http://www.care2.com/greenliving/a-vegan-burger-to-love.html
A Vegan Burger to Love
Veggie burgers are curious critters. Why would I want to eat something (a veggie burger) that is filling in for something that I don’t want to eat (a beef burger)? For me at least, vegetarian proximities of meat dishes seem a bit weird–it’s an emotional issue, I confess, but it is what it is.
But then I had a brainstorm, a detour of sorts around my little veggie burger food neurosis. Don’t think of it as a veggie burger, consider it a bean cake or a seed slab or a vegetable round. I know it’s just a matter of linguistics, but sometimes that’s all it takes.
Anyway. With my new found loophole for veggie burgers I have been looking at store-bought options and trying out different recipes. I am sure there are delicious brands to buy, but many of them have superfluous ingredients and seem pretty processed. (If you have a favorite store-bought brand, please share in the comment field!) I started playing around with different combinations in my kitchen, shooting for a version that didn’t use egg as a binder in order to keep it vegan. I came up with this version, and I think it’s love–just don’t call it a veggie burger.
INGREDIENTS
4 tablespoon ground flaxseeds
12 tablespoons water (or vegetable stock)
2 1/2 cups canned garbanzos, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh herbs (cilantro, basil, dill, etc)
1 onion, chopped
1 small orange, grated zest only
1 cup greens, finely chopped (spinach, dandelion, arugula, etc)
1 cup toasted bread crumbs (whole-grain)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1. Mix the flaxseeds with water or stock until gelatinous. (If you have whole flaxseeds, use this method.)
2. Combine garbanzo beans, flaxseed mix, salt and pepper in a food processor and process until mixture is thick and creamy, but still a little chunky.
3. Pour into a bowl and stir in herbs, onion, zest, and greens. Gently stir in the breadcrumbs and let mix sit for a few minutes. You should have an easy to handle mix that can be formed into 1-inch thick patties–if it feels too dry add a little water, or if too moist add some more bread crumbs.
4. To cook on the stove use a heavy skillet and heat oil over medium heat. Cook patties, covered, for about 7 minutes or until bottoms begin to brown, flip and cook for another 7 minutes.
5. To cook on the grill, rub both sides of patties with olive oil and cook for 4 minutes per side.
Other vegan “burgers” to love:
Beet & Carrot Veggie Burger
Jerk-Spiced Portobello Burgers
Almond & Rice Burgers
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32 comments
add your comment »Meatless substitutes are a great way to get omnivores onto a vegetarian or vegan diet as they do not feel they are missing out. I have been vegan for nearly three years and find that I rarely use these products now. The longer you are vegan the more you learn about food nutritional values and tend to steer away from pre packaged products. A lot are still quite processed. I love making up some chickpea cutlets (recipe From: Veganomicon , by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero). They are great on a burger or as by themselves.
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I like Boca burgers; I find it tastes better if I cover it with red onion, tomato, lettuce, ketchup (or mustard) and toast the sesame roll that I put it on. But I will look for Amy's and try theirs. Thanx, h
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Amalthea, I agree - Amy's are my favorite too! I've tried just about every vegan patty out there, and Amy's Texas Burgers top the list. In fact, I'm very fond of all Amy's products. Great company for vegetarians and vegans alike.
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I substituted some overcooked brown rice (mushy!) for the breadcrumbs, and added lots of mushrooms...it came out awesome!! I am going to try adding some black beans too. I am with you on the burger thing, I just like something to put on bread...although I am eating bread less and less. Thanks for the ideas! :)
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for someone like me who is trying to become more vegetarian and hopeful on to vaeganism, having a substitute for meat makes the transition a bit easier. it's not so much that i need it to taste just like meat, but i need something similar right now.
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Wildwood tofu patties (refrigerated, not frozen) are delicious!
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Wildwood tofu patties (refrigerated, not frozen) are delicious!
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Micoproteins are fungus (mushrooms) and I love the taste of Quorn poducts. This recipe looks awesome!
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I too also find it very off putting and hard to understand vege based products packaged to look like fasiohable meatless products like vege hot dogs i mean really the whole idea is insulting and almost laughable in this sadly prepackaged world
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This sounds really awesome. We've also been playing with the linguistics on the veggie "burger" and I've been slowly incorporating "pattie" into our household lingo. It works if I keep it in my awareness, so I can help everyone else stay more conscious of it too! We too have been looking for more vegan veggie patties...not all are vegan, and we were shocked to find that not all Boca brand were vegan! They do however, have one, ONE "pattie" that is purely vegan. We are slowly migrating to a more vegan diet as well...so we'll be trying more recipes like this one out :) Thank you for the wonderful article and recipe share.
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