Lemon Garlic Tuna Burgers
March 25th, 2011 § 89 Comments
You know, I was feeling pretty darn proud o’ myself for not having burnt my house down yet. I mean, think about the amount of time I spend cooking and baking and reheating and reheating and cooking and lamenting that I don’t have a blow torch for things like crème brulee and scaring Daniel.
I was smitten with myself.
Until I almost burnt the house down two days ago.
Funny story, really.
I was just pulling a big pot of freshly boiled pasta from the stove, carrying it to the sink with pot holders, to drain. I tossed the oven mitt backward, over my shoulder as one might toss salt for good luck, or a bouquet of flowers at a wedding, and got to work giving myself second degree burns with steam over the hot colander. Burns and open facial pores, I say.
As I’m lifting the colander, draining every last drippety drop of water from those slippery noodles, I smelled smoke. I turned to the stove, saw the pot holder face down on the electric burner, puffing away with grey, billowy haze. I dropped the pasta, immediately picked up the smoking holder, saw three rose-red embers juuuuust flirting with flaming, and screeched to Daniel (seated calmly on the couch),
“OPEN THE WINDOW!!!”
At this point, I’m midway through our apartment, running toward the window with a green, smoking oven mitt, wondering why Daniel hasn’t yet thrown open even one of our nine foot tall windows. Not the time to be knee deep in Xbox games, you know?
Alarmed, Daniel says sternly, “No, Andrea, put it in the sink!”
“Wha-? It’s going to go on fire!!!” (I’m eloquent like that.)
Still holding the smoldering pot holder, I double back to the kitchen, toss it into a sudsy bowl I’d been “soaking” (code for waiting for Daniel to wash it), and flip on the faucet. I watch as it smokes more, but settles, and eventually sinks in the soapy bowl.
And then it hits me.
What exactly did I think would happen to those flickering flames once they were out the window? Would the air extinguish them, would blowing on them with all my might, have helped? Better yet, would anything have been better had the fire occurred OUTSIDE on the narrow patio of my five storied apartment?
And just as I realized my own error, gave myself a stern mental talking to, breathed for the first time in nearly 4 minutes, and forgave myself for such immense stupidity, Daniel approached to reiterate it.
Daniel: “Monkey, you really, really, I mean really, worry me that you thought throwing the smoking pot holder out the window would have been your solution to a fire crisis.”
Me: I know, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking. [For journalistic integrity, Daniel has insisted that I add that I did not, in fact, say this. He would also like me to mention that I instead cried and told him to make dinner for himself....And me.]
Moral of the story: We [read: I] will not be using the stove top for quite some time.
The end.
Tuna Burgers
(makes 4)
2, 6 oz cans tuna fish, drained and flaked 1.98
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs 0.30
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions 0.20
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley 0.20
2 cloves garlic, minced 0.10
1/4 teaspoon each, salt and pepper 0.02
juice of half a lemon 0.35
3 tablespoons sour cream 0.30
1 egg 0.15
4 English muffins 1.25
4 leaves romaine 0.50
1 small tomato, sliced 0.99
___________________________
Total: $6.34, or $1.59 per burger
Combine tuna, bread crumbs, green onion, parsley, garlic, salt, pepper, lemon, sour cream, and egg, and mix well with your hands. Form into 4 patties (they will be wet), place on a greased baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees F. Serve the burgers on toasted English muffins with romaine and sliced tomato. Spread additional sour cream on each burger, if desired.
Nutrition info for 1 burger (not including bun):
Calories: 175.3, Fat: 3.7g, Sodium: 323.4mg, Carb: 9.7g, Fiber 0.4g, Sugars: 0.4g, Protein: 24.2g
DUDE I have a tuna burger recipe going up Sunday! Yours look better than mine
Aaahh great minds think alike! Can’t wait to see yours!!
Wow I’m glad you caught the fire in time! I’ve done that before, but luckily no flame – it was only on the edge of the burner.
Love the idea of tuna burgers – I’ve only done salmon burgers/patties before, but I’ll need to give these a try soon.
Mmm, I just love salmon burgers too!
Haha I’m really sorry but that’s really funny.. sounds like the sort of thing I would do!
Glad to know I’m not the only one who turns into Lucy Ricardo when crises hit! As for a creme brulee torch, count your blessings. My daughter got me one for Christmas a couple of years back and I thought it was the best present ever. Forty creme brulees and twenty pounds later, I had to retire the torch before the Eskimos came to harvest me for blubber! Relieved to hear you’re safe.
he he he… it wouldn’t be normal unless I almost start the kitchen on fire once every few months. No worries. We all have our “oops” moments…
Traumatic, yet hilarious post
I shudder to think what would happen if something caught fire while my husband was playing xbox.
It would probably be curtains for us.
Yum this recipe looks AWESOME. I never thought to use canned tuna for burgers before, but what a great idea!
Geez! You gotta watch yourself girl! These sound delicious!
R.I.P. little pot holder.
Well—now you know what to do (and what not to do!). So, you’re covered for the future
One time on thanksgiving, my mom opened the oven. Somehow the turkey was on fire and she threw the potholder she was holding in the oven and then shut the door. Obviously that didn’t help…. lesson learned!
I can’t wait to make these! Now that spring is here, I suddenly want lemon in everything!
Oh my goodness that is scary, I’m so glad that everything ended up okay!! I would have reacted the same way too haha, seriously, I can see it playing out now…
These tuna burgers are intriguing me, I’m thinking I need to try them
these look delicious! I can’t wait to make them. but one question… I thought in the last post you mentioned there was brown rice in them? did you change that? Or was it accidentally left off?
Hi Katie! Thanks! Yes, when I originally made them I used brown rice, because that was all I had on hand for the Hunger Challenge and didn’t want to break the rules, but I do think bread crumbs would be better. Do whichever you have though!
I love that you tried to throw the fire out the window! Thank goodness for calm men… the last time (and yes, it has happened more than once) that I set the toaster on fire, my husband had to rescue me with the fire extinguisher. In my panic I just couldn;t figure out how to get the thing to work!
I really need to get brave and try tuna. I have never, in my whole life, eaten tuna (except in kindergarten, when I tried it and promptly spit it out). I’ve had a taste aversion ever since, lol.
ahaha, You need to give it another go
I had the same issue. In 2nd grade, I gagged on a bite of my tuna fish sandwich. Didn’t try it again until a few years ago. Now, I love it! Give it a try.
I have actually done this before (with a pan…not a hot pad though)! In my defense I live on the lower level so the window is right by the sink. That way I can spray the fire with the sink’s hose without having flames near me. I love the conversational disclaimer! Great story!
I can’t tell you how good it feels to know I’m not entirely alone in my errors
These look awesome! Quick question, though: you said the day before they had brown rice in them; did you leave it out the second time or is it a mistake it’s not in the recipe?
Hey Tamar! Yes, when I first made them I used brown rice because that’s all I had in my Hunger Challenge grocery cart. But I’d recommend using breadcrumbs because I think they’d hold together better and have a better texture. That said, they still tasted great with rice!
Hi Andrea! New reader here & I am already in love! Your conversation posts are too funny.
Can’t wait to try out this recipe–as a single gal with a very limited budget, this is right up my alley!
Thanks so much! It’s great to meet you!
So sorry to hear about the fire! Hope it didn’t traumatize you
I have a question about the recipe. What does the sour cream do and is it necessary? Can it be substituted for anything else? Thanks a lot!
Hi Sareen! The sour cream gives it a creamy moisture and it also acts as a binder. But you could substitute yogurt, mayonnaise, etc. Try leaving it out if you’d like, I’m just thinking they’ll taste dry. Thanks for asking
[...] Inspired by this recipe! [...]
I made these the other night and my husband loved them so much that he called me on his way home from work the next night asking what he needed to pick up at the grocery store so I could make them again! Needless to say, we loved these, thanks for sharing such a wonderful recipe
Oh Heather, you have no idea how happy this made me! Thank you!!
These burgers are phenomenal! I didn’t think I was going to enjoy them as much as I did! They will definitely be part of our menu at least once a week. Thanks!
