Newfoundland Fish Cakes
Newfoundland Fish Cakes. A delicious comfort food tradition that's part of our collective culinary culture. Made with the simplest of ingredients like potatoes, fish and onions.
Originally published Jan, 2009.
UPDATE: April 2015. I added new photos of this recipe today which are destined for my second cookbook this Fall.
Today's dish and photo come courtesy of 13 year old guest chef Laura Taylor. Laura is from from Conception Bay South and was looking for tips on making Fish Cakes the traditional Newfoundland way.
She chose fish cakes as a traditional Newfoundland meal to complete an assignment for her Grade 8 Social Studies class at Vila Nova School.
She is a French Immersion student, hence the photo label Gateau de Poisson.
This very simple dish was a staple on many Newfoundland kitchen tables for who knows how long? Probably hundreds of years, given that the simple ingredients were readily available from the land and the sea.
I've also included a great brunch idea for this traditional favourite by incorporating fish cakes in to a version of Eggs Benedict! Get my shortcut Hollandaise Sauce recipe here.
Newfoundland fish cakes, a traditional favourite.
I remember my grandmother's cooking them in large cast iron skillets in the rendered fat from making scrunchions. For our non-native readers, scrunchions are a very traditional accompaniment to several traditional Newfoundland meals.
They are simply cured fat back pork which is diced in small cubes and then fried until crispy to render out most of the fat.
It does my heart good to know that our food culture is still being kept alive in the classroom. You did a great job on these, Laura, I think they look delicious.
If your Social Studies teacher doesn't give you an A on this one, tell him to take it up with me! 😉
A brunch idea and an easy lower sodium substitution.
One of my brunch favourites uses these traditional fish cakes in a new way by adding placed eggs and Hollandaise sauce. I sometimes add some crumbled crisp cooked bacon on top as well, because what isn't better with bacon?!
If you don't like salt fish, or just if you are trying to reduce sodium in your diet, fresh or frozen cod can easily be substituted.
The only thing to be watchful for is seasoning the potato mix. It will likely need a little more salt to taste, to make up for some of what was lost in the substitution.
As always, taste as you go, and adjust the seasoning accordingly.
Looking for more Newfoundland recipes?
If you'd like to see more traditionally inspired recipes from our province, please check out this collection on some of our Most Popular Newfoundland recipes.
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Newfoundland Fish Cakes
Newfoundland Fish Cakes. These traditional Newfoundland fish cakes have been made for countless generations using the most basic of ingredients like potatoes, salt fish and onions.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds salt dried cod (See note below for substituting fresh fish)
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 small chopped onion
- 6 cups mashed potato
- 1 beaten egg
- 2 tablespoon dried savoury, (optional) (See notes for substitutions)
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Soak the salt cod in cold water overnight.
- Simmer the salt cod in boiling water for about 15 minutes. Drain the water off the fish and allow the fish to cool to almost room temperature.
- When the fish is cool, flake it apart with a fork into small pieces.
- In a sauté pan, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Add the onions and cook until they are softened.
- Add the flaked fish along with the mashed potato, egg, pepper and savoury.
- Mix together until well combined, then form into small cakes and roll in flour.
- Fry the fish cakes in canola oil over medium heat until golden brown on both sides.
- Serve with scrunchions if desired.
Notes
If you don't like salt fish, or just if you are trying to reduce sodium in your diet, fresh or frozen cod can easily be substituted.
The only thing to be watchful for is seasoning the potato mix. It will likely need a little more salt to taste, to make up for some of what was lost in the substitution.
As always, taste as you go, and adjust the seasoning accordingly.
Savoury is a very traditional herb for this recipe but if it is not readily available you can substitute other hers which go well with fish, like parsley, dill, or even tarragon if you like it.
Prep time does not include the overnight soaking time for the salt, dried cod. Scrunchions are ½ inch cubes of cured pork fatback that are fried and rendered to a crispy texture. The scrunchions and rendered fat get served over the fish cakes.
The nutritional information provided is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only. Exact accuracy is not guaranteed. For recipes where all ingredients may not be used entirely, such as those with coatings on meats, or with sauces or dressings for example, calorie & nutritional values per serving will likely be somewhat lower than indicated.
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Rock Recipes a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Our product recommendations are almost exclusively for those we currently use or have used in the past.
Nutrition Information
Yield
18Serving Size
gAmount Per Serving Calories 179Saturated Fat 1gCholesterol 73mgSodium 2689mgCarbohydrates 9gFiber 1gProtein 25g
These would also go very well with homemade baked beans.
I don't use savoury as it gives me heartburn!
Just managed to find salt cod for the first time in many years! (I live in the Fraser Valley BC). And now I found your recipe! Sounds like my Grandma's old recipe that I lost awhile back--thank you!!!
These fish are great. They go wonderful with baked beans and, of course, green tomato chow chow. This is a must.
Hi - do I boil it in the same water I soaked it in, or do I change the water to fresh water?
You should change the water on salt fish.
These sound terrific! Very similar to Portuguese Cod Balls that I grew up with except those use fresh parsley instead of savoury. I'll be trying your version next with the savoury.
Thanks for sharing all your recipes!
This is my first time cooking with salted cod. I made bacala stew and wondered what to do with extra salt cod I had. Google led me straight to your door, wonderful and beloved Newfoundland. I have a love for the people and province of Nfld and Labrador and I’ve never been there. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for coming to the aid of all the plane people, many who were my fellow citizens from the U.S. Your kindness to 7000 people coming out of the sky all at once show how special the citizens of your country, your province and your towns are. I am honored to have you as neighbors. God Bless each of you.
Back to food: i made the Newfoundland Salted Cod Cakes. WOW. They were delicious. They came out looking great. The only change I made was adding Old Bay Seasoning since I didn’t have savoury. I’ll be making these for many more years.
So glad you had a great success with your fishcakes. Old Bay goes with practically everything, doesn't it? I may just try that myself!
You'll never hear anybody mention adding corn to your cakes. You do not not know what you're missing.
Rendering pork fat in the microwave is quick, easy, and stinkless. 1/2" cubes sounds pretty darn big to me.
But I'm a come from away 🙁
. I have not made the patties yet but am concernd with the sodium content in the serving size. Being a cardiac patient the sodium is more than the recommended amount allowed. Do you have any suggestions to cut the amount of sodium ?
Use fresh fish perhaps?
I live in Port Alberni BC (2010 Ultimate Fishing Town) of West Coast or some might say the Wet Coast.. We are planning a summer trip to East Coast. I'm going to try your recipe and want to clarify Step 1: soak salt code overnight - I have to presume the salt cod is removed from this water if yes Step 2: Simmer salt cod for 15 minis in boiling water - this would be fresh pot of water. It may sound silly to ask, however once I start I want to get it right, a piece of salt cod is not cheap. Thanks Barbi
Your assumptions are correct, Barb.
Hello,
If you buy the dried salted cod you msy need to soak for 2-3 days, changing the water 1-2 times per day. This is done to get the salt out of it. When ready to start recipe, you start with fresh water. Good Luck. They’re delicious.
Make them all the time, bought the salt cod today six dollars a pound, my father sold it in his store 1992 for .69 cent a pound !!!!
Salt fish cakes, served with a dollop of rhubarb chutney... two flavours that are absolutely meant for each other...
That sounds amazing.
@Scott Peckford, thanks for the suggestion of the rhubarb chutney. I make my own rhubarb chutney and my elderly in-laws love it and they love fish cakes.
Hi
Love your recipes and use them always. Do you have a recipe for fresh cod fish cakes?
Thanks
Recipe calls for one and 1/2 pounds of dried salt cod so I am wondering how many cups of fish this would be after it has been soaked and flaked?
I am planning on using fresh cooked fish but I don’t know how many cups should be used.
Id say about 3 cups or so.
Just a quick word to say how much I love your recipes and down-home explanations. I'm looking forward to making your chocolate mice.
I realize that your post on fish cakes is old, from 'way back in 2009, but I had to make this comment. The translation for "fish cakes" in French is not "gateau de poisson" but should be "galette de poisson". The word "galette" refers to a round. flat disk of some food stuff such as potato or fish.
The word "gateau" cannot be used to mean "cake" as in "fish cake" because that would imply that the "cake" is large like a loaf. The French use the word "cake" to describe savoury and sweet loaves that we would call "quickbreads". For example, I own a French cookbook called, "Les Cakes de Sophie" (Sophie's Quickbreads), and they are all quickbreads that are baked in bread loaf pans, sweet or savoury such as what we would call zucchini bread, ham and cheese bread, black olive and feta cheese bread, asparagus bread, etc.
See her book here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2601746-les-cakes-de-sophie
All the best to you and your family this Christmas! Keep up the great work!