Asian Salmon Burgers—a healthy twist to the burger "gotta-have"s

I’ve already established that I’m a nut-case for burgers. I acquired this tendency honestly. Practically until her dying day at 93 my mother had to have her cheeseburgers. If she knew I were heading out for an errand, she’d ask whether I’d be near a Burger Street or Braum’s so I could bring her back a juicy meat patty stuffed between two buns (always with onions). “And don’t hold the onions,” she’d instruct as I was about to walk out the door.

Burgers, however, get a bum rap these days. Greasy, juicy ground beef isn’t seen as the healthiest option. Fortunately other ways exist to help scratch the burger itch.

I loved this recipe for Asian Salmon Burgers that I found in Prevention magazine’s June issue.

Skinless salmon fillet along with bread crumbs, green onions, and several other ingredients are processed in a food processor until the mixture is coarsely chopped. Grilling in a large nonstick frying pan (coated with cooking spray) for about 10 minutes, 5 on each side, is a better alternative to using a countertop grill because it keeps the meat mixture from falling apart. A tip that appears in Prevention recommends holding off flipping a burger until it’s thoroughly ready; flipping too soon is what causes a burger to crumble.

We just loved these very different, healthy burgers with an Asian twist.

Asian Salmon Burgers

1 pound skinless salmon fillet, cut into chunks

1/4 cup fresh whole wheat bread crumbs

1 large egg white

2 large cloves garlic, chopped

2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon dark sesame oil

2 green onions, chopped

4 tablespoons pickled ginger

2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

1/4 cup baby spinach

4 whole-wheat buns, toasted

Put salmon, bread crumbs, egg, garlic, soy sauce, oil, green onions, and 2 tablespoons of the ginger in food processor. Pulse until coarsely chopped. Form into 4 equal patties. Sprinkle tops with sesame seeds. Heat large nonstick frying pan coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Put patties sesame-seed-side down in pan. Cook 5 minutes. Flip and cook until done, 5 minutes longer. Serve burgers on buns and top with spinach and remaining 2 tablespoons pickled ginger. Makes 4 servings.

For this "J", flexibility with recipe ingredients can have big payoffs

Where recipes are concerned, I've never been much for adapting.

If a recipe says 1 cup pecans, to me that means 1 cup and not a sprinkling more. If it calls for six ingredients, I follow it to the letter of the law. If I don't possess all the items it calls for, I simply bypass the recipe and select another one.

I recently edited a book in which the author stated that she viewed any recipe as merely as "suggestion" as to how a food item should be prepared. To the basic framework she always added, subtracted, and modified at will.

When I ran across that statement in her copy, I mentally rolled my eyes. A suggestion? I'd starve before I ever failed to follow a recipe down to the last jot and tittle.

My hubby of course would assess that this is because I'm a die-hard "J" on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, a renowned personality inventory that helps people understand themselves better. A "J" doesn't flex much and usually is as rigid as the day is long, according to my hubby, who naturally is a Myers-Briggs "P" (don't fence him in! Give him lots of room to go with the flow!) Yes, opposites attract!

All this is a prelude for saying that surprisingly, I've found myself actually flexing a lot more lately when I'm preparing a recipe. For example to the ingredients for "Lemony Vegetable Medley" in yesterday's blog--I shocked myself by adding some thinly sliced carrots to the green bean-corn-radish-red pepper potpourri before marinating. I had some leftover carrot chips on hand and thought, "Bet that would add some extra zing." Yes, that's me, Kay--the die-hard "J"--actually coloring outside the box from what the recipe originally said.

But because I adapted with that recipe and added the carrot on a whim, that left me carrot-less last night when the time arrived to prepare "Calico Beef Burgers", which I earlier mentioned is one of my summer "must-have"s. Calico Beef Burgers, which we sub with ground turkey instead of ground beef, calls for 1/2 cup grated carrot to be mixed in with the meat before one forms the burger patty. Since I was without a carrot, I surveyed the fridge and with a nonchalance that would make any "P" proud, asked myself, "Now what do I have . . .?"

The answer? Corn--left over from Monday night and the "Lemony Vegetable Medley." A couple of ears still were available. Hubby had picked them from his garden a few days earlier. I quickly microwaved them, cut the kernels from the cob, and stirred in the corn in place of the 1/2 cup grated carrot.

The result? An absolute meal in a burger patty, which contained meat, cheese (dairy), green veggie (green onions), potato (carbohydrate/fiber), and corn (fiber again). On a whole wheat bun I added spinach leaves (which we usually substitute for lettuce) to make the whole thing even more healthy.

Hubby said he didn't miss the carrot at all, though I'll probably return to the original recipe when I stir up some "Calico Beef Burgers" (from my cookbook, Way Back in the Country Garden) again. On the other hand, flexing was so enjoyable, I might just sub a little grated zucchini next time!

Calico Beef Burgers

3/4 cup pound ground beef or ground turkey

1 cup cold cooked potatoes, riced or mashed

1/2 cup shredded carrots

1/4 cup finely chopped green onion

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 egg

1 tablespoon steak sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Combine ingredients; shape into patties. Grill burgers. May be served on a toasted bun or by themselves with a little salt-free ketchup on top.