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Making this recipe for salmon nuggets is easy and with the tips below, you'll learn how to get that crispy texture everyone loves baked in the oven!
Baked Salmon Nuggets
Like my homemade fish sticks, these simple salmon nuggets do the trick when you want to get your kids to eat more fish. These are packed with salmon benefits in irresistibly crispy and cheesy nuggets you easily bake in the oven. Yes, this recipe is a keeper!
Ingredients
The base of these nuggets is salmon, while the coating is made with all-purpose flour (regular or gluten-free), eggs, grated Parmesan cheese, Panko bread crumbs (your favorite or these gluten-free Panko breadcrumbs), salt, and pepper.
Fresh or Frozen Salmon
Both work fine for this recipe. I like to use frozen because it's easier to keep on hand and, in many cases, tastes just as good as the fresh option. All I have to do is thaw it out before using it. If using fresh, make sure the skin is removed before cutting into nuggets and breading.
How to Make Salmon Nuggets
As you’ll see in the recipe video, this process involves breading and coating, but clean-up is a breeze since we are not frying:
- Prep the salmon fillets.
Pat the salmon fillets dry with paper towels so the breading sticks to the meat. Remove the skin (if necessary) and cut the salmon into 1″ nugget-shaped pieces. - Line up the bowls.
You’ll use 3 bowls or trays: one with flour, salt, and pepper, another with whisked eggs, and a third with Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. - Coat the salmon pieces.
Dip the salmon pieces in each bowl. First, the flour, then the eggs, and finally, the breadcrumbs. You want to gently press the panko-parmesan mixture into the fish for a nice coating. - Bake the nuggets.
Place the nuggets on a lined baking sheet. For a golden crust, spray or brush olive oil to give them a light coat. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.
When it comes to making homemade chicken tenders, copycat McDonald's nuggets, homemade Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets, and these salmon nuggets, I prefer baked over fried. It's healthier and way easier to clean up. You can also cook them in the air fryer as you would with chicken nuggets.
How to Freeze Homemade Salmon Nuggets
Freeze these salmon nuggets on a parchment-lined baking sheet; once frozen, transfer them to a labeled zip bag and freeze them for up to 3 months. To bake them later, add 3 minutes to the total baking time.
What to Serve with Salmon Nuggets
Some delicious sides are this healthy sweet potato salad, baked fries, roasted parmesan asparagus, or juicy roasted cherry tomatoes on the side. Want to dip the nuggets? My homemade Ranch dressing is a must!
Easy Salmon Nuggets (Oven Recipe)
Watch how it’s made:
Ingredients
- 1 lb skinless salmon fillets, about 4 pcs
- ½ cup all-purpose-flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup Panko bread crumbs
Instructions
Prep:
- Preheat the oven to 450F. Place a cookie cooling rack on top of a baking sheet or line the baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Pat dry the salmon fillets with paper towels. Remove the skin if necessary and cut them into 1" nugget-shaped pieces.
- Line up 3 bowls or breading trays. In one bowl combine the flour, salt, and pepper. In another bowl, whisk the eggs. And in the third bowl, combine the parmesan cheese with the bread crumbs.
Make the salmon nuggets:
- Coat the salmon pieces in the seasoned flour and shake them to remove any extra flour. Dip into the egg bowl and then the Parmesan mixture, gently pressing the panko-parmesan mixture into the fish. You want a nice coating of this.
- Place the breaded salmon pieces on the prepared baking sheet. Spray olive oil spray over all the salmon pieces or use a brush to give them a light coat of olive oil.
Bake:
- Bake the salmon nuggets for 15 to 20 minutes until they're nice and golden brown. If the nuggets are directly on parchment paper and you want both sides of the nuggets to crisp up, remove them from the oven halfway through, flip them, spray the second side, and finish cooking them.
Serve & storage:
- Enjoy these salmon nuggets hot with your favorite sides.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven at 350 for about 6 minutes or the air-fryer at 340 for 6 minutes.
Notes
- If you want to make this recipe in the air fryer, simply add a teaspoon or two of oil and "fry" them as you would traditional chicken nuggets.
Amy says
Tried this tonight. It’s crunching than I expected for oven fried, so I was pretty please. The panko makes a nice difference. My 14 month old loved the breading! She once loved salmon, but is going through a carbs and dairy only phase, so would not eat much of the salmon tonight. This is definitely something we’ll make again. I trust my LO will come back around.
Sue says
In my family, salmon is king! We do very little to it (cook a side of salmon at about 270 for 20-25 minutes), and the kids absolutely hoover it up. My 4yo g’daughter is starting kindergarten, and I’ll be making her lunches every day, so I wanted to find something a little different. I made these tonight, and they are great! I cooked them at 400 (we like our salmon soft) for about 22 minutes–perfect!
However, it took me well over 30 minutes to cut and bread my 1.5# of salmon, so I wondered how you managed a 5-minute prep time. Do you have sneaky, fast breading techniques (I did cut them as you suggested, and you were right–that is easy) or something?
Laura Fuentes says
to make this process faster, I pre-slice all the salmon. Then, put the egg in a bowl and the dry ingredients in a zip bag. I bread in bulk not one piece at a time. I hope this makes sense. I’m so glad they came out delicious for you though!
Isabel Tsantes says
Delicious!!!!! I made it and Love it.
Rein R. says
Made this for my son and let me just say, this is delicious! They’re not just for kids.. I already snagged some of my son’s lunch! Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
Brittany says
My 14-month-old is not picky at all but she doesnt seem to like texture of fish without breading. She LOVED these! 🙂
Laura Fuentes says
I’m so glad she loved these!