This salmon salad is made with canned salmon and comes together quickly! It's similar to tuna salad, so it's great in sandwiches for easy lunches.
I think canned salmon is somewhat underrated. Tuna gets all the glory, so if you want to change things up a bit, give this a try. Canned salmon is healthy and fairly inexpensive, and it's something I like to include in my diet every now and then.
You may also like my Canned Tuna Pasta or my Easy Shrimp Salad.
Can I use fresh salmon?
Yes! I recommend using about 1 pound of fresh salmon (you could definitely use leftover cooked salmon for this recipe). I would probably eat any leftovers faster than if using canned salmon, however (within a couple of days).
A note on canned salmon
You can buy canned salmon without skin/bones, but I usually buy it with. Why? Because it's more flavorful, contains extra vitamins/minerals, and you don't even notice when you mash it all up. I know the idea may not be super appealing to some people (or if you think too much about it haha), but give it a try if you're curious! My mom always bought canned salmon that way, and so I continued as an adult. I used canned sockeye salmon (Cloverleaf brand here in Canada).
Recipe notes & tips:
- This salmon salad recipe is pretty flexible. Just like with tuna salad, feel free to add/omit ingredients based on what you've got on hand or prefer. I encourage you to taste and adjust ingredient quantities as needed!
- I use my Microplane zester/grater to zest the lemon. I add lemon zest to many of my salmon recipes - it really adds a ton of freshness that pairs well with the fish.
- If you can't get fresh dill, dried dill will work in a pinch (but I do prefer the flavor of the fresh stuff). I'd start with 1 teaspoon, taste it, and add more if needed.
- I just included butter leaf lettuce in the sandwiches pictured, but feel free to add more stuff... tomatoes, arugula, cucumber, a different kind of lettuce, a slice of cheese... anything goes.
More salmon recipes to try:
Let me know if you'll give these canned salmon salad sandwiches a go! Questions? Ask me in the comments below.
Canned Salmon Salad
Ingredients
- 2 (5 ounce) cans salmon drained
- 1/4 cup mayo
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice + zest of 1/2 lemon
- 1 stick celery chopped small
- 1-2 tablespoons capers drained & chopped
- 1-2 tablespoon red onion chopped small
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill chopped
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Drain the salmon and add it to a bowl. Mash it with a fork. Prep the other ingredients and add them to the bowl, then mix it all together. Taste and season with salt & pepper/adjust ingredients as needed.
- This recipe makes enough for 4 sandwiches (try adding some lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and/or sliced cheese to each sandwich). This canned salmon salad will keep in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Notes
- Recipe is easily halved (just use one can of salmon and cut other ingredients in half).
- This recipe is very forgiving. If you don't like an ingredient, you can definitely leave it out/sub as needed with what you've got on hand!
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Teresia Nash says
Taste great! Did not have capers so just left that out and left the salt out. Loved it.
Natasha says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it!!
Morris says
Fabulous recipe! So fresh and delightful!
I didn't have fresh lemon on hand so used fresh lime. Worked great! I used baby spinach leafs from the garden for greens (fenugreek sprouts worked okay but I preferred the spinach). Not only delicious but healthy as well. Can't wait to try it on rye bread. Many might not need any salt, so taste it before adding salt.
Thanks for sharing this "keeper" recipe!
Natasha says
I'm so happy you enjoyed it, Morris! 🙂 Yes, it's definitely easy to customize to your liking. Thanks for taking the time to write me a review!
Darlene says
My grandson is allergic to eggs. What can I substitute for the mayonaise?
Natasha says
Maybe vegan mayo?
Linda says
This is seriously the BEST salmon salad I have ever had! Very fresh tasting. I made the recipe as written - just cut everything in half cause I only had 1 tin of salmon. I will make it again - served with a salad this is a delicious fast meal. Thank you!
Natasha says
That's so great to hear!! Thank you, Linda! 🙂
Sean says
I was looking for a Salmon Salad Sandwich recipe and found this one. I wanted to use leftover salmon from last night. EXCELLENT! Thank you!
Natasha says
You're very welcome!! I'm so pleased you enjoyed it, Sean! 🙂
Tim says
This was a nice change from tuna. Definitely added my menu.
Natasha says
Great!
Steve says
Really good recipe...loved it! I'm sick of tuna and have a ton of canned salmon. Thank you!
Natasha says
I'm so pleased you enjoyed it!! 🙂
Mary says
Delicious put in rye bread add green pepper to salad instead of caoers serve with dill picke
Natasha says
Great!! So glad you enjoyed it, Mary!
Sabari says
really yummy, thank you!
Natasha says
You're welcome! 😀
Jennifer Lucero says
Finally, a good recipe for canned salmon! It turned out wonderful. Thank you!
Natasha says
You're very welcome! 🙂
Kenneth Clark says
I had no idea how good a canned salmon salad could be. I purchased a micro-plane just for this recipe. So much better than the grader I used to use.
Natasha says
I'm so happy to hear that!! 🙂 And enjoy your Microplane... I use mine often!
HRHLeesa says
Sadly didn't have any Salmon...but had two pouches of albacore tuna and used them instead and loved this recipe. Can't wait to try with Salmon.
Natasha says
Well I'm so glad you enjoyed it with tuna!! 🙂