Mushroom Bean Burger

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Mushroom bean burger because it’s nearly barbecue season – and who doesn’t love burgers? Bean burgