That’s why when a half-dozen members of his studio audience
sampled and critiqued six quick, week-night, nutritious, and delicious entrées
(according to Oz), I paid attention. I made a list of the choices, although I
already knew of several of them.
Two of the meals could not be found in my local freezer section. I had previously eaten the third, Amy’s Burritos, many
times, so I bought just one, even though they are not as tasty as they sound. I
passed up a fourth choice that looked and sounded dreadful.
My interest, of course, was in the Sea Pak Salmon Burgers. I
had seen them in frozen foods many times. “680mg Omega 3’s per 110 calorie
serving,” the packaging screams. Those stats might be a figment of the
imagination - like the grill marks on the box top picture. I don’t know. My interest was tweaked by the fact that, to a
person, every audience member who tasted all six healthy dinners chose the
salmon as the favorite healthy freezer meal. I bought it, too, and without
further ado.
When I got home with my groceries, I snatched out the box and read the ingredients: salmon, water, autolyzed yeast extract, canola
oil, garlic powder, garlic, grill flavor from sunflower oil, lemon juice
concentrate, natural food coloring of beet juice and citric acid, natural smoke
flavoring, onion powder, paprika, rosemary, salt, soybean oil, tapioca,
dextrin, and white pepper.
Finally, the list announces, “contains: salmon.” The label does
not specify the variety of the salmon.
Even so, I opened the box. Frozen slime. I continued to
read. I was concerned to see that Sea Pack worked out of St. Simon’s
Island (no salmon there) which logistically can be nothing like a Gorton quick-freeze plant.
Finally, I saw it. Yes, it was in bold albeit small
print. “This salmon is wild caught. Product of China.”
The fish, according to directions, could be grilled (hence,
I supposed, the lovely cover shot) or baked (which I did in the toaster oven)
or pan seared ( which I also did, trying to get a crispy crust). All of that,
and the product was still slimy from grinding the salmon and reconstructing it
into patties. The smell, during cooking, was horrendous. The flavor was artificial lemony cardboard. No texture.
Shame on you, Dr. Oz. This tastes terrible. I need to have
my head examined and so do you. If you, reader, try to make this meal, after
all I’ve written, be sure to toast your roll on medium to impart some crispness into
this dish. Even so, this salmon is nothing close to tasty. I don't even think that a pickle would help!
Better yet, buy one 14 ¾ oz can of Royal Red, Wild Alaska Sockeye Red Salmon. Open the can and drain the juices into a small bowl in case you need moisture later on.
Crush everything else up with a fork. I use skin and bones but you don’t have
to. Make it your own! Take them out, if they bother you.
Add one egg, onion and green peppers, celery - if you
like - chopped any size you think best. Add crushed Saltines – enough to dry out the mixture. If you go too far, use some of the salmon liquid
until the consistency is good for shaping a burger. Salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce should be enough seasoning. Form the patties whatever
size you want. Sometimes I make many small ones; sometimes I form them into
fewer, larger pieces. Handle them gingerly. This is not beef.
Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan or
work in several smaller batches. You will need a nice medium hot temperature because
the salmon will soak up cooler oil. The first side will brown up nice and fast.
Then turn the burgers with a spatula and fork, so as not to break them up, and
turn the heat down a little. Turn the patties as many times as you need to get
a nice crisp outer surface. Drain on paper towels.
Better still, why not take advantage of the seasonal wild salmon when it's offered in the fish markets and save the canned product until later! Buy twice as much salmon as you need and make the burgers, according to the directions above, from the leftovers. Live it up; wild salmon is seasonal; eat it several times in a row when it's available.
Serve these delicious salmon burgers on toasted buns with
mustard and additional Worcestershire sauce, lettuce and tomato, sautéed onions, anything
you like. I sometimes eat them on a bed of rice, with a side of baked beans!
We need to consume salmon, tuna, various cold water white fish, sardines, and other freshly harvested seafood several times a week as part of a healthy diet! Whatever you do, please don’t add that Sea Pak of Chinese
salmon to your meal plan! I’ll never eat that again. No
way.
