My interest in canned salmon has recently been reignited, so I decided to start playing around with it again. I figured a good salmon burger would be a great place to start, but I wanted to make it a little more special. So, I threw some of my Homemade Cajun Seasoning into the mix and ended up with a burger that is super flavorful and easy. It’s safe to say that these Cajun Salmon Burgers are going to be a staple on my “easy weeknight dinners” list!
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Why Canned Salmon?
Canned salmon might not be the first choice for everyone, but it’s super convenient and a great economical choice since it’s shelf-stable. You can keep canned salmon on hand for last minute meals, without worrying about it spoiling. You can certainly use fresh salmon, if preferred. Just cook the salmon through before preparing the burgers. You’ll need about 1 cup cooked and flaked salmon.
Can I use Store Bought Cajun Seasoning?
Yep! Just be aware that many prepared Cajun seasoning blends contain a lot of salt, so you may have to use a light hand. That’s why I prefer to use my own Cajun seasoning, which allows me to adjust the salt as needed. For these Cajun Salmon Burgers I used 1/4 of my Homemade Cajun Seasoning recipe, or about 1/2 Tbsp in volume.
How to Serve Cajun Salmon Burgers
I took the easy route and topped my burgers with some spring mix and a couple of tablespoons of guacamole. You could always take a more traditional route and do just a little mayo, lettuce, and tomato. Or, if you want to get a little fancy, you can mix up some remoulade sauce to use in place of the mayo. These Cajun Salmon burgers would also be great on a salad, instead of being served on a bun!
Cajun Salmon Burgers
Servings 2Ingredients
- 6 oz. Canned Salmon (boneless, skinless) ($4.69)
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs ($0.06)
- 1 large egg ($0.25)
- 1 Tbsp mayonnaise ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp stone ground mustard ($0.02)
- 1 green onion, sliced ($0.05)
Cajun Seasoning
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp oregano ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp thyme ($0.02)
- 1/8 tsp garlic powder ($0.02)
- 1/8 tsp onion powder ($0.02)
- 1 pinch cayenne (or to taste) ($0.01)
- 1 pinch freshly cracked pepper ($0.01)
- 1/8 tsp salt ($0.01)
For Cooking:
- 1/2 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.02)
- 1/2 Tbsp butter ($0.03)
Optional for Serving:
- 2 buns ($0.83)
- 1/4 cup guacamole ($0.66)
- 1 cup spring mix ($0.32)
Instructions
- Drain the canned salmon and add it to a bowl with the breadcrumbs, egg, mayonnaise, mustard, green onion, and Cajun seasoning spices. Stir to combine the ingredients, then refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow time for the spices to blend and the breadcrumbs to absorb moisture.
- After 30 minutes, shape the salmon mixture into two patties, about 3-4 inches in diameter each.
- Heat the oil and butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Once the butter is melted and begins to foam, add the salmon burgers and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side, or until the burgers are well browned.
- To serve, place one burger on each bun, add 2 Tbsp guacamole to each, and top with a small handful of spring mix. Enjoy!
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Nutrition
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Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Cajun Salmon Burgers – Step by Step Photos
This is the brand of canned salmon I used and it was really good. Nice chunks, no skin, no bones. It was $4.69 at my local health food store, but Kroger has it for $3.59 on their website (the Kroger in my neighborhood didn’t stock it). This isn’t sponsored, I just tried this brand because I had read some good reviews on it.
Drain the canned salmon and then add it to a bowl. If you want to use fresh salmon, just cook it and flake it up first. You’ll need about 1 cup cooked salmon.
Add 1 large egg, 1/4 cup breadcrumbs, 1 Tbsp mayonnaise, 1/2 tsp coarse ground mustard, 1 sliced green onion (I forgot to add it until after this photo) and the Cajun seasoning blend: 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp oregano, 1/4 tsp thyme, 1/8 tsp garlic powder, 1/8 tsp onion powder, a pinch of cayenne, a pinch of freshly cracked pepper, and 1/8 tsp salt.
Mix all of those ingredients together until evenly combined, then refrigerate this mixture for 3o minutes. This gives the spices time to really blend together and the breadcrumbs time to absorb some of the liquid.
After 30 minutes, shape the salmon mixture into two patties. Each should be about 3-4 inches in diameter. The mixture will be fairly wet, but don’t worry, they will firm up when the egg cooks.
Heat 1/2 Tbsp cooking oil and 1/2 Tbsp butter in a skillet over medium heat. When the butter is melted and is starting to foam, add the salmon burgers and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side or until they are well browned.
To build the salmon burgers place one patty on each bun, top with 2 Tbsp guacamole, and a small handful of spring mix.
Enjoy!!
Do you think these would freeze well? If so what would you wrap them in? Ty.
Yes! I would freeze them before cooking if you can. Then you can actually cook them from frozen (extending the cooking time a bit). I would form patties on parchment paper, freeze them, then cut the parchment paper so you can stack the patties and put in a freezer bag. Good luck!