First foods database
🐟 Fish cakes for babies: when and how to serve it
Can babies eat fish cakes? Yes, from about 6 months, ideally homemade. Mixing flaked fish with mashed potato makes it soft and easy to hold, so fish cakes are a great way to share fish with the whole family, and you control the salt.
Good source of: Protein, Omega-3, Carbohydrate
How to serve fish cakes by age
6 to 9 months
Make soft fishcakes from flaked fish and mashed potato, bound with egg if needed. Bake rather than fry, and offer finger-shaped cakes that squash easily.
9 to 12 months
Offer small patties with soft vegetables and a yoghurt dip.
12 months and up
Serve with vegetables, salad and dips. Coat in breadcrumbs for crunch once chewing is confident.
Choking safety
Homemade fish cakes are soft and low risk. Check the fish carefully for bones before mixing, and avoid very crunchy coatings for young babies. Always stay with your baby while they eat, and offer food with them sitting upright.
Gagging is common and noisy while babies learn to eat. Choking is usually silent. Always stay with your baby while they eat, sitting upright. How to help a choking baby (NHS).
Good to know
- Shop fish cakes can be salty.
- Fish, egg and gluten allergens may be present.
Introducing it as an allergen
It contains fish, gluten, egg, which are among the 14 major allergens. How to introduce fish · How to introduce gluten · How to introduce egg
Easy ideas
- Salmon and potato fishcakes
- Cod and pea fishcakes
- Sweet potato and tuna cakes
Goes well with
Weaning with OBubba
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Questions parents ask
Can babies eat fish cakes?
Can babies eat fish cakes? Yes, from about 6 months, ideally homemade. Mixing flaked fish with mashed potato makes it soft and easy to hold, so fish cakes are a great way to share fish with the whole family, and you control the salt.
Can babies eat shop-bought fish cakes?
They are often salty and may contain smoked fish, so homemade is best. If buying, check the salt content and offer occasionally.
Can I freeze homemade fish cakes?
Yes. Freeze them before cooking on a lined tray, then bag them up. Bake from frozen until piping hot in the middle.
Sources
- NHS Start for Life: Weaning
- NHS: Fish and shellfish
- NHS: Foods to avoid giving babies and young children
- NHS: Food allergies in babies and young children
OBubba gives general information based on UK guidance. It is not medical advice and does not diagnose anything. Every baby is different. If your baby has a known allergy, severe eczema or a medical condition, speak to your doctor or health visitor before starting solids. Learn baby first aid, and in an emergency call your local emergency number (999 in the UK).