Salmon Burgers & Hushpuppies

This meal was the perfect representation for how early December has been shaping up this year. Sunny, yet brisk, I made a Salmon Burger that reminded me of summer—this time with a homemade patty. But that chill in the air also makes me want comfort food, so fried up Hushpuppies were the perfect side dish.

These gently fried, part sweet, and part savory cornbread balls are something I’d occasionally have growing up, and always served with seafood. I’ve never made them myself, so I found a recipe and modified it until I achieved what I was looking for. Check out the Taste of Home recipe.

I subbed out fresh onion for a tablespoon of onion powder, used buttermilk instead of 2%, and even added a little frozen corn for sweetness and texture. If you don’t have buttermilk, heavy cream is also a great way to add density in addition to 2%. Depending on how sweet or savory you want these, I’d also recommend adding cayenne pepper, nutmeg, garlic, parsley, or sugar as you see fit

Back to the main course, the Salmon Burgers were great and had a ton of flavor. They’re really easy to make, fry up in a pan (or grill if it’s nice outside), and toss onto some bread to make a sandwich. I used ciabatta and piled on Swiss, tomato, red onion, and lettuce as well as my sauce.

Trying serving with tartar sauce, hot honey, or even a cheese sauce.

Salmon Patties

Makes 4 patties. Add the following ingredients in a bowl and mix until well-combined. Using your hands, form four equal size balls and press down to form a patty that’s roughly ¼ inch thick. Heat olive oil in a pan and fry each side for 3-4 minutes.

• 2 – 6 oz. cans skinless boneless salmon

• 1 egg

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• ½ cup breadcrumbs

• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice

• 1 Tbsp. dijon mustard

• 1 Tbsp. capers

• ½ Tbsp. dried dill

• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

• ½ tsp. onion powder

• ½ tsp. red pepper flakes

• Pinch of salt and pepper

Tartar Sauce

Find my sauce recipes here.

For this Tartar Sauce, I followed my recipe for Tartar Dijonnaise, minus the yellow mustard and dijon mustard, plus the addition of chopped capers. It’s the perfect dipping sauce for hushpuppies, fries, or fish.

I used the Tartar Dijonnaise on the salmon burgers, with a nice layer spread on the bottom half of the ciabatta.