YES! Thanks Kelli, so happy to hear it
Normally, I’m not a huge fan of tuna but decided to give this recipe a shot. After all, I’ve loved every recipe I’ve tried on here so far… and it was another success!!! Thanks for sharing!
[...] found the recipe here and I followed it [...]
Making these right now
(in Australia for those wondering why I am up cooking burgers at such a weird time!)
In the oven cooking as I type
Ok, so we have finished dinner and these were awesome!!
Definitely making them again!
It might have something to do with the fact that I really had to go anyway, but I very nearly peed my pants reading this post. Amazing.
LOL. Thanks
[...] Can You Stay for Dinner? – Paired with a hilarious story about a burning potholder and an inconveniently closed window (read the post, it’s awesome), this tuna burger makes me want to throw a party. Legitimately. [...]
These look like they would freeze well, what do you think? I am always looking for recipes that I can store because I am a college student often cooking for one and it’s nice to be able to make something and not let the rest go to waste.
yes! I’ve frozen them before and they always reheat well!
great! i can definitely see myself taking one for lunch wrapped in a tortilla or something!
Ohhh… I was thinking of Salmon Burgers this week but I’m thinking Tuna Burgers now!
I made the Lemon Garlic Tuna Burgers tonight and it was a hit with my boyfriend and I. We are going to make this more often. Thank you for posting this.. So Yummy!!
R.I.P Little pot holder
Great!! So happy you liked them! And yes, I do miss that green pot holder. The other one is so lonely now
[...] yum, y’all. I stole this recipe from Andie and tweaked it a bit since I was low on a few of the ingredients. I will try to post my version [...]
[...] Lemon Garlic Tuna Burgers (adapted from Andie’s, here) [...]
[...] Lemon Garlic Tuna Burgers from Can You Stay For Dinner? [...]
[...] marked many recipes to try out and last night, I gave one a shot. I decided to try her recipe for Lemon Garlic Tuna Burgers which I then served with some cucumber salad and bbq’d [...]
I just recently discovered your blog and I’ll definitely be back! The pictures look amazing and the stories behind them all are even better. I’ll be trying these tomorrow so wish me luck! Check out our fellow Pacific Northwest blog when you get a chance!
oh my gosh I’m so glad i clicked on this to read for that STORY! This is something I would completely do, my husband worries daily about my ability to keep myself alive without intervention. whoops!
Another winner! Made this recipe with a friend tonight and we both loved it. I’ll be back for more…
I LOVE your story…this is totally the kind of thing I do and exactly how my husband responds, while I cry. Glad to know there are others out there like us!
Made these today…omg.
I spread some avocado on both buns, piled on spinach, added some pickles, and melted some dill havarti on top. Heavenly!
I made these tonight and they were great!!! Yum!
These are delicious! Thank you again!
I made these tonight and they are SO good! I haven’t liked tuna made any other way than tuna salad and I thought I’d give these a shot since they looked so pretty. And I’m glad I did.
I have 3 more of your recipes that I’ll be making throughout the week. I expect I’ll have the same type of success with them as well. 
I love your site and as I was looking through some of your recipes and found this story about the pot holder and cracked up because it is my life exactly! From my bf’s name being daniel, to leaving bowls in sink to “soak” (code for waiting for him to clean them…), to a nickname my Daniel calls me (monkey). I thought it was very funny how much this story hit home for me and thought I’d share. Thanks for the recipe too, I can’t wait to try it!
[...] canyoustayfordinner.com via Brandon Liz on [...]
These are seriously SO good. I like them better without the english muffin though- because I think the bread hides their deliciousness. I’d serve them like a crab cake with a veggie side. Just discovered this website and can’t wait to try more recipes.
Wow!!! I made these and my BF was EXTREMELY skeptical…So much that he warned me he would try them but was really not thinking he would like them..And then he ate three. I made some tartar sauce for his, because he doesn’t like mayo plain, but I had mine with a little mayo and lettuce:) YUM!! We had them on toasted sandwhich thins.
