Rustic Salmon Burgers

Burgers get the bad rep for being junk food, no thanks to fast food chains that serve burgers by the thousands everyday. Though I'm not a serious fan of fast food chains (definitely less than 10 visits per year), I find myself drawn to burgers on restaurant menus quite often. Maybe it's the allure of the fanciful pairings and condiments of these "gourmet burgers", or maybe it's just simply because I like burgers.

With simple, fresh ingredients, burgers can actually be a tasty all-in-one meal and be healthy all at once. This recipe is actually modified, quite heavily, from one I found in issue 44 of Donna Hay magazine.

The original actually called for pickles, dill, fresh and dry breadcrumbs, etc etc, all of which I found a little too fussy since I wouldn't really be using them for anything else. I also used salmon instead of "firm white fish", since I'm not really sure which "white fish" would do the job here. The coriander, chilli and lime came in only the second time I made this recipe because I felt the burgers lacked flavour and was a little fishy the first time round. The burger buns I used are actually Pafu-Pafu (literally puff-puff) buns from Provence, which I think are made from rice flour, and are incredibly soft, with a slightly chewy crumb.

I think this post should mark a break to the coriander, garlic, lime and chilli posts for the time being in case it becomes too repetitive. Anyhow, 3 posts should make a series right?

Rustic Salmon Burgers
(Makes 4 burgers)

300g potatoes
300g salmon fillet
1 chili padi, seeds discarded and finely chopped
1 bunch coriander, chopped finely (about 1 Tbsp)
1/2 Tbsp lime juice
2 Tbsp potato starch
Salt and black pepper

Lime Mayonnaise
1 Tbsp lime juice
2 - 3 Tbsp mayonnaise
1/4 tsp chili powder
Salt and black pepper

To assemble
4 burger buns, halved and lightly toasted
1/2 Japanese cucumber, sliced
Fresh limes


- To make lime mayonnaise, combine all ingredients and mix well to combine. Set aside.
- Place washed potatoes in a saucepan of cold water and cook until fork tender. Drain and let cool before peeling and mash roughly with a fork in a large bowl.
- Skin the salmon fillet and remove any small bones. Chop the fish into medium-sized chunks.
- Add chopped fish, coriander, chilli, lime juice, potato starch and salt and pepper to the mashed potatoes and mix well.
- Heat up 1 Tbsp of oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium flame.
- Divide the mixture into 4 palm-sized patties and pan-fry them till they are golden and cooked through, about 3-4 mins each side.
- Serve the patties on burger buns with cucumber slices and top with a big dollop of lime mayonnaise and a generous squeeze of fresh lime juice.