These richly seasoned, mango-topped grilled salmon patties are to die for.
Made with fresh baked (then flaked) salmon fillet , these delicious salmon burgers work very well with leftover salmon, too. Slap ‘em on a focaccia, baguette or kaiser and garnish with the lively fresh mango salsa— voila, you’re living the good life.
Check out the video of Kirsten and Sean at the bottom for a lively experience of preparing this dish.
There’s a lot going on in this dish, so I consulted with my sommelier friend Brian for some appropriate Salmon Safe wines. He passed on a couple of enticing recommendations, which you should check out at the bottom.
Serves four.
Time to Prepare: About an hour.
Fresh Mango Salsa
Ingredients
2 ripe mangos (diced)
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/8 cup olive oil
¼ cup fresh Italian parsley (chopped)
1 shallot (finely chopped)
1 1/2 Tbsp fresh mint (chopped)
1 Tbsp capers (slightly chopped)
1/3 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Preparation
Blend the liquids and spices in a medium-sized bowl and then gently fold in the diced mango. Season with salt and pepper to taste and set aside. A little time for the flavours to mingle is a good thing.
Grilled Wild Salmon Burgers
Ingredients
2 lbs salmon fillet (baked)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 cups onion (finely chopped)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 beaten egg yolk
1 cup breadcrumbs
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup cilantro (chopped)
1 cup panko crumbs
Preparation
As mentioned, this is an excellent recipe for left-over baked salmon, but if starting from scratch preheat your oven to 400F. Place your fillet on a cookie sheet or baking pan lined with parchment. Lightly dress with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake 10 to 14 minutes — as always when you see little white dots appearing on the flesh it’s done. Allow to cool until still slightly warm to the touch.
As shown in the video, flake the salmon into a bowl and set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium and make your spicy base. Add the finely chopped onion, and cook until softened, about 6-8 minutes.
Season the onions with salt, pepper and the spices— cinnamon, cayenne, nutmeg, salt and pepper — and saute the onions for another minute or so.
Transfer to a large bowl, and when it’s cooled, make your patties. Add the flaked salmon to the spicy base in the large bowl, then add the panko crumbs, egg yolk, mayo and cilantro.
Mix to blend, and then form into burgers to suit the shape of your bun– if focaccia, you can square them off. If the mixture is too squishy and unformable, add a little more panko.
Don’t make them too big! Then they’ll break when you flip them.
Fry in a pan with a mix of olive oil and butter (butter is nice if you don’t mind the calories) on medium heat— sear them on each side, then reduce heat a bit until heated through, about 4 to 6 minutes.
Place the burger on half the focaccia or other bun, dollop a good portion of mango salsa and cap with the other half of bun. Serve up with potato salad and lime wedges.
Salmon Safe wine recommendations from Brian the Sommelier:
Off-dry white wines work well with salmon, but so does Pinot noir. Both of these Salmon Safe wines are grown in Oregon, a state making some good efforts to bring wild salmon back to its rivers.
For whites, Brian recommends Sokol Blosser‘s Evolution. “This is a proprietary blend of nine white grapes… it’s an easy-to-drink wine with a lot of different layers.”
For a light red, Brian recommends Argyle Winery‘s Pinot Noir . A little more expensive, but delicious.”More fruit forward and again, an easy drinking style that pairs well with the fusion of flavors in this salmon burger.”
