You know, if the weather actually got it’s act together, we’d realize that it’s almost April, which means it’s almost May and burger season is upon us. So let’s kick it off with these sweet and spicy salmon burgers.
I hate talking about the weather but my state of mind relies on it: am I too cold, too hot; is it sunny out making me want to go play, or dreary and forcing me under a blanket with a warm beverage. So, as mundane as a topic as it might be, it even dictates what you see here.
Last Friday we got a peek of days to come, and with that I was all in a burger state of mind. Taking a little inspiration from Chrissy T’s book, I adapted her recipe for salmon into these sweet and spicy salmon burgers, dressed with some sriracha sour cream, lettuce, and red onions for that red onion feel. I realized once I took these pictures they looked remarkably like the Liptauer Burgers from last year (which you should make pronto!), but they absolutely could not be more different.
One of the bonuses of moving so close to Mom is that we’ve made it a bit of a tradition to cook together on the weekends, and because of that I get to steal some of her mom-cooking wisdom to help me out when I really don’t know. Does it need more honey? More spice? Fried or broiled? Mom knows, or at least is ready to roll up her sleeves to help me figure it out.
She’s actually quite the burger pro, so after lending my hand at the seasonings for this recipe, she helped out with the practicalities of eggs, onions and breadcrumbs. As for cooking method, she wanted to pan-fry and I wanted to broil, so we made them both ways, and then each had a half to taste test.
The verdict? The two were almost indistinguishable, but the pan fried one was a bit crispier, which is to be expected. Anyway, cook as you will, it won’t make much of a difference. Mom does caution NOT to grill because they’re delicate enough that they’d fall through the grate. And that, friends, would be a damn shame.
Random: I always want to have chips in the house for pictures but then…I have chips in the house. Instead, I have those baked pea things. What are they called? They’re amazing and I could literally eat multiple bags in one sitting. Anyway, I felt the need to explain my weird pea accompaniment, so there you go there then.
Written after a workout and some kicking ginger hummus.
Sweet and Spicy Salmon Burgers
Sweet and Spicy Salmon Burgers will mix up any summer gathering, with a spicy and sweet marinade and a cool, creamy topping.
Ingredients
- 10 ounces salmon (frozen or fresh)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 cup parsley
- 1/4 tsp garlic, minced
- 1 TB onion, chopped
- 1 TB mayo (or, 1/2 beaten, large egg)
- 1 TB, heaping, sambal oelek (red chili paste- the one with the green lid)
- 1 TB, heaping, spicy Dijon mustard
- 3 TB honey
- 3/4 cup panic breadcrumbs
- oil, for frying
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1 TB sriracha
- 1/2 lime, juiced
- pinch sugar, to taste
Directions
- Step 1 In a small bowl, add the sambal oelek, honey, mustard and mayo. Set aside.
- Step 2 In the bowl of a food processor, add the onion, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. Pulse until well chopped. Add the salmon and pulse until just combined and chopped. Don’t over-process the fish.
- Step 3 Place the salmon-onion mixture in a medium bowl. Add the honey-mustard mix and 1/3 cup breadcrumbs. Form into 4 patties.
- Step 4 Place the remaining breadcrumbs on a shallow plate. Dip each patty in the breadcrumbs to give each a thin coat, approximately 1/2-1 TB per side of each patty.
- Step 5 If you choose to pan-fry these, heat about 1/2″ oil (vegetable is best, but olive will work) in a pan over medium to medium high-ish heat. Place each patty in the oil to cook and flip after about 7 minutes. Continue cooking until the patty is cooked through, another 4 or so minutes. Keep an eye on it so that the breadcrumbs don’t burn. Set to cool on a rack placed over paper towels.
- Step 6 If you choose to broil these, place each patty on a foil and oil lined rack. Broil 10 minutes per side until cooked through.
- Step 7 Meanwhile, make the burger dressing by mixing together the sour cream, sriracha, lime and sugar in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Step 8 Assemble each burger with lettuce, onion, burger and sauce. Enjoy!
