Healthy Wild Salmon Burgers

My kitchen has a little bit of a salmon scent to it today, but it is a minor price to pay for these oh-so-yummy burgers that I made myself for dinner last night.  Eric is not much of a fish eater, but my dog Cameron was more than willing to share.  If anyone has any tips on how to avoid the salmon aroma when preparing it on the stove-top, I would love to hear them.  Thank goodness for outdoor grilling season being just around the corner, because I do love my salmon in all of its Superfood-omega 3-protein packed-antioxidant glory.

This burger requires a little bit of prep work, depending on whether you choose to chop the salmon by hand, as I did, or process it in the food processor, which I will do next time.  Obviously, I recommend the latter method as chopping becomes a bit tedious.  Other than that, these burgers come together quite easily and can fit into all sorts of diets.  Low carb?  Forget the bun.  The Zone?  Serve them over brown rice.  Not dieting?  Eat 'em with french fries.  It really doesn't matter what you pair these juicy burgers with--they will make for one flavorful meal.  Here are my tips for sensational salmon burgers:

• The patties can be formed about 4 hours ahead of time and then chilled on a waxed paper-lined baking sheet, covered with plastic wrap.  I find that these delicate burgers hold together a bit better if they have been chilled.
• If you cannot find wild salmon, just use regular salmon.  Make sure that it has been deboned first!
• Instead of finely chopping the salmon, another option is to cut it into chunks and then pulse it in your food processor.  The smaller the pieces, the easier the mixture will be to bind together.
• Panko are Japanese bread crumbs, which many cooks prefer to traditional bread crumbs, but you may use either (unseasoned) for this recipe.  Try to only add as much as you need for the mixture to bind together in order to achieve the best salmon flavor.
• Pickled ginger can usually be found in the refrigerator section, next to products such as tofu, miso, and other Asian products.

Healthy Wild Salmon Burgers

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 pound wild salmon, skinned

3 cups baby spinach, coarsely chopped

3 scallions, minced

1 tablespoon peeled and grated fresh ginger

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

1 large egg

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Up to ½ cup panko breadcrumbs

Pickled ginger, for garnish

Small ciabatta rolls or whole wheat hamburger buns (optional)

Chop the salmon very finely and then stir it together with the spinach, scallions, ginger, salt, and pepper in a large bowl until well combined.

Beat together the egg and soy sauce in a small bowl and then stir it into the salmon mixture.  Add enough of the panko bread crumbs for the mixture to bind together (I had to add about ⅓ cup) and then form the mixture into four ½-inch patties.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot and spray with nonstick cooking spray.  Cook the patties, carefully turning once, until they are golden brown and cooked through, 6-8 minutes total.

Top the burgers with some pickled ginger and serve with or without a bun.