Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Vegan Lentil Burgers are a Hit!

I love getting requests for blog posts, so I was super happy to oblige my friend Kate in making and posting a killer recipe for vegan burgers. The key to making vegan or veggie burgers is to make them hearty and flavorful while NOT trying to get them to taste like meat. Because most often, the yummiest part of the burger is the stuff on the meat.

This recipe cost less than $20 and feeds 8!!! Hello-I told you eating healthy could save you money! ;) It also only took me 2 hours to prep, cook, eat and cleanup after this meal. So worth it! Recipe is below and please post comments if you end up making it! Or let me know if you have questions! Enjoy this whole grain, veggie-packed, nutrient-rich dish!

Ingredients
For the burger:
1 cup uncooked lentils
1 cup uncooked brown rice
4 cups of low sodium veggie broth (or just use water if you don't have this)
1 1/2 cups carrots, finely grated
1 1/2 cups uncooked rolled oats-pulsed in a food processor
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp (ish) of low sodium tamari
dash of cayenne

For the bun:
obviously whatever type of bun you want to use, just make it whole grain for added nutrition
horseradish mustard (1/2 cup dijon mustard + 1 Tbsp horseradish)
tomato slices
avocado slices
butter pickles
lettuce

Method
Put lentils and rice in a medium saucepan with 4 cups of water or broth. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Once boiling, turn the heat down to low, cover and simmer for about 40 minutes. Stir every now and then to keep the stuff from sticking to the bottom.
While that's cooking, saute the onions in a saute pan for about 3 minutes. Throw in a bowl. Then add all the other burger ingredients to the bowl. Make sure you do puree the oats beforehand in a food processor. It makes the difference between adding oatmeal versus breadcrumbs to your burger! Keep in mind you can use this "oat-technique" as a substitute for breadcrumbs for a ton of things!
Set aside.
While the lentil mixture is still cooking on the stove, I recommend you chop the tomatoes, avocado and anything else you are adding to the burger once it's finished. Set aside.
When the lentil mixture is finished, add to the bowl of burger ingredients. Mix together well so all the wet and the dry are combined. Let cool.

Once the mixture is cool enough to touch with your hands, start shaping it into burger patties. It should make about 8! Then take those "burgers" and cook them on a griddle or in a sautepan sprayed with cooking spray for about 5 minutes per side to just brown them and give them a crust that will really hold them together.

Once they are browned you are ready to build your burger. What's great is that you really don't have to worry about cooking the burger all the way through to the middle because 1) it's already sorta warm from when you cooked the lentils/rice, 2) it's not meat so you don't have to kill off nasty bacteria, etc., and, 3) it will taste just as good cold!
The key to the flavor-wow in this dish is the garnishes. The pickles and the sauce really bring it home. So on a whole wheat roll, spread the horseradish mustard. Then layer on some pickles. But not just any pickles-be careful what you buy! See below.
I'm not a fan of dyes and chemicals and pretend ingredients in my food-are you? Clearly they are not necessary to make a good pickle-so why do you think company's add them...? Let's vote with our forks!!!

Continuing with the bun-building, pile on the cooked burger, followed by the tomatoes and avocado. Serve and enjoy!!

I ate my burger with a freshly baked sweet potato that I threw in the oven right as I put the lentils on the stove. They take about the same cooking time and you don't have to think about either! Nice way to boost the nutritional value of the meal while adding a side that isn't chips!

And if you ever have any recipe requests-just let me know! Post a comment below or on anyone of my posts and I'll hopefully be able to come up with one! Happy Eating!

No comments:

Post a Comment