Salmon burgers

BY ARIANE MARCHAND - MONTRÉAL, QUÉBEC

Salmon Burger Recipe

From: Salmon burgers, Ricardo

Salmon patties

  • 675 gr (1 ½ lb) skinless salmon, finely chopped
  • 2 green onions, finely chopped
  • 75 ml (1/3 cup) breadcrumbs
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 30 ml (2 tbsp) chopped dill
  • 30 ml (2 tbsp) mayonnaise
  • 10 ml (2 tsp) lemon juice
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) dry mustard

Burgers

  • 6 hamburger buns
  • 6 leaves lettuce
  • 12 English cucumber, thinly sliced lengthwise
  • Mayonnaise

Preheat the grill, setting the burners to high. Oil the grate.

In another bowl, combine all the ingredients until smooth. Add bread crumbs if the mixture is too soft. Season with salt and pepper. Shape into 6 patties.

Adjust the burners to medium heat. Grill the patties for 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until the salmon is cooked through. Toast the buns.

Add salmon patties to buns previously spread with mayonnaise. Place the lettuce and garnish with cucumber slices, then close with the bread.

BACKSTORY AND SUSTAINABILITY

When I was young, we didn't eat fish at home. My father was raised Christian, and had to eat fish every Friday. Because of the lack of choice, it usually consisted of commercial fish sticks. It was the only memories he had of fish, and the idea of fish disgusted him. In recent years, the supply and freshness of fish and seafood has greatly improved, and my family has learned to love these flavours. We now have our traditional recipes, which I hope to one day share with my children!

There are several commercial fisheries in eastern Quebec, in the St. Lawrence Estuary and in the Atlantic Ocean, but not in the Montreal area. We have to look for products with a label, such as Ocean Wise and Marine Stewardship Council (MSC). Some supermarkets, like Metro, have also adopted sustainable fisheries and aquaculture policies and offer a wide range of environmentally friendly catches.

It's not easy to make a choice when we want to buy sustainable salmon. In Canada, Atlantic salmon are the most common salmon found in grocery stores. Most of the time, this fish comes from open-system aquaculture. Fish are raised in large nets in the ocean, and their excrement goes directly in the ocean, as well as the antibiotics and pesticides used to prevent disease between individuals. More sustainable alternatives are Atlantic salmon from close-system aquaculture, wild Atlantic salmon, wild Pacific salmon or rainbow trout. (1)

FURTHER RESOURCES

(1) Lavallée, B. (2015). Sauver la planète une bouchée à la fois, trucs et conseils. Les éditions La Presse, Montréal, 226 p.