Kate's Global Kitchen: Fresh Salmon Sliders with Lime-Sesame Mayonnaise

Fresh Salmon Sliders
with Lime-Sesame Mayonnaise

Sliders

Makes 8 small burgers; serves 8 as bar bites, or 4 as a light meal

Serve these salmon burgers on mini-hamburger buns or small rolls. Quick cooking in a hot pan ensures a crisp, crunchy crust and a moist, rare interior. The recipe makes 8 small burgers, and any leftovers are great hot or cold, with or without the buns. For the mayonnaise, black sesame seeds add color, but toasted white sesame seeds may be used instead.

You'll need at least 1 whole lime for both the mayonnaise and the burgers—be sure to grate the lime's zest for the mayonnaise before halving the lime and squeezing the juice.

Lime-Sesame Mayonnaise
(Makes about 2/3 cup)

1 lime's grated zest
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons grated ginger
1 teaspoon black sesame seeds
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1/2 cup prepared mayonnaise

Salmon Sliders

1 large egg
2 teaspoons lime juice
1/3 cup toasted sesame seeds
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cloves garlic
2 green onions, in 1-inch pieces (green and white parts)
1-1/2 pounds fresh salmon fillet
1 tablespoon canola or other neutral vegetable oil

Shredded lettuce
8 mini-burger buns or small rolls, buttered and toasted

Note: In this recipe, there's no need to clean the food processor's work bowl between steps. Simply scrape out the ingredients before going on to the next step.

1. Prepare the mayonnaise: Combine all ingredients, mixing well. Refrigerate until ready to use.

2. In a large bowl, beat the egg until mixed. Measure the lime juice, mustard, salt, and pepper, into the bowl.

3. Using a food processor, grind the sesame seeds to a coarse powder, resembling ground bread crumbs or cracker crumbs. Empty the ground sesame meal into the bowl and stir until combined.

4. Drop the garlic into the feed tube of a food processor with the blades running. When the garlic is finely chopped, drop in the green onion and process just until finely chopped (do not puree). Scrape out the ingredients and stir them into the bowl with the egg and sesame mixture.

5. Slice off and discard the salmon skin, and pull out any pin bones. Chunk the salmon into roughly 1-inch cubes and place them in the food processor's work bowl. Pulse in bursts until the salmon is coarsely chopped into small pieces, about the size of corn kernels. (Don't turn the salmon into a paste; small chunks add texture.) Scrape the salmon into the bowl with the egg and sesame mixture.

6. Shape the salmon mixture into 8 thick patties. You can use your hands, but an ice cream scoop works best with less mess: scoop heaping mounds onto waxed paper, then tap them down a bit to flatten into thick disks. For best results, chill for 30 minutes, or up to overnight.

7. To cook the burgers, heat the oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Gently add the burgers. Fry about 2 minutes, until lightly browned on the bottom side. Flip and fry 1 to 2 minutes more, until crisp on the outside and still moist inside (burgers are best slightly undercooked). Serve on toasted mini-burger buns or rolls, with lettuce and Lime-Sesame Mayonnaise.