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Every time I make these salmon burgers, my husband devours 2 of them at lightning speed. And whenever we put this on our supper club menu, I get rave reviews (especially from kids).
Last time I made this, Shiping made a comment that these are like adult version of filet-o-fish. I understand where he’s coming from – the tender fish patty, the creamy, zingy tartar sauce, and soft bun… there are similarities in all the components that make this a nostalgic and satisfying meal.
I pair the salmon burgers with a fresh celery radish slaw, an easy 3 ingredient garlic aioli, and roasted potatoes for a truly unbeatable combination.
Veg in this dish:
Celery and radish – fiber packed! Contains vitamin k and some calcium and iron.
- I use a mandolin to thinly shave the celery and celery. If you don’t have a mandolin, use a knife and slice as thinly as possible.
Arugula – also known as rocolla, arugula is high in beta-carotene, vitamin c, folate, vitamin k, and magnesium.
I love this combination of celery, radish, and arugula. You can substitute celery and radish for any other crunchy seasonal vegetable like raw snap peas and asparagus.
Mandolin Tips:
- Be careful and watch your fingers. Don’t try to mandolin the entire vegetable- I usually stop when there’s about 1/2” left and compost the rest.
- Create a flat surface and press weight EVENLY across the surface so you get even pieces.
- Adjust the thickness to about 1/10”. You can try a few pieces and dial the settings in.
Chef Notes:
On the minced salmon & salmon burgers
- Avoid using the food processor to grind all the salmon. I find that this creates a paste like texture that makes for a dry (not as juicy) burger. You can food process half of it, but strongly recommend hand mincing the other half. The mincing shouldn’t take too long. Just loosen your shoulder, let the gravity of the knife do most of the work, and pound the salmon with your knife for 3 minutes.
- Alternatively, if you have a meat grinder (the kitchen aid attachment works great!), you can use this to grind all the salmon.
- You can also nicely ask your fish monger / butcher to slice the salmon for you, and maybe even mince it. I asked the butcher at Whole Foods for this, and he sent me home with 1/4” pieces that saved me a step!
- The texture of the minced salmon is crucial to the final texture of the burger AND how well the burger stays together. If you keep the burger in tiny 1/4” pieces, it will fall apart much more easily.
- Avoid touching the salmon with your hands for too long. Fish is delicate and your hands are warm. Work quickly with the salmon to cut it into 1/4” pieces if needed, then pound your knife through the salmon without touching it with your hands.
- When cooking the salmon burger, use your hand to gently flip the burger.
- If you want to halve the recipe, you can halve everything in the recipe and you can omit the egg.
- To make this recipe gluten free, you can use either gluten free panko or crispy quinoa (I’ve don’t both and they both work fantastically). Crispy quinoa is an extra step as you need to cook the quinoa then roast it until crispy, but it’s an option if you can’t find gf panko.
There’s a premade salmon burger at Whole Foods (2 types actually!), and I did not like either of them. They were dry, didn’t taste like salmon, and overall not worth trying.
However, I have had great pre-made salmon burgers before. Cooks seafood has a great raw, formed salmon burger, and if your local seafood shop has one, I’d recommend trying it! It would be great to have a fresh premade version so you could just focus on searing them off and making the other components of this recipe.
On the garlic aioli
- The silent super star of this recipe. Spend your time making a garlic paste, then mix this with mayo, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
- If you want to make this a bit lighter, you can do half plain yogurt, half mayo. I’d recommend keeping at least 1 tablespoon of mayo to maintain the richness (it’s worth it!).
Serving Notes:
Serve with roasted fingerling potatoes or roasted sweet potatoes, and the remaining celery slaw. Dip the potatoes in the extra garlic aioli.
Reheating and Storage Notes:
- The cooked salmon burgers are best enjoyed within 3 days.
- Store the celery salad undressed without the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper for up to 4 days. Once dressed, it won’t be great the next day.
- You can mix and form the salmon burgers and keep them raw for up to 4 days. Store in an airtight container. The salt helps preserve the burgers. They might smell a *little* fishy when you first open the container, but once you cook it, it should still taste fresh.
- You can freeze the formed salmon burgers and defrost overnight. Cook as normal instructed once thawed.
Step by Step Instructions:
Prep the vegetables:
Make the garlic aioli:
Mince the salmon:
Combine ingredients:
Cook the salmon patties:
Assemble the burgers:
Other great recipes:
Salmon Burgers with Celery Slaw
Ingredients
For the salmon burger – makes 6 burgers
- 1.75 lb of salmon, finely chopped
- ¼ cup of greek yogurt
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- Black pepper
- 2 tablespoons chives, or scallions
For the Celery Slaw
For the aioli:
- 1/2 cup avocado oil mayo
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic, very finely minced with a pinch of salt
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Prep the vegetables – shave the celery and radish and set aside into a bowl. Chop the chives or scallions and set aside.4 stalks of celery, 1 bunch of radish, 2 tablespoons chives
- Make the garlic aioli. Finely mince the clove of garlic, then press the side of your knife to smash the garlic. Add a pinch of salt and mince it again. Repeat this process twice until you have a paste like consistency with the minced garlic. Add the garlic paste, mayo, lemon juice, salt, and pepper to a small bowl and mix to combine. Taste, adjust seasoning, then set aside.Kosher salt, 1/2 cup avocado oil mayo, 2 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 clove garlic, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, Black pepper
- Chop salmon into ¼” pieces. You can typically get your butcher to help you cut the salmon into the small pieces (they might also be able to mince it for you). Pound your knife through the salmon for several minutes to create a minced texture. View photo above for what you’re looking for. This is important for the texture of the burger and to keep it from falling apart.1.75 lb of salmon
- Combine the minced salmon with the egg, panko breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, chives, and yogurt. Mix well, then divide and form into 6 patties. The size of each patty should be about 3” in diameter and ½” thick. The mixture should stick together well.½ cup panko breadcrumbs, 1 egg, ¼ cup of greek yogurt
- Heat a pan on medium high heat. Add a tablespoon of neutral oil, then sear the salmon burgers for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until the center is 135F.
- While the burgers are cooking, toast the brioche buns and toss the slaw. Combine the arugula, shaved celery, and shaved radish with a squeeze of lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix, taste, then set aside.2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1/2 lemon, Olive oil, 5 cups of arugula, Black pepper
- When the salmon is done cooking, assemble the burgers – spread a layer of garlic aioli on each side of the toasted buns, then add the burger. Add ¼ cup of the celery slaw over the top of the salmon burger, then add the bun. Serve with more slaw on the side and roasted potatoes.
