Looking for a new recipe using canned tuna? Easy Tinned Tuna Burgers are a favourite in our house, so quick and easy to make and they taste delicious!
Two tins of tuna mixed together with breadcrumbs, parmesan, onion, egg, mayo, dried herbs, and garlic. Made into a burger, perfectly cooked until crispy on the outside and moist inside.
A healthy option is to cook them in the oven, although they are healthier compared to most other burger patty anyway!
Simple steps to make Tuna Burgers?
See our step by step slide show for how to make the best tuna burgers, full ingredients and instructions can be found on the recipe card below. In both UK and US measurements.
What ingredients do I need?
All the ingredients are basic storecupboard products everyone tends to have to hand. Easy to rustle up anytime for lunch or dinner!
Substitutes;
Spring Onions - leave them out or finely dice a ½ a normal onion.
Breadcrumbs- Use any packet of breadcrumbs. Alternatively, check out this, by Martha Stewart for how to make your own using bread.
Egg- Replace with another tablespoon of mayo
Mayo- If you are looking for a no mayo recipe, simply replace with another egg.
Instructions
So easy, just throw all the ingredients in a bowl (except the canned tuna) mix together. Finally, add the tuna and mix gently, careful not to break it up too much.
Divide mixture into 4 sections and shape them into rounded patties. Each tuna patty should be about the size of the palm of your hand. Or the diameter of a tuna can!
Make smaller tuna burgers to serve as starters (great for a thai meal starter) or smaller for serving to the kids.
Heat oil in a non-stick pan and place all burger patties into fry on one side for 6-8 minutes (less if you made smaller burgers) than gently flip over the tuna burger, proceed to cook for further 6-8 minutes.
The Tuna Burger should be golden and crispy on the outside and still soft on the inside.
Can I oven bake instead?
Shallow frying is tasty but if you prefer to make them in a healthier way! Simply bake them in the oven instead.
Preheat oven to 170°C fan / 190°C / 375°F place on parchment paper in a baking tray and cook for 10 minutes before flipping and cooking on the other side for a further 10 minutes.
What to serve with?
These tuna burgers make a filling lunch, snack or starter by themselves.
Or make them for dinner and serve your tuna patty alongside Salad, Rice, Fries, New Potatoes, Noodles, Vegetables, Pasta, Jacket Potato, or try turning into a proper burger in a bun.
You choose how to serve them, they taste amazing.
In this case, we served ours up with rice & made our favourite spicy mayo sauce. Perfect to drizzle and dip them in and tastes amazing!
If not making the burgers for kids? We sometimes use 1 tbsp of spicy mayo sauce in place of the plain mayo, in the burger. This gives them a thai style flavour!
Recipe for Spicy Mayo sauce on the recipe card below.
Storing
These canned tuna burgers can be made ahead and store the uncooked patty in the fridge, for up to 2 days before cooking. Or can be frozen premade for up to 3 months in your freezer in an airtight container or freezer bag.
If you have already cooked the tuna burgers you can also store them in the fridge or freeze them. Simply defrost the tuna patty before reheating.
Reheating
To reheat your precooked tinned tuna burger, simply refry them in the pan for 5 minutes each side. Or place them in the oven at 170°C fan / 190°C / 375°F for 15 minutes.
You could use a microwave to reheat but I can imagine they may go a little soggy? (I have not actually tried it!)
Easy Tinned Tuna Burgers
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 large Egg beaten
- 3 tbsp Parmesean finely grated
- 3 spring onions (green onions) chopped small or ½ brown onion finely diced
- 30 g (½ cup) Breadcrumbs we used panko but natural or even make your own from bread.
- 1 tsp Mixed Herbs choose your favorites
- ½ lemon zest and juice (use the other half to squeeze on when served)
- 1 tbsp Low Fat Mayo
- 1 tsp Gia Garlic Puree 2 cloves crushed
- salt & pepper
- 290 g (2 tins) Tinned Tuna in oil/spring water or brine
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil to fry in
Spicy Mayo Sauce (optional) just mix the below ingredients together in a bowl.
