shrimp burgers

Shrimp Burgers

You can make a burger out of anything, as most home cooks know; the challenge is in choosing a central element that delivers superior flavor and texture. Shrimp, like scallops, contain a high amount of natural gelatin, which allows you to incorporate a considerable amount of flavorings without worrying about the burger falling apart. If you purée just a portion of the shrimp, leaving the rest — along with the flavorings — just roughly chopped, you produce a good-textured burger with powerful flavor. Feel free to vary the heat, reducing or increasing the amount of chile. And as with any burgers, these can be seasoned pretty much according to your whim.

Ingredients :

• Lime wedges for serving
• Toasted buns, optional
• Neutral oil, like corn or canola, as needed
• 1/2 cup Cilantro leaves
• Pepper
• Salt
• 1/4 cup Roughly chopped red or yellow bell pepper, optional
• 1/4 cup Roughly chopped shallots, scallions or red onion
• 1 1/2 pounds Peeled shrimp
• 1 slice Ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 Dried or fresh chile, stemmed, seeded and deveined
• 1 Large clove garlic, peeled