Salmon Sliders

Earlier this summer I posted a great salmon burger recipe. Then I discovered this one and it is now my favorite. The uncooked consistency is almost runny and it seems like it won't hold together as a burger, but it does -- and it is the moistest burger I've tasted.


Salmon Sliders
1 lb Salmon, skin removed
1 Egg
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
1 tsp Fresh Ginger, grated
2 tsp Soy Sauce
1 tsp Fish Sauce
1 tsp Sesame Oil
1/4 tsp Red Chili Flakes


Finely chop salmon and mix by hand with other ingredients.
Shape into 8 2-ounce sliders (they will be very loose)
Saute over medium high heat for about 3 minutes per side
Serve on Brioche buns with spicy mayonnaise.


Spicy Mayonnaise
1/2 cup Mayonnaise
2 tsp Lime Juice
1 tsp Rice Vinegar
1 Tblsp Sriracha

Salmon Cakes

I'm a huge fan of crab cakes -- what Maryland-born woman wouldn't be -- but I decided to give salmon cakes a try. They will never replace crab cakes but I am very happy with them as an alternative when crabs are scarce.


I served this batch of salmon cakes with remoulade and a spinach salad of pine nuts, black olives, orzo, and radicchio. 

Salmon Cakes


1/2 lb fresh salmon
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
1 T mayo
Squirt of Dijon mustard
A handful of plain breadcrumbs
1 t capers
Dash of Worcestershire
A couple shakes of Texas Pete's hot sauce (Tabasco is fine)
Your favorite chopped herbs - I used tarragon and chives
Pulse salmon in food processor until chopped
Combine the remaining ingredients and stir.
Add chopped salmon.
Shape into cakes.
Heat a pan and add vegetable oil.
When hot, saute cakes until brown.

Kitchen Sink Salad

This is one of those dishes where I am embarrassed by one of the ingredients but I love it and everyone who's tasted it, agrees.

I call it Kitchen Sink Salad because I throw in whatever I've got around. The constants are the sauce, green onions, cabbage, carrots, and almonds. Then it's time to clean out the 'frige and throw in everything but the kitchen sink. Make this salad well enough in advance for the noodles to soften.

Kitchen Sink Salad

Break up two packages of ramen noodles in a bowl. Save one flavor packet; discard the other. (This is the embarrassing part -- I mean really, RAMEN?)

In a saucepan, bring to a boil:

o Equal parts rice vinegar and cider vinegar to total a little more than ½ cup

o Equal parts sesame oil and olive oil (or whatever’s on hand) to total a little more than ½ cup

o Tablespoon brown sugar

o One Ramen flavor packet

o A few shakes of soy sauce

o Garlic powder and anything else that strikes you. I used cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and hot sauce

Pour boiling sauce over noodles; stir occasionally and let cool. Noodles will soften but will not be completely cooked and some may even be a little hard.

Here’s where the ‘kitchen sink’ comes in. Add veggies, dried fruit, nuts, etc. to the salad. I always use:

o Green onions

o Green and red cabbage

o Slivered almonds – toasted

o Grated carrots

This time I also added:

o Dried cranberries

o Celery

o Sugar snap peas

o Cucumber

Other times, I’ve substituted pine nuts or sesame seeds for the almonds, added granny smith apples, green and red peppers, tomatoes, … you get the idea.

Wish I had a Cute Name for this Salad

The primary ingredients are orzo, spinach, and grilled salmon. There's also radicchio, pine nuts, and sun dried tomatoes (and S&P of course). I topped it with a lemon/garlic vinaigrette and shaved Parmesan cheese.

A few ingredients I thought adding but didn't:

• capers
• black olives
• tomatoes

This took more effort than I expected but I think I may have gone overboard when I trimmed the stem from every leaf of spinach before tearing it into the salad.

I think this might be good with grilled tuna or chicken, too.