Four Ingredient Salmon Nuggets

These four-ingredient salmon nuggets are crispy, gluten-free, filled with flavor and so healthy. They are like my miracle nugget, and especially great if you are pescatarian but just craving a *hit* of fast-food flavor. C’mon, we all need it every now and then!

These salmon nuggets are easy to make, they take minutes to assemble and then all they need to do is get all crispy in the oven. I love making these with wild sockeye salmon to keep them extra healthy, but they will work with any variety of salmon you have access to!

Ingredients you will need to make salmon nuggets

Here is everything I use for this super-simple recipe!

• 24 ounces wild caught sockeye salmon, or any salmon you have access to. The skin can be on or off!
• Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup yogurt greek yogurt or skyr, 56 grams / 2 ounces
• 2 tablespoon mild harissa paste 35 grams / 1.2 ounces
• 2/3 cup almond flour 80 grams / 2.8 ounces
• 1/2 teaspoon flaky salt, plus more as needed
• Avocado spray oil, optional

It’s that small of a list!

How to make these salmon nuggets dairy-free and gluten-free

Now, these nuggets are already gluten-free, but triple check your harissa paste to make sure no sneaky gluten is in there.

For a dairy-free nugget, use a coconut yogurt or a cashew cream to mimic what the yogurt is doing here. You just want something with a bit of fat that can adhere to the salmon and make it tender while allowing the breading to crisp up in the oven.

How to prepare these crispy healthy salmon nuggets

• Position a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 425°F convection.
• Season both sides of the salmon with kosher salt and black pepper.
• Slice the salmon into 1-inch cubes.
• Add the salmon pieces to a large bowl, add in 1/4 cup of greek yogurt and 2 tablespoons mild harissa paste. Mix well so that the salmon is fully coated. See Note.
• In a small dish to the side, add the 2/3 cup of almond flour and season with 1/2 teaspoon flaky salt. Toss to break up any clumps.
• Prepare a parchment-lined baking sheet to the side. Take each salmon nugget and lightly toss it in the almond flour to get it coated on all sides. Add these to the baking sheet. If your salmon has skin on it, make sure you place these skin-side-down.
• Lightly spray the nuggets with spray avocado oil. This is optional, but will help them get some color.
• Bake at 425°F for 20-22 minutes or until golden and crisp on the bottoms.
• Serve warm!

How to make oven-baked nuggets crispy

A lot of people think you need an air-fryer to make salmon nuggets crispy, and that’s simply not true! An air fryer is just a smaller convection oven, which circulates air in your oven to bake things more evenly and at a slightly higher heat.

The key to getting a nugget crispy in the oven is a few things:

1. Use your convection setting on your oven! This will mimic an air fryer and circulate air all around the nuggets, giving them an even, crispy cook.
2. Bread the exterior of your nuggets, don’t just toss the almond flour in with the coating. Dipping each nugget individually into the almond flour will make it so that the almond flour adheres to the outside of the nugget and it can hit the hot air in the oven and crisp up.
3. Spray the tops of the nuggets with spray oil, such as avocado spray oil or olive oil spray. This will help the tops brown and crisp! It’s a tiny amount of fat, but helps with both flavor and texture.

Looking for similar recipes?

Here are a few for the salmon or nugget lovers out there!

Tofu Nuggets

My easiest tofu recipe, and the one I make all the time! These crispy nuggets are gluten free, minimal ingredients, and the quickest to whip up. Perfect for meal prep or an easy dinner at home!

Check out this recipe

Gochjang Butter Salmon

This salmon recipe is sweet, slightly spicy, rich and tender, and done in no more than 30 minutes – and that's being generous. If you want a quick, delicious and impressive protein that's easy to make, this salmon recipe is it.

Check out this recipe

Citrus Salmon Confit

I always aspire to make "Ina Garten-esque" recipes and this one definitely fits that criteria. This citrus salmon confit is supremely easy, but it will also impress anyone you have coming over for dinner. Whether you are looking for a pescatarian main dish that is sure to impress, or you just want a stunning dinner for two, this recipe is the perfect thing to keep in your back pocket.

Check out this recipe

And that’s it for these crispy, healthy Salmon Nuggets!

If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.

And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3

Crispy Healthy Salmon Nuggets

5 | 2 reviews

I have these nuggets on repeat, they are just so easy and so good! They are gluten-free, pescatarian and filled with protein, plus all you need is an oven to get them crispy. Once you have all the ingredients, you'll want to make these again and again. They are so simple and such a good way to get your nugget fix!

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Servings: 4 servings (around 6 nuggets per serving)

Cook mode:Prevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• ▢ 24 ounces wild caught sockeye salmon, or any salmon you have access to, skin on or off
• ▢ Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• ▢ Freshly ground black pepper
• ▢ 1/4 cup yogurt, greek yogurt or skyr, 56 grams / 2 ounces
• ▢ 2 tablespoon mild harissa paste, 35 grams / 1.2 ounces
• ▢ 2/3 cup almond flour, 80 grams / 2.8 ounces
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon flaky salt, plus more as needed
• ▢ Avocado spray oil, optional

Instructions 

1. Position a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 425°F convection.
2. Season both sides of the salmon with kosher salt and black pepper.
3. Slice the salmon into 1-inch cubes.
4. Add the salmon pieces to a large bowl, add in 1/4 cup of greek yogurt and 2 tablespoons mild harissa paste. Mix well so that the salmon is fully coated. See Note.
5. In a small dish to the side, add the 2/3 cup of almond flour and season with 1/2 teaspoon flaky salt. Toss to break up any clumps.
6. Prepare a parchment-lined baking sheet to the side. Take each salmon nugget and lightly toss it in the almond flour to get it coated on all sides. Add these to the baking sheet. If your salmon has skin on it, make sure you place these skin-side-down.
7. Lightly spray the nuggets with spray avocado oil. This is optional, but will help them get some color.
8. Bake at 425°F for 20-22 minutes or until golden and crisp on the bottoms.
9. Serve warm!

Notes

Note: The yogurt acts as a marinade. If you want to prep these ahead, they can sit in the marinade for 4-6 hours in the fridge before you begin breading them!