“Wholefood burgers don’t try to mimic the texture and bite of a traditional meat burger, but rather are based around whole plant foods, making it a much healthier burger in terms of nutrition and fibre that can be just as tasty as its meat counterpart.” – The Happy Pear
Ingredients
For the flax egg
- 2 tbsp flax seeds, ground
- 6 tbsp water
For the burger
- 1 x 400g tin of black beans, drained and rinsed
- 300g cooked quinoa
- 100g cashew nuts, chopped
- 200g roasted sweet potato, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 red onions, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 tbsp psyllium husks
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- Panko breadcrumbs
Method
- First make a flax ‘egg’. Put the ground flax seeds and water in a small bowl and leave to coagulate for 5 minutes or so.
- Drain and rinse the beans. If you’re using quinoa, cook it according to the packet instructions, then set aside. Finely chop the nuts.
- Peel and finely chop the sweet potato, onions and garlic.
- Heat the oil in a medium-sized frying pan on a high heat. Add the onion, garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mash the beans and cooked veg (including the fried onion and garlic), using a potato masher. Add the quinoa, cashews, binder (the ‘eggs’ and psyllium husks), lemon juice, tamari or soy sauce, cumin and seasoning and mix really well until thoroughly combined. The mixture should be nice and firm and easy to shape into burgers. Taste and adjust the seasoning with a little more salt, pepper or lemon juice if needed.
- Shape into 120g to 150g burgers.
- Heat another splash of oil in a large non-stick frying pan on a medium heat. Dip each burger into the panko breadcrumbs, then add to the hot pan and fry for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until nicely charred and cooked through. (Cook the burgers in batches or in two pans if necessary so that you don’t crowd the pan.)
- Alternatively, you could bake the burgers in the oven. Rub each side of the burgers lightly with oil and place on a baking tray. Bake in the oven at 180°C fan/400°F/gas 6 for 20 minutes, flipping them over halfway through.
- Assemble the cooked burgers with whatever buns, sauces and toppings you like – and don’t forget the fries!
This recipe is an extract from the book Vegan Cooking For Everyone by The Happy Pear, released 9th July 2020.You can purchase this book on Amazon.
