Spring Salmon Burgers Made with Canned Salmon

I loooove salmon burgers but pre-cooking a fillet and using that to make burgers -- or mincing up raw fish - is too much to ask of me on a weeknight. So, this recipe uses canned salmon instead. If you make them I think you’ll be amazed at how fancy a simple can of salmon can become with just a few extra ingredients!

Mix in fresh herbs for a burst of flavor: these burgers use parsley and fresh baby dill, which gives each bite a pop or flavor. Onion, garlic and cayenne help too!

Use something that will give the burgers a crispy crust. You can use almond flour or bread crumbs, but my favorite is cornmeal. It toasts up on the edges, giving the burgers a nice crispy finish. Plus, I pretty much always have a quarter cup of cornmeal laying around.

Keep it all together: Because this recipe uses canned salmon, you need something to glue everything together. For this recipe, you need to add an egg into the mix. If you were using raw salmon, you might be able to skip this, but here you need it.

Stir, but not too much: This is more of a personal preference. I mash the mixture with a fork, but only just enough to get the egg, cornmeal, and herbs mixed in. I try to leave some of the salmon in small chunks because it gives the final burgers a flakey texture. If you mash the fish too much, the burgers will still taste fine, they’ll just be lacking some flakiness.

Serve with a creamy, tart sauce. These are served with a lemon-yogurt and dill sauce, which brightens up the dish and compliments the herbs in the burger. Tradition tartar sauce would work too.

In these pictures, I served the burgers over baby greens with radishes and sprouts, but they'd also be fantastic over Green Machine Slaw, or Roasted Asparagus and Raw Radish Salad. Plus, a glass of rosé, which really made my canned salmon meal feel extra fancy 😉

Spring Salmon Burgers Made with Canned Salmon

Published April 17, 2018 by Caitlin Sherwood

   |     Print This Recipe

Serves: 3   |    Total Time: 20 minutes

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Ingredients:

For the Salmon Burgers:
• 1 six ounce can of salmon, juices drained
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup cornmeal or almond meal
• 1 tablespoon minced parsley
• 1 teaspoon minced dill or 1/4 teaspoon dried dill 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 tablespoon minced onion
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil

For the Yougurt Sauce:
• 3 tablespoons greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh dill, minced, OR 1/4 teaspoon dried dill
• 1/16 teaspoon each salt & ground cayenne

Directions:

1. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine salmon, egg, cornmeal, parsley, dill, salt, cayenne, and minced garlic & onion. Using a fork, mash just enough to incorporate the ingredients, leaving the fish flakey still.
2. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of coconut oil. When the oil glistens, shape salmon mixture into three equally-sized patties, about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch thick, and place in skillet. Cook on the first side for about 7 minutes, then, use a spatula to flip to second side. Outside should be crispy and golden.
3. While the salmon burgers cook, make the yogurt sauce: combine ingredients in small bowl and stir until smooth.
4. Serve salmon burgers as desired — on buns, over greens, etc - with a smear of yogurt sauce on top, and extra dill or cayenne if desired.

Simple Salmon Salad

At the ripe old age of 25, it seems I can't go a week sitting at an office desk with out walking away with some gripe about sitting all day, a grumble about having a stiff back, or whining about feeling tight. True story: I once went to Urgent Care because I was worried something in my back was seriously messed up 😳 Thankfully, they told me I probably just had a micro-tear in a muscle, and would be just fine. It's possible they were just being nice and trying to give me some credit, when they actually saw nothing wrong. 🤔 (Well, that was embarrassing to admit! Moving right along.)

After that little stint, I realized I really just need to commit to treating my spine better. 

First, I set a reminder on my work computer to work at a standing desk every day at noon. It was a cute attempt, but with in two weeks the alert became nothing more than a pesky piece of dust on my screen, which I would wipe away with a single strike of my track pad. "I'll stand later, when I'm less busy" (yea right). 

So the next thing I did was promise myself I would go to yoga once a week for the next two months. That's it. Once a week. Not long ago, when I was much more dedicated to yoga as a practice, yoga once a week would have been laughable. But we all evolve, right? And as I found new activities, I found I did yoga less and less. Daily practice diminished to weekly and then weekly diminished to "I'll just do some yoga at home in the living room" which almost always turn into "Ohhemmmgee, I had no idea there were so many dust bunnies under the couch! I need to clean them. NOW." and, well, there goes yoga practice. 

But this time, I kept my promise to myself: once a week for two months. No less (and I'll admit it: no more). What a difference it makes! By week 4 I was already telling Oliver I could feel the difference. The deep, impossible to massage or stretch tightness that I was experience week-over-week? Gone. It feels miraculous but it was really just a commitment. 

By week 5 I was really struggling to convince myself to go. By week 6 I was convinced I might go twice in one week. This is week 7, and we'll just have to see what happens. When my 8 week stint is up, I'm going to try hard to keep up my once-a-week pace going. If a skip a week here or there it's ok, I'll just tell myself to jump back on the train. 

Do you practice yoga? What does it do for you? What keeps you committed?

If you like this recipe, you might also like my tuna power salad recipe! 

Simple Salmon Salad

Paleo, Primal, Grain-Free    |   Caitlin Sherwood    |    Print This Recipe

I prefer salmon salad over tuna salad, as it has more flavor.

Serves: 2   |    Total Time: 10 active minutes

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Ingredients:

• 1 six-ounce can of salmon
• 3 tablespoons mayo (try Sir Kensington’s, made with avocado oil) OR greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 1 stalk celery, chopped into small pieces
• 1 tablespoons minced onion
• 1 dash granulated garlic
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Optional: sprinkle of dried oregano or 1 tablespoon minced parsley
• To serve: salad greens, cucumber, tomato, avocado, etc.

Directions:

1. Put salmon, mayo/yogurt, mustard, celery, onion, granulated garlic, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper in a bowl, and mash with a fork until everything is combined. Add optional oregano or parsley at this time, and stir in.
2. Serve salmon salad over bed of greens with your favorite salad add ons: cucumber, tomato, avocado, etc.