A good shrimp burger should be first and foremost about the shrimp. Unfortunately, many shrimp burgers are more reminiscent of fish-flavored rubber patties or over-seasoned bread balls than shrimp.
We set out to develop a recipe for our ideal shrimp burger: moist, chunky yet still cohesive, and with seasoning that complements the sweet shrimp flavor but doesn’t overpower it.
After early testing we decided we needed a combination of finely chopped shrimp to help bind the burgers, as well as some larger, bite-size chunks. We achieved this texture with help from the food processor.
We wanted to use as little binder as possible, to avoid the soggy, mushy results we’d seen in other shrimp burgers that frequently used a combination of mayonnaise, egg, and bread crumbs. We kept the mayonnaise for the much-needed moisture and fat it added but left out the egg and decreased the bread crumbs.
Some minced scallion and parsley, lemon zest, and a touch of cayenne pepper rounded out the flavor of our burgers.
1 slice hearty white sandwich bread, torn into large pieces
¼ cup mayonnaise
2 scallions, minced
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Pinch cayenne pepper
1½ pounds extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound), peeled, deveined, and patted dry
Vegetable oil
Pulse bread in food processor to coarse crumbs, about 10 pulses. Transfer to small bowl. Do not clean food processor. Combine mayonnaise, scallions, parsley, lemon zest, salt, pepper, and cayenne in large bowl until uniform.
Pulse shrimp in now-empty food processor until some pieces are finely minced and others are coarsely chopped, about 7 pulses. Add shrimp to mayonnaise mixture and gently fold until just combined. Sprinkle bread crumbs over mixture and gently fold until incorporated.
Scrape shrimp mixture onto small baking sheet, divide into 4 equal portions, and loosely pack each into 1-inch-thick patty. Cover and refrigerate patties for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 hours.
Clean and oil cooking grate. Lightly brush tops of burgers with oil, lay them on grill, oiled side down, and lightly brush other side with oil. Cook burgers, without pressing on them, until lightly browned and cooked through, 10 to 14 minutes, flipping them halfway through grilling. Transfer burgers to platter, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.