Hi friends!
I’ve been craving burgers lately but didn’t feel like having greasy beef burgers this week. I like those better in the summer months when we fire up our BBQ and they get a nice char on the outside! I wanted to create a vegetarian burger that had more protein and TEXTURE than the tradition vegetarian burgers & then I remembered my new love….Tempeh (pronounced temp-ay)!
Tempeh is fermented whole soybeans usually combined with grains into a mold. It’s chewy in texture, a bit bitter and nutty and has more protein than tofu! I first discovered tempeh during my Bali trip in August 2016. Bali is very vegan/vegetarian friendly and they had this mysterious “tempeh” on their menus everywhere so I decided to give it a whirl! I LOVED it! I love how it has texture in comparison to tofu and is the perfect food to munch on. Later in that trip, we did a cooking class where the teacher fried the tempeh and then put it in a sweet/soy based sauce – amazing!!
This recipe combines tempeh along with more traditional ingredients such as beans and oats to absorb moisture to create a perfect mixture of texture and taste. The best part is the nutritional information and I don’t feel guilty eating more than 1! Please note that these burgers are more fragile than regular beef burgers so please be gentle! A little trick I use is to refrigerate the mixture the night before. By then, the oats have absorbed some moisture by morning, making it easier to make into patties and pan fry.
Below are a few photos to guide you through the steps. If you decide to give these a whirl, please share a picture of your creation using my recipe on Instagram by tagging @balancingandie so I can see them :).
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Notes
Optional: you can refrigerate the mixture after you are done combining everything and make the next day. I find that this way, the oats & flour have time to absorb the liquid and makes them more easier to work with.
Please note that I wouldn't recommend making these on a BBQ as they are quite soft and may fall apart.
If gluten-free you can modify the recipe by using certified gluten free oats, tempeh, flour, soy sauce and worchestershire sauce or omit the sauces all together.
Ingredients
For the Burger
- 1 package (113g), Organic 3 Grain Tempeh
- 1 can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained (approx 540 ml can)
- 1 cup raw, Mini Bellas, Crimini Brown Mushrooms (approx 10 mini mushrooms)
- 1 tsp, ginger root - Raw
- 1/4 cup yellow onion (roughly chopped)
- 1 medium sized garlic clove
- 1/3 cup quick oats
Spices
- 3 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp siracha sauce (or other chilli sauce)
- 1 tbsp worchestershire sauce
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
Add last
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp cilantro (optional)
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients for the burger in a food processor until it recoarse. Do not over mix and turn into a paste. You may need to do this in batches depending on how big your appliance is. Once done, add the burger ingredients to a large bowl.
- Add the spices to the bowl (minus egg, flour and cilantro) and mix.
- Taste at this time. Once you are happy with the taste, add the egg, flour and cilantro and mix again.
- Form into patties and pan fry on medium-high heat for approximately 5-7 minutes.
Nutrition Disclaimer
This information is provided as an estimate only. The below information may change with any substitution you make or variances in brands used.
very nice food. thank you for the recipe