Creating a delicious and satisfying veggie burger can be quite a feat. Using soy, beans and nuts, most early veggie burgers tended to be dense and dry.
When I was young, my family moved to an Ashram and adopted a vegetarian lifestyle. My mother attempted to create every kind of veggie burger possible. She leaned heavily on walnuts and black beans as the staple. My brother and I had to drown them in ketchup to get them down.
Read Priya’s story on how to elevate traditional burgers
Try Mama Gayle’s Vegetarian Meatloaf Burgers
The homemade veggie burger has come a long way since its humble hippie beginnings. Beans still tend to be the main ingredient, and I do love a good black bean mushroom burger with gruyere cheese, sauteed onions and a slice of heirloom tomato. But branching out with other ingredients have taken this iconic patty to a new level.
Beans still tend to be the main ingredient but branching out with other ingredients have taken this iconic patty to a new level.
Focus on proteins, spices
More people are leaning toward a plant-based lifestyle or adhere to a plant-forward diet and mastering a veggie burger is a great skill. Creating a burger with quality ingredients and protein that tastes good is vital. Beets, mushrooms, rice and quinoa are just some base ingredients that have taken center stage with my burger recipes.
My latest burger creation included pumpkin seeds for an added protein source. Mushrooms and beets give it a subtle earthy flavor. Garlic makes everything tastier, and the spices used in any recipe are key. For Mexican flare, add cumin. For Indian, try curry powder. Using some chopped fresh herbs like cilantro, basil, thyme, parsley and sage will elevate the flavor of a veggie burger. Keeping a veggie burger together is equally important. Egg and breadcrumbs are great for this. For a vegan version, an egg replacer will help bind your mixture. And the kitchen appliance for the job is a food processor. It is the best method to make veggie burgers.
Check the ingredients
A homemade veggie burger will never taste like a beef burger. Store-bought veggie burgers try hard to mimic the taste of a beef burger. Unfortunately, one look at the ingredients of many of these store-bought veggie burgers sends me running for the hills. Many are highly processed, high in saturated fats and have loads of sodium. Some store-bought burgers include ingredients like Methylcellulose, a chemical compound derived from cellulose, also used as a laxative, hexane-extracted soy ingredient, cultured dextrose and modified food starch, to list a few. If you plan to purchase, store-bought burgers check the ingredients. There are some good quality veggie burgers that use organic ingredients.
The toppings
Adding toppings to your veggie burgers is essential. It is after all a vehicle for sauce and toppings. Start with cheese, any type that melts, red onion (I like mine sauteed), lettuce and sliced tomatoes, all are basic toppings.
Sauce is queen when it comes to toppings. Try my favorite a mayo, tamari, and sriracha sauce to top off burgers. It’s a rich, creamy sauce that offers a little kick. If spicy is an issue, leave out the sriracha, and go with a mayo tamari sauce, it is delicious. A homemade ranch dressing is also a delightful way to enhance and elevate a burger.
Grilled veggies atop a veggie burger offer a unique flavor. Charred blistered shishito peppers provide a lovely flavor to a burger. If bread is an issue, use a portobello mushroom, butter lettuce or baked butternut squash rounds as a bun. A freshly baked brioche or sourdough bun will always elevate an excellent homemade veggie burger. Try both recipes in this edition of the Tahoe Weekly, and let me know what you think. Email priya@tahoethisweek.com
Veggie Burgers with Butternut Squash Buns & Special Sauce
From the kitchen of the Priya Hutner · Makes 4-6 patties
3 medium beets, peeled
1 carrot, peeled
½ onion
1 C mushrooms
½ C pumpkin seeds
½ t olive oil
1 C cooked quinoa
1 large egg
1 t kosher salt
½ t fresh ground pepper
1 t garlic powder or fresh minced fine
3 T fresh cilantro, chopped fine
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Layer 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Place pumpkin seeds in food processer with a touch of oil and mix until it’s a paste. Add beets, carrots, onion and mushrooms and pulse until the ingredients are mixed. Place ingredients in a bowl and mix in remaining ingredients.
Form into patties and place on sheet pan with parchment paper sprayed with olive oil spray. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes. Flip over and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
Butternut Squash Buns
1½ t olive oil
½ butternut squash, cut into ¼-inch rounds
½ t kosher salt
Drizzle squash rounds with oil and salt. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Flip and cook until tender. It can go in the oven with the veggie burgers, as well.
Place burgers on Butternut Squash buns and serve with sauce.
Special Sauce
¼ C mayo (Greek yogurt is a great option)
1 t tamari or soy sauce
A dash of siracha sauce
Mix well and serve with burgers.
