Catfish Out of Water

I've been making Salmon Burgers w/ Squid Ink Buns,Tartar Sauce, and Arugula and Salmon Burgers w/ Tartar Sauce and Runny Egg. I have just enough salmon patties left for one more burger! So, I'm bringing back the arugula and adding in some sharp white cheddar cheese.

Burgers typically do have cheese. That's not quite so far fetched! But I always raise an eyebrow at people who put cheese on fish. It happens at work sometimes where an order comes in with a fish fry covered in mozzarella. And I have to admit that I always kind of scoff at it like the customer is somehow doing it wrong. But I'm not sure that I can knock it without trying it, though.

And I have to say that I'm not disappointed! After all, it is a burger. The cheddar was also subtle enough when combined with all of the other strong flavors that it wasn't all that noticeable to begin with! Will I add cheese to salmon burgers every time? Probably not. Did I enjoy it this time? Absolutely!

Gallery

Variations of Squid Ink Salmon Burgers

Salmon burgers are one of my favorite things to make! Although I almost never order them in restaurants. Even when we're not in the midst of a global pandemic and I'm going to places that serve salmon burgers, I usually don't order them! Mostly because they can be difficult to keep fresh, so a lot of places simply don't always have them. And because the upcharge is usually a bit much!

The good thing about not ordering them out is that salmon burgers are actually incredibly simple to make. If you can fry a burger, you can fry a fish burger. Where I live, salmon can also be found at a fairly reasonable price. It's going to cost more than beef, but where I am that's really only about $2 more a pound when on sale.

Salmon Burgers w/ Guacamole & Tartar Sauce

These squid ink salmon burgers are an absolutely delectable mix of homemade black rolls, salmon patties, guacamole, and tartar sauce. With a little bit of white sharp cheddar cheese and arugula. Which might be just throwing everything in my kitchen into a single burger! But no excuses need to be made for creating something so deliciois.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 4 servings

Equipment

• Baking Sheet or Griddle
• Oven
• Medium Bowl
• Skillet w/ a lid

Ingredients

  

Squid Ink Rolls

• 472 ml. warm water ~100°F (2 c.)
• 7 g. instant yeast (2 ¼ tsp. or 1 package)
• 7 g. brown sugar (or 2 tsp. granulated sugar, maple syrup, or honey)
• 570 g. all-purpose flour (4 ¾ c.)
• 2 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. squid ink
• oil to grease bowl

Guacamole

• 3 avocados
• 3 limes juiced
• 3 cloves garlic
• dash salt
• dash pepper
• 1 ½ large tomatoes quartered
• 1/4 red onion halved

Salmon Patties

• 16 oz. salmon fillet
• 2 lemons
• dash salt
• dash pepper
• ~1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 clove shallot
• 1 garlic
• 1 serrano
• 2 eggs
• 1 c. bread crumbs
• ~1 tbsp. high heat oil

Burger

• 1 squid ink roll
• 1 salmon patty
• dollop tartar sauce
• 1 handful baby arugula
• 2 slices sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions

 

Prepare Ingredients

• This recipe utilizes a lot of things that you can make yourself or buy in a pinch. If you want to make everything from scratch, you will need to start a few hours ahead of time!

  For a quicker recipe, you can always substitute store-bought burger buns or salmon patties.
• Squid Ink Rolls are the first thing that you will need to begin to prepare because it will take about 2 1/2 hours to rise and get ready to bake.

Prepare Guacamole

• Add the avocados, lime juice, garlic, salt, and pepper to a food processor. Purée until smooth. Making sure to scrape the sides occasionally.
• Add tomatoes and red onions to the food processor and pulse until barely combined and still chunky.

Make Salmon Patties

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Place salmon skin-side down on a baking sheet.

  I usually use a cast iron griddle. However, the exact cooking method isn't as important here because you're just going to blend them together. If you don't have a nonstick pan or you want an easier cleanup, you can line it with aluminum foil.
• Drizzle with olive oil and add a dash of salt and pepper. Slice a lemon and place evenly on top of the salmon.

  You want just enough lemon and oil to cover the top of the salmon and keep it from burning as the inside cooks. Salmon is already an oily fish, so use sparingly.
• Bake the salmon for 12-17 minutes, or until it begins to flake. Salmon tends to be cooked when it loses the bright color and you can take a fork and it easily separates. Remove from the oven and let cool.
• Meanwhile, lightly oil a skillet and heat to medium.
• Finely chop bell pepper, garlic, shallots, and jalapeño. Add to a medium-sized bowl along with eggs, breadcrumbs, salt, and pepper. Whisk to combine.
• When the salmon has reached a manageable temperature, flake into the bowl and stir to combine.
• Separate into 4 equal-sized portions and form into round patties, about 1/2 inch thick.
• Add salmon patties to the skillet and fry until lightly browned, about 3-5 minutes. Carefully flip and repeat on the other side. Add more oil as necessary to keep the pan lightly coated with oil.

Assemble Burgers

• Slice the roll in half. Place the sliced sides down on the skillet and toast until golden brown.

  After cooking one side, remove from heat. Flip the roll and place slices of cheese on one side.

  Add the lid and let the cheese melt. There should be enough residual heat to melt the cheese. Otherwise, add back to heat and cook on low until melted. This should take no more than 3-5 minutes.
• Place the roll on a plate. Top both the top and bottom sides of the roll with guacamole.
• Add arugula and any other ingredients that you desire to the top half of the roll.
• Add salmon patty to the bottom of the roll.
• Serve immediately.

Tips, Tricks, & Notes

• For more information on baking salmon, check out my articles on The Fundamentals of Oven Baked Salmon and Barbecue Salmon. I'm particularly fond of cooking on a well-seasoned cast iron griddle because you don't need additional oil or foil to to keep it from sticking. But there are certainly ways around this if you don't want to dedicate an entire cast iron pan to fish! Cooking salmon is also more of an art than a science. No two filets are going to cook in the exact same amount of time and there are definitely some tips and tricks to nailing the cook on fish.