As part of our January meatless challenge, I have been trying new recipes and modifying old ones. Going into this, I thought we could just make the same old meals sans meat, and it just hasn't worked out that way. Most recipes that have meat use it for the main dish so creating the same dish without meat leaves you hungry and wanting more. I've had fun experimenting with new dishes and even created a few new household staples along the way.
One thing I have missed desperately however is a big, juicy, delicious... HAMBURGER! I have visions of a bacon hamburger smothered in condiments with a homemade hoagie bun. Yum! But, that, for whatever reason is one thing I haven't allowed myself to cheat with. So, last night in an effort to curb my hamburger craving, I decided to make black bean burgers. I've always heard great stuff and have seen tons of great looking foodie photos which made me want to try them. But, I never thought the family would go for it.
To find a recipe, I headed over to my trusty recipe friend, Allrecipes.com and found a few black bean burger recipes that looked good. They all relatively had the same reviews 4+ stars. The difference between the one I chose and the others were the ingredients. This recipe called for rice which I had on hand, whereas some of the others called for flax seed or items I didn't have.
The recipe I used can be found here. I made a few changes and learned a few things along the way. I found the original recipe to be on the smaller serving size, good for maybe two people. So, I doubled it and made a few other changes.
Makes approx. 6 black bean and rice burgers
Ingredients:
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1.5 cups cooked white rice
1/2 cup bread crumbs ( 1/2 cup cooked wheat berries from long-term food storage)
1/4 cup salsa (home canned salsa)
2 eggs (powdered eggs from long-term food storage)
3 mushrooms, chopped (or 1 can from long-term food storage)
1/2 medium onion, chopped (2 Tablespoons dehydrated onions from long-term food storage)
2 cloves garlic, chopped (approx. 1/2 teaspoon dehydrated or to taste from long-term food storage)
For serving you will need:
Hamburger buns, we used homemade buns (recipe to come)
Sliced cheese (optional)
Condiments of choice (original recipe called for salsa and sour cream, we used what each person liked)
Vegetables of choice such as; lettuce, tomato, onion, etc.
Directions:
1. Mash rinsed and drained beans with a large fork or potato masher
2. Add rice, eggs and breadcrumbs. Mix thoroughly
3. Add salsa and chopped onion, garlic and mushrooms and blend into mixture
4. Using a measuring cup (I used 2/3 C.), scoop up mixture and place on hot pan. Use a spatula to flatten to around 1/2" thickness.
TIP: I found it got VERY crumbly if it was too thin, so the thickness does matter. Also, spraying oil onto the pan made them crispy and hold together much better.
5. Cook burgers approx. 4-5 minutes per side until cooked through and slightly crispy on each side.
6. Place on bun and top with condiments and vegetables of your choice.
We served ours on homemade buns with baked potatoes and it was a very hearty meal.
What did we think?
What I'm sure everyone wants to know first is, did it actually resemble a hamburger? The answer to that is a tough one. I thought it was similar to a burger in how it eats, and surprisingly, it did taste somewhat like beef. My husband didn't love the texture however. He said it would have been better on tortillas than on a bun. Then you have my oldest, who is the pickiest eater ever, and... he ate the whole thing! My daughter on the other hand, didn't like it at all. I loved the taste, I can't quite explain it, but the salsa adds a lot of flavor. So, although it wasn't the same as eating a hamburger, we'd try it again.
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