Keto Southwest Tuna Cakes
These keto southwest tuna cakes are crispy, packed with veggies + fresh herbs, then topped with a southwest sauce. A 20 minute low carb dinner!
Table of Contents
Keto Southwest Tuna Cakes
Tuna cakes are a great back pocket recipe to have because it uses mainly pantry staples. It’s a super fast lunch or dinner I can throw together when I didn’t thaw any meat from the freezer. This recipe is ready in less than 30 minutes!
By adding in lots of veggies and fresh herbs, it adds brightness and lightness. Even more delicious when you add on my southwest sauce (just 3 ingredients I’m sure you have in your fridge right now!)
You would never guess these keto southwest tuna cakes were made from canned tuna!
Ingredients
The base of these tuna cakes is canned tuna. I love using tuna packed in water, but any tuna would work. (You could also substitute canned salmon or canned chicken! I also have this recipe for salmon cakes which is such a favorite!)
To add lots of freshness and brightness so it doesn’t feel like you’re just eating canned tuna (ha!), I love adding in tons of veggies and fresh herbs. I sauté bell pepper and celery until crisp tender, then add in parsley and green onions.
The tuna cakes are held together using almond flour and egg. (If you need these egg free or almond free I have substitution options in the Recipe Notes below!)
Tuna Cakes Sauce
After making the tuna cake batter, I scoop them out and cook them in a cast iron skillet until crispy and golden brown.
They’re even tastier topped with my keto southwest dipping sauce, which is just 3 ingredients and so delicious! It adds in even better fat macros too!
Watch Recipe Video
If you make these keto southwest tuna cakes be sure to leave a comment and give this recipe a rating! I love to hear from you all and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to share and tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Keto Southwest Tuna Cakes
Ingredients
Keto Tuna Cakes
- 1/2 a bell pepper, finely chopped
- 2 ribs of celery, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 18 ounces wild tuna, drained and moisture squeezed out in a paper towel (see Notes)
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup avocado oil, to cook the tuna cakes in
Keto Southwest Sauce
- 6 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons keto friendly ketchup or sriracha
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Equipment
Instructions
- Heat your cast iron skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes.
- When the skillet is hot, add in the 1 tablespoon avocado oil, the chopped bell pepper and chopped celery. Season with a pinch of salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the veggies are softened. About 5 minutes.
- While the bell pepper and celery are cooking, prepare the tuna cake batter. In a large bowl, add the tuna, almond flour, mayonnaise, eggs, parsley, green onions, salt, and then add the cooked bell pepper and celery when they are done cooking. Use a fork to fully combine the batter.
- In the same cast iron skillet over medium heat, add the 1/4 of avocado oil. Heat it for 1 minute.
- Use a medium size cookie scoop (or measure out 1.5 tablespoons) to scoop out the tuna cake batter. Gently form them into patties with your hands.
- Cook the tuna cakes about 5 minutes per side until crispy and golden brown. You will need to work in batches so you don't overcrowd the pan.
- When the tuna cakes are done cooking, transfer them to a wire rack to cool. This will keep them crispy and avoid soggy bottoms.
- While the tuna cakes are cooking, make the southwest sauce. In a small bowl combine the mayonnaise, ketchup or sriracha, and parsley. Stir to combine.
- Serve the tuna cakes warm topped with 2 tablespoons of the southwest sauce.
- Leftovers will keep in an airtight container refrigerated for at least 5 days, or frozen for at least 6 months.
- See the Recipe Notes below for more tips, FAQs and substitution info!
Notes
12 Comments on “Keto Southwest Tuna Cakes”
These were delicious. Didn’t taste like canned tuna at all. Perfectly crisp in the cast iron. The whole family loved them. Can’t wait to try with salmon as well. Thank you for another amazing recipe.
Hi Heather! Yay! I am so glad the whole family loved these tuna cakes! Such a fun way to switch things up! Glad you’re here!
So good and so easy! And filling. I added fresh baby dill and did a squeeze of lemon after plating. YUM! Next time I will try more of a ranch sauce. That’s just personal preference. Will definitely make again!
Hi Lisa! Love this! Love the little tweaks you did! It makes me so happy to see how you all make changes here and there to fit your taste! So happy you’re here!
Has anyone tried this in the air fryer?
I haven’t, but *bet* this would work since an air fryer is the same as a tiny oven! I would probably do 400ºF for like 10 minutes? Just check them a lot and pull them out when crispy!
I made these last night I added ground almonds to the flour to make it almond flour and also added about 1/8 cup of panko bread crumbs as well added more onion than called for and used parsley and full fat greek yogurt. Absolutely delicious. I used one can to tuna flake and one tin of skinless and boneless mackerel. wow so good with the srircha sauce definitely will make again
Hi Jamie! Thank you for making my Southwest Tuna Cakes! I am so glad you liked this recipe and I LOVE seeing all the creativity in your tweaks! Can’t wait to see what you do next!
I subbed fresh salmon for the canned tuna (only because I had tuna for lunch… lol) and it was seriously so freaking good!! Also so easy to make. I will for sure be adding this to my list of go-to’s!! Love all of your recipes you make keto so easy!!
Thank you, Lauren! You are so sweet and I am honored to have you here!
This is absolutely DELISH! Made this tonight for my family. I subbed soy-free veganaise for the mayo, and used coconut oil for frying the cakes. Everyone ate this up, including my toddler! The dipping sauce was loved too. Thank you!
Hi Cara! Wow this is amazing! Getting kids to eat can be so tough. I’m honored that your toddler loved these tuna cakes too!