Monday, August 13, 2012

The Best Tuna Burger I've Ever Made



Not too long ago I pinned a recipe from Heather for salmon burgers, which I decided I would modify and turn into tuna burgers. I'll admit it, I've never been very successful with tuna burgers so to say these were the "Best I've made" isn't really saying a lot. However, they truly were absolutely delicious. The day I made these burgers I happened to be in one of those starving situations where I had been in a meeting at work and went too long without food. I came home and made these and ate two in about 5 seconds. That, my friends, is why you shouldn't let yourself get too hungry! I ate them way too fast, but boy were they good (and yes, they were still good the next day when I wasn't starving. And, they even tasted good cold).

I don't buy tuna often, but when I do I typically buy Starkist in the pouches (they are easy to open and don't need a lot of straining, plus they aren't in a can....I'm not so sure I trust cans anymore). The last time I was at the store I found this tuna that was "wild caught", plus it had a couple other label claims that interested me;


Four times the omega-3 and less than half the mercury (compared to comparable brands).


I like to buy the albacore tuna because it's got the highest amount of EPA and DHA, compared to other tunas (like white tuna). However, it also has the highest amount of mercury. I liked this brand because it claimed to have less mercury and even more EPA and DHA. The chart below lists the mercury content and EPA/DHA content of some of your favorite fish (Source: USDA Dietary Guidelines). Notice light canned tuna has much less mercury than albacore (ladies, if you're pregnant, stick to the light canned tuna!).







Tuna Burgers
(IBS-Friendly)
(Adapted from
Heather's recipe)Serves 4


Ingredients
6 ounces canned tuna, strained well
1 egg + 1 egg white
2 Tbsp. fresh parsley
2 Tbsp. panko bread crumbs
1 Tbsp. chopped celery
1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice
Dash of sea salt and pepper
1 tsp. garlic olive oil
2 Tbsp. plain Greek yogurt
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

Directions
In a medium bowl mix all of the ingredients together, minus the oil, yogurt and cayenne.

Form four patties with the mixture.
Heat a medium sized skillet on medium-high and add the garlic olive oil.
Meanwhile, mix together the Greek yogurt and cayenne (for the sauce)

Once the pan is hot, add the burgers and cook for about 3 minutes on each side (or until browned).


Serve the burgers on whole grain toast or a whole grain bun, and spread the greek yogurt mixture on top.

This burger may look average, but let me tell you, it was way beyond average and I will be making it for years to come!


Estimated Nutrition Facts

(Serving size: one burger, without the bun)


Question: Do you like tuna? What's your favorite way to eat it and what's your favorite kind?
Any fun weekend plans? I'm working tomorrow but have Sunday off. Wahooo!! No big plans, other than grocery shopping and wedding planning :)



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10 comments :

  1. I recently start adding tuna to salad and I love it. It's so easy to add flavor and protein with it!
    I'm leaving Buenos Aires tomorrow evening... so will do some last minute shopping tomorrow.

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  2. Those Starkist packets save me when I travel! If I can't find anything but a Walmart, at least I know they will have tuna!

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  3. Those sound really tasty actually.

    My husband decided he wants to eat more protein so this would be a good recipe to make fore him.

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  4. Ah, must make tuna burgers! I've only ever experienced with salmon burgers, and even that was long, long ago. Sounds delicious.

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  5. I love this idea-- I'm a big tuna fan, but I rarely think to make tuna burgers! Marking it!

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  6. Yum yum yum!!! I'm always looking for a solid tuna burger recipe! What a great idea to use panko! I'm going to have to get more at TJs tomorrow because my whole bag of panko crumbs opened and fell everywhere the other night! Wah mayj fail. Book marking this sucker!

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  7. I make salmon burgers with leftover grilled salmon quite often. I'll have to make tuna burgers soon!

    Have a great Sunday!

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  8. My first taste of Tuna was a Grilled whole Tuna in Indian spices. And then I discovered the Subway tuna in the salad. I used to think I ate healthy, until one day I realized I was eating anything but healthy.

    But I still love tuna and make patties to add in salads or sandwiches - mostly with Indian spices. Your recipe sounds really delish!

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  9. YUM!! I love tuna burgers and salmon burgers... We fix them a lot, so I'm looking forward to fixing your recipe! Except we usually call them "tuna fritters," in our Southern lingo... ;-)

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