I just want to congratulate you on being the first since 1990 to get me to actually finish something with fish in it. I know, I know, it’s so HEALTHY. I try it all the time in the hope that my taste buds will finally relent and quit rejecting it with such voracity– I just hate it. But something [odd] came over me yesterday and I just had to make these for dinner. And I liked them. I didn’t love them, but I liked them. And from a fish-hater, that’s pretty huge. Next time I think I’ll add more garlic (yes, next time!).
Thanks for this recipe! It was super tasty and even my uber-picky 3-year-old ate hers!
These were SO good! And super easy. Add some sliced avocado and a dab of chipotle ketchup (just add some chipotle chili powder to your ketchup) and viola! I will be making these again and I think the cooked burgers will freeze well too. Thanks!
Just made these tonight (ate one and froze the rest) – and SO delicious. I’ve been trying to watch what I’m eating and eat more fish, so these were right up my alley! I had mine on a whole wheat bun with some pesto mayonnaise and baby spinach
I look forward to trying more of your recipes!
[...] 2. Lemon Garlic Tuna Burgers [...]
[...] recipe riffs on another favorite of mine: lemon garlic tuna burgers. They’re wildly flavorful, and even better, a rather cheap meal to make. Be sure to pair the [...]
[...] So instead we had Lemon Garlic Tuna Burgers. [...]
I tried these out, and they turned out amazing!!! Thanks so much for this simple and delicious recipe )
Has anyone tried grilling these on a grill? It seems like these would be a great summertime grill out burger!
[...] we actually made it for dinner again last night. I found the recipe on Pinterest, originally from here, and of course tweaked it so that the ingredients were things that I already had on hand at the [...]
You said that these freeze well, but how do you recommend re-heating? Will these microwave well or do I need to re-bake? I would love to be able to freeze these and take them to work for lunch but don’t have an oven there.
Hi Sara,
I usually throw them in the oven from their frozen state to recrisp them, but I know the microwave will work as well. They’ll be tougher and perhaps drier, but give them 1 minute on high and then assess how much longer you’ll need to heat them
Andie
I just made these tonight, and they were great! Just a quick question though: can they be frozen, to save them for later?
oh! Just saw the comment above me, sorry about that! thanks for the tip
These burgers are fantastic!!
My housemates and I jazzed them up a bit with whole-grain buns instead of english muffins, and chopped up sundried tomatoes in the patties too.
Post and re-post – I love your blog! xo
I have been waiting to try one of your recipes and when I could not think of anything creative for tonight I thought of you immediately. My boyfriend swore he hated tuna but after taking one bite of this burger he reluctantly admitted he loved tuna and wants to have th once a week. Thank you so much for te delicious dinner and the win with my boyfriend
They look great, will be making them tonight.
Henriette Roberts
Denmark
I made these tuna burgers tonight and they were delicious!. They were very easy to make. Just wanted to let you know what a good recipe you have.
Thank you. Thank you. My husband really struggles with weight and these recipes have been delicious and healthy. Plus my kids have loved them all! My husband says this is the best way to use tuna =).
hi!
i made the tuna burgers last night for my kids. they turned out great. we loved them! using whole wheat muffins was excellent. i used a little mayo and dijon on the bread instead of sour cream.
thank you!
Just finished making these burgers and took my first bite… OUTSTANDING! I used a whole wheat thin roll, toasted and some spinach instead of the lettuce (it was all I had) and I can’t tell you how much I love this. These are going to become a staple in my diet plan for sure! Thank you so much!!
[...] Lemon Garlic Tuna Burgers [...]
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Just tweaked these into tuna cups…yummy! Used wonton wrappers and a regular muffin pan baked at 375 for 10-12 mins, until edges were crispy. Added some fresh parmesan cheese and a little mozzarella and subbed greek yogurt for sour cream and cilantro for parsley. Will definitely make them again. YUM!
I love your tuna burgers and tweeked them with fresh mozzarella on the inside and sprinkle on top since my caloric intake is a little higher. It was heavenly. I made it once a month for the last two monthes and I loved it every time. This last batch I made it your way minus the cheese and it was awesome. Thanks so much for helping me decrease my take out/eat out habit.