I had a favourite brand of vegetarian burgers that I’ve been buying since we moved here - Woolworths’ Macro Vegetable and Chickpea burgers. $4 for a pack of four. A delicious bargain.
Since the COVID-19 chaos kicked off, these burgers have been nowhere to be seen in any of Hobart’s Woolworths. They may well still be available on the mainland - perhaps Tasmania simply doesn’t have the vegetarian population to justify shipping them down! And let’s face it, for the last five months, I’ve just been grateful that most of my preferred items have been available. Veggie burgers are easy enough to make from scratch!
In constant pursuit of my no-waste policy, and Tom’s adoration of our “burger and chips night”, an alternative burger was created from leftover cooked brown rice, vegetables and a can of black beans. They are, I am not exaggerating, the *best* burger I have ever made at home. Add all the fixins, a pile of golden oven-cooked chips and you’ll wonder why you’d ever bother going out for dinner at all. Which, let’s face it, many people cannot at the moment. This burger is for all of you.
No-waste veggie burgers
Makes at least 12, depending on size
350g leftover vegetables (I used frozen mixed vegetables defrosted in a little boiling water then drained)
500g leftover cooked rice
1 x 420g can black beans, drained
100g fresh breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons wholemeal plain flour
2 tablespoons garlic powder
Fresh herbs, as much as you like (I used basil, parsley, mint, rosemary and thyme)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
It couldn’t be simpler. Whack everything in a food processor, blitz until the mixture is pureed and the consistency of mince. You shouldn’t need to add any liquid at all, but you can add a splash of water or the bean liquid if it’s too dry and not coming together.
Wet your hands slightly and scoop out handfuls of the mixture and shape into patties. I use my egg rings to get them a fairly uniform shape and size (just spray the insides with cooking spray first).
You can either grill them straight away (if so, I would dust lightly with a little flour, depending on how wet the mixture is) or do what I do and freeze them in a large container with a layer of baking paper between them. I got 14 out of this mixture - two we ate straight away and I froze the remaining 12.
I cook them from frozen in a super hot oven (about 220 C), with the chips. The first side gets 20 minutes, then I take them out of the oven, flip them over and put them back in for 15 minutes. For the last five minutes, I usually put some cheese on top to melt and put them back in the oven for five minutes, together with the brioche buns (which I’ve usually had defrosting most of the day) to warm up.
This method gives the burger a nice crunchy exterior but the inside remains moist. I haven’t tried them on a barbecue yet but summer is just around the corner! I will report back.
“All the fixins?” I usually ask Tom at this point.
“Of course,” he responds.
So our burger fixins are - mayo, whatever relish or chutney I have open (this week it was the fiery apricot chutney I made in February), mustard, sauerkraut, baby spinach or rocket (or any salad leaves), pickled tomatoes, pickled chillies and a bit of basil pesto if there’s any kicking about. All piled on top of the burger in a (storebought) brioche bun. Sounds like a strange mixture but it’s all very delicious!
Enjoy!