- 120 g (½ cup) Low fat Mayo
- 60 g (¼ cup) sweet chilli sauce
- 2 tsp Honey
- 1 tsp Chilli Puree We use Gia brand
Instructions
- Put all ingredients except oil and tuna into a bowl mix ingredients together until well combined.
- Add Tuna, mix-up, but try not to over mix as tuna will turn to mush!
- Divide mixture into 4. Using your hands, shape into 4 palm-sized burgers.
Shallow Fry
- Heat oil in a non-stick pan and add the 4 burgers.Cook on one side for 6-8 mins medium-low heat.
- Flip (carefully)Cook on other side for 6-8 minutes.
Oven Bake
- Preheat oven to 170°C fan / 190°C / 375°F place on parchment paper in a baking tray and cook for 10 minutes.Flip and cook on the other side for a further 10 minutes.
- Ready to serve!! We usually serve ours with rice, noodles or chips and salad.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published on 28/03/2020 and has been modified on 15/03/2021. Oven cooking method has been added and how to store, reheat and freeze canned tuna burgers.
Easy Tinned Tuna Burgers are a regular dinner in our house, hope you enjoy as much as we do!
Go check out our other recipes, the spicy mayo sauce is also used in our Spicy Chicken Burger (check it out)!
Just doing them for dinner again! They are fab and so easy to make! I'm really glad I came across your recipe 😊
I made these yesterday and they were delicious. I baked them in the oven as suggested in a previous post, and they were perfect served with salad and chips.
I am not a lover of seafood, so this was a big win, win for me.
My question is, can you freeze them as I have some left and don't want them going to waste.
Hi Alison
Glad you liked the recipe and glad they came out great for you being cooked in the oven 🙂
These can be frozen for up to 3 months in your freezer in an airtight container or freezer bag, I hope this helps.
Enjoy!!
Oh my, the tuna burgers look fabulous. Glad you tried with tinned tuna. This will be great for weekend dinner.
Thanks, we love them!
Omg!! These are AMAZING!! A new firm favourite for us!
Hi Emma, so glad you like our tuna burgers recipe 🙂
Thank you so much for the great feedback!
This recipe it’s such a great idea! I really want to make this super soon. My kids would love this too. Can I bake them instead of pan fry?
Yes they can, preheat oven to 190C /375F place on parchment paper in a baking tray and cook for 10 minutes before flipping and cooking on the other side for a further 10 minutes. 🙂
What a great way to use tinned tuna! You add so much flavor in here that you don't even taste that they are from a can. Love the sauce too.
Thats great, I know you wouldn't know it was a storecupboard recipe!
Love that this recipe is easily made with pantry staples! Love that added cheesy goodness from the parmesan cheese!
Thanks Gail! We love Parmesan adds great flavour to many recipes!
Tuna burgers are my favorite way to use canned tuna! I love the spicy sauce that you made with this!
These look delicious! I definitely don't eat tuna enough. Love the idea of spicy mayo for dipping!
Wow these look so good! I love that you put a spicy mayo on top, sounds amazing!
They are amazing! 😉
Love the mayo addition. Nicely crispy and is filled with flavor. This is the type of meal to be enjoyed for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Thank you Mirlene 🙂
I haven't made these in so long I had forgotten about them! Must make them again soon, especially as I always have tuna in the cupboard, The spicy mayo with them looks divine!
The spicy mayo is delicious!! Let us know how you get on with making them 🙂
I love everything about these tuna burgers, but especially the spicy mayo!
Spicy Mayo is the best! We use it in our Chicken Burgers too!
I always make salmon burgers, but never thought of using tuna. They look delicious and I have a lot of tuna, so this will be on the menu this week.
Perfect, let us know how you get on 🙂
These tuna burgers look amazing! I've used canned salmon also for this recipe. Delish!
Salmon works well too, have you tried tinned crab!?
I don't often make tuna burgers, but I definitely would make these. They look beautifully flavored and so easy to make.
Thank you
Crisp on the outside and moist on the inside is just what I want in a tuna burger, or any burger really. This looks delicious!
Thats exactly what you will get with this recipe! 😉