Leftover Tuna Salad Patties

Whether you have too much leftover tuna salad or you want a new tuna dish, Leftover Tuna Salad Patties are sure to please! Within 30 minutes you can have a healthy tasty dish. It’s perfect straight out of the oven or cold the next day. Yum!

Whether it’s a big party or a small get together, there is always too much food. Which means one thing, leftovers. Lots and lots of leftovers.

Recently we had way too much leftover tuna salad. After two days in the fridge, we knew that the tuna salad would not last much longer. (It’s only good for three days in the fridge.) We had to decide what to do with the leftover tuna salad. There were only three options:

1. Freeze the leftover tuna salad in sandwich-sized portions
2. Make a new dish out of the leftovers
3. Throw the tuna salad away

Since I love trying new things and I hate unnecessary waste, I decided to make something new – Leftover Tuna Salad Patties. If you don’t have leftover tuna salad, that’s not a problem. Simply combine two cans of tuna with low fat mayonnaise and you’re ready to go.

The Tasty Flavor of Tuna Salad in a Patty Form

Leftover Tuna Salad Patties taste like a perfectly flavoured tuna sandwich, in a patty form. The combination of garlic, celery salt, and sautéed onions boost the tuna salad’s savouriness.

Sautéing the onions mellows the intense bite of the onions, giving them a lightly sweetened flavour. It’s so worth the extra few minutes of cooking. It takes the flavour of the patties from yum to seriously yummy. The Italian bread crumbs finish off the flavour, giving the patty a lightly cheesy essence. And the garlic powder and celery salt amp up the flavor.

Whether you have leftover tuna or not, these patties are so easy to make and even easier to enjoy!

A Quick, Easy, and Inexpensive Dish

Not only are these patties a great way to use leftover tuna, but if you are making them with new canned tuna they are still quick, easy, and inexpensive to make. Canned tuna is so easy to work with – it’s already cooked after all – and chances are, you may even have some in your pantry.

Canned tuna is usually made from albacore tuna, which is plentiful and abundant in the ocean, which makes it really affordable. Plus, since it’s canned in water, it can have a really long shelf life. So, it’s easy to stock up and enjoy it whenever you’re in the mood for a tasty tuna dish.

How to Make Leftover Tuna Salad Patties

These delicious patties are as easy as they are delicious. And they’re made in only 5 simple steps with 6 tasty ingredients. How perfect is that!

STEP 1: PREHEAT the OVEN TO 375°F (190°C)

This is the perfect temperature for making Leftover Tuna Salad Patties. It cooks them evenly and gives them a lightly crispy crust, without making them greasy, like when they are cooked in a pan with oil.

The patties cook in 20 minutes – 10 minutes per side. And when they come out of the oven, they are delicious. You can enjoy them fresh out of the oven or even cold the next day.

STEP 2: COOK the ONIONS

There’s nothing like sautéed onions. It mellows the onion’s sharp flavor. When they cook and the natural waters begin to cook out, the onions get a little sweeter, while still being deliciously savory.

Sautéing the onions only take a few minutes – just 5 to 8 minutes to be exact. So, let’s get started.

Simply coat a small non-stick pan with cooking spray, and sauté your onion. As they cook, they will soften, begin to brown, and become a delicious addition to the tuna patties. They really amp up the flavor!

Once the onions are cooked, remove them from the heat and set aside.

STEP 3: COMBINE the PATTY MIXTURE

Now it’s time to make the tuna patty mixture. In a large bowl, combine the leftover tuna (or canned tuna with mayonnaise), eggs, onions, bread crumbs, garlic powder, and celery salt.

These six ingredients create a flavorful patty that is the perfect combination of comfort food and tasty treat.

STEP 4: FORM the PATTIES

Next, it’s time to put your tuna mixture into patty form. To give the patties a uniform shape, I use a 1/4 cup collapsible measuring cup (the Chef’n Sleek Collapsible Measuring Cups). Simply spoon the tuna salad mixture into the measuring cup, press firmly, and gently pop out the patty.

Place the formed patty on a parchment paper covered baking sheet and you have perfectly shaped Leftover Tuna Salad Patties. Now all that’s left is baking. Your oven will bake them up to patty perfection!

Step 5: Bake and Serve

All that’s left is letting your oven do the work. It’s much easier to cook these in the oven than in a skillet or non-stick pan. You don’t need to watch them bake in the oven – simply set a timer and flip when it’s time.

Leftover Tuna Patties just need 10 minutes on each side. Of course, if you like them a little crispier, you can cook them in a pan for a few minutes on each side after they finish in the oven. Or even shorten the cooking time by a minute or two before finishing them in a pan.

When they are finished, serve and enjoy! These patties are always a hit and they are so easy to snack on when there are leftovers in the fridge.

Perfect for Batch Cooking

Leftover Tuna Salad Patties are easily freezable. If you make too many, which we often do, you can save the rest for later. There’s no need to eat them right away.

Simply place the patties in a freezer bag and they’re good for three months. It’s always great to have a few meals in the freezer. You never know when you’re going to need a quick, healthy homemade meal.

Want to learn more about freezer cooking and making dinnertime easier? Checkout our Meals in Minutes Freezer Meal Plan. It includes 6 easy-to-follow meal plans with tasty recipes that cook in 30 minutes or less, step-by-step instructions, printable shopping lists, freezer labels, and much more.

After you make Leftover Tuna Salad Patties, add a comment below and give it a star rating! I love hearing how much your family enjoys it, too.

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