appetizer, as a side dish, or in a quick tuna burger. (Grab a brioche bun, top with your fave veggies and a tuna patty, and use tartar sauce instead of mayo!)
Quick Tip
Did you ever wonder how coleslaw got its name? The Latin word for cabbage is cole. And the Dutch word is kools. Koolsla is Dutch for cabbage salad. Makes sense, now, doesn’t it?
Let’s Chat Tartar Sauce
The tartar sauce is the ultimate accompaniment for these patties — it’s creamy, flavorful, and so fresh tasting. Plus, a lot of the ingredients from the patties overlap with the sauce. A few quick tips:
- If you don’t use dill for the patties, it’s fine to leave it out of the sauce; add a touch of dried herbs (dill if you have it) instead.
- Grab good mayo! We love Hellman’s/Best Foods® in this sauce — the better the mayo, the better the flavor.
- We love zesting the lemons with a microplane and then juicing them with this citrus juicer. These two tools make the recipe prep a breeze!
How Do You Keep Tuna Patties From Falling Apart?
- Use a binder — in this recipe, we add two eggs and some mayo.
- Chill the mixture — we pop the formed patties in the freezer for 15-20 minutes.
- Handle delicately — using a sharp metal turner pick up 1 patty at a time (carefully) transferring from tray to skillet. Flip only once using a the sharp metal turner.
- Thoroughly drain the tuna — overly wet tuna is going to create an overly wet patty more prone to breaking apart.
More Tasty Tuna Recipes
- Tuna Pasta made in one pot
- Avocado Tuna Salad with pickles and red onion
- Tuna Melts with sharp Cheddar cheese
- Tuna-White Bean Salad with a zippy vinaigrette
- Creamy Tuna Pasta with frozen peas
Tuna Patties
Equipment
- large sheet pan,
- Parchment paper
- Large pan
Ingredients
Tuna Patties
- 1 large yellow onion
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 6 tablespoons finely chopped herbs I love a combo of parsley, green onions, and dill
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese see note 1
- 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons mayo
- 3 (5-ounce) cans olive-oil tuna see note 2
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil for cooking
- Tri-colored coleslaw and Litehouse coleslaw dressing optional, see note 3
Tartar Sauce
- 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 1-1/2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
- 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
Instructions
- Peel the onion and grate it using the large holes of a grater to get about 1 cup (200g). Finely dice parsley, green onions, and dill, measuring 2 tablespoons of each. Zest and juice lemon to get 1 teaspoon zest and 2 tablespoons juice. Thoroughly drain tuna and set aside. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine all patty ingredients except the drained tuna. Season to taste; I add 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Mix well, then gently fold in the tuna, keeping it in flakes. See note 4 for troubleshooting. Using a 1/4 cup measure, scoop and pack the mixture, forming patties just under an inch thick on the prepared sheet pan. Repeat until you have about 12 patties. Freeze patties for 15–20 minutes.
- Zest and juice lemon to get 1/2 teaspoon zest and 2 tablespoons juice. Combine juice and zest with all tartar sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I add 1/8 teaspoon of each). Mix well, taste, and adjust to personal preference. Refrigerate until ready to use (great sauce to make ahead of time—it only gets more flavorful as it sits).
- Optional Coleslaw: Combine coleslaw mix with prepared coleslaw dressing to your desired creaminess, toss with tongs, and refrigerate until ready to serve. Toss again before serving.
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Using a metal spatula, transfer the frozen patties to the pan and cook for 3–4 minutes per side until browned. Place cooked patties on a paper-towel-lined plate and repeat, adding more oil as needed. (For baking patties, see note 5.)
- Divide coleslaw onto plates and top with tuna patties and plenty of tartar sauce. Serve with lemon wedges if desired. Enjoy promptly!
Video
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Seriously the best tuna patty recipe I’ve ever come across. So fresh and perfect. Everyone I make these for go nuts. Thank you!!
I am so thrilled to hear this! Thanks Angela! 🙂
As your sister, we LOVE these tuna pattie’s! Such a fun, and unique way to cook with tuna and it’s such a hit at our house
I’m so happy to hear this! Thanks Kaiti! 🙂