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When you’re looking for something satisfying, flavour-packed and (most importantly) speedy, these tuna fish cakes hit all the right notes. With tinned tuna, a shortcut for the mashed potato, sweetcorn, spring onions and strong cheddar, you’ve got good texture and flavour without needing hours in the kitchen.
They deliver on comfort, protein and flavour without resorting to complicated techniques or fancy ingredients.
What makes my Tuna Fish Cakes Different?
A lot of recipes call for making the mashed potato by peeling, boiling and mashing the spuds. I’m using the shortcut of frozen (and thawed) mashed potato pellets for this recipe. Stay with me I promise you it’s good!
I cook a lot of things from scratch, but frozen mashed potato has been a game-changer for me. It tastes exactly the same, there are no hidden nasties, and it saves a massive amount of effort. It works brilliantly to speed up recipes like these tuna fishcakes.
Table of Contents
📋 Ingredients for Tuna Fish Cakes
***Full recipe with detailed quantities in the recipe card below***
Note on the Tuna
For these fish cakes I’m using drained tinned tuna. If you like lots of tuna, you can double the amount of tuna in this recipe. For an extra special treat, try Albacore tuna. It’s got a lovely creamy taste and a firmer texture.
The Mashed Potato Shortcut
- I love using frozen mashed potato pellets here because they save that whole load of time and washing up. You just thaw what you need, and you’re ready to go.
- They give you a consistent, creamy texture and they’re made from real potatoes — no odd ingredients, just pre-cooked and frozen for convenience. That means you can pull them straight from the freezer when you’re ready to cook, making these Tuna Fish Cakes truly quick and easy.
- If you wanted to you can still make your own mashed potato by following my guide here > Homemade Mashed Potato
Abbreviated Recipe
***Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card below***
Mix the mashed potato with tuna, sweetcorn, spring onions, cheese, salt and pepper, then shape into patties. Coat each one in flour, egg and panko breadcrumbs.
Fry in a little oil for 7–8 minutes, turning once, until golden and hot throughout.
These are the kind of fish cakes that fit right into a busy weeknight but also feel nice enough for a relaxed Friday dinner with a glass of white wine and some buttered greens.
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Pin It🍽️ What to serve it with
I love these Tuna Fish Cakes with a side of buttered peas and cabbage — simple, green and fresh. You could also add a spoonful of tartar sauce, garlic mayo or even sweet chilli sauce on the side.
If you fancy turning them into a more substantial meal, serve them on a toasted brioche bun with lettuce and a little mayo for a gorgeous tuna-fishcake burger.
Make ahead and Leftovers Guide
- These Tuna Fish Cakes are brilliant for prepping ahead. You can shape and coat them earlier in the day, then pop them in the fridge until you’re ready to cook. Just take them out of the fridge an hour before cooking otherwise the center will still be cold when you cook them.
- Got a few leftovers? They reheat beautifully! Pop them in a hot oven (about 180°C/350°F) for 10–12 minutes until piping hot, or air fry for 5–6 minutes to bring back that crispy coating.
This Recipe is in my book
These Tuna Fish Cakes are in my book, Quick & Easy. It contains 90 recipes that can be made in 30 minutes or less!
📺 Watch how to make it
Tuna Fish Cakes Recipe
Ingredients
Tuna fish cakes
- 500 g (1.1lbs) frozen mashed potato pellets thawed
- 145 g (5.1oz tin) of tuna in olive oil drained and flaked
- 100 g (3.5oz) drained tinned sweetcorn (or use frozen and thawed sweetcorn)
- 2 spring onions (scallions) sliced
- 100 g (1 packed cup) grated mature cheddar cheese
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoons plain flour (all purpose flour)
- 2 medium eggs
- 75 g (1 ½ cups) panko breadcrumbs
- 4 tablespoons oil for frying
To serve:
- Buttered green vegetables – such as peas cabbage, green beans or broccoli
Instructions
- Place the thawed mashed potato into a large bowl. Add the tuna, sweetcorn, spring onions, cheese, salt and pepper. Stir together to combine.500 g (1.1lbs) frozen mashed potato pellets, 145 g (5.1oz tin) of tuna in olive oil, 100 g (3.5oz) drained tinned sweetcorn, 2 spring onions (scallions), 100 g (1 packed cup) grated mature cheddar cheese, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- Place the flour in a shallow bowl. Add the eggs to a second bowl and whisk lightly. Add the panko breadcrumbs to a third bowl.4 tablespoons plain flour (all purpose flour), 2 medium eggs, 75 g (1 ½ cups) panko breadcrumbs
- Form the mixture into 8 patties.
- Dredge the fishcakes in the flour, then dip in the egg (be sure to fully coat in the egg) and finally coat in the breadcrumbs.
- Add the oil to a large frying pan (skillet) and heat over a medium heat.4 tablespoons oil
- When the oil is hot, add the fishcakes and cook for 7-8 minutes, turning once, until browned all over and hot throughout. (You may need to work in 2 batches – see notes)
- Remove from the pan (add a sprinkle of Maldon salt if you like) and serve. I like to serve mine with buttered peas and cabbage.Buttered green vegetables – such as peas cabbage, green beans or broccoli
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This Tuna Fish Cakes Recipe was first posted in Nov 2025.
🥔 Mashed Potato Based Dinners
If these fish cakes are you’re kind of quick dinner then I know you’ll love these mashed potato recipes. More chances to try that mash shortcut? 🤔
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What’s the sauce please? Looks like a wholegrain mustard sauce. Is recipe on website please. Looks great.
Easy to make and taste sooo good, will make them again soon.
Beautiful
What is the sauce shown in the recipe photo’s?
I assume if using freshly made mashed potatoes then these can be frozen?
Hi Steve
I thought it looked like the sauce which Nicky makes with her cheeseburger spring rolls (which are also delicious!) so tried it with the fish cakes and it works really well!
Cheers Simon
Can I use the boxed, instant mashed potatoes instead?
Sorry Sharon, I haven’t tried with boxed. You need a fairly dry mashed potato mixture though, so if you do try it, I wouldn’t add too much water.
Is it possible to cook these in an air fryer?
Yes, I think this would work. I haven’t tried it, but I would give a good spray of oil before air frying.
I made them in my air fryer, it worked good, will do it again soon.
I’m assuming that I could substitute mashed potatoes for the potato pellets.
This looks like an amazing recipe and I can’t wait to try it.
Yes, absolutely Lori. If you do, I would recommend not adding milk/cream to the mash (a bit of butter is fine) as you want a fairly stiff mashed potato.
Can the tuna fish cakes be baked instead of fried?
yes ,it could be Baked
What is the sauce you are serving with the tuna cakes? In theUS, we do not have mashed potato pellets. What is the equivalent instant potatoes or could we use frozen shredded?
Hi Rena. You can replace with the same weight of prepared mashed potatoes (don’t add milk or cream though, as you want the mixture fairly stiff for this recipe).
I don’t think the mashed potato pellets are widely available in USA – but it looks like Trader Joe’s sells them:
https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/mashed-potatoes-074158
Grown in Idaho brand makes them too (but I’m not sure which stores sells this brand in the US): https://growninidaho.com/frozen-mashed-potatoes/
Sounds delicious! Do you think you could air-fry them instead of oil-frying them?
Hi Steve, I think this would work. I haven’t tried it, but I would give a good spray of oil before air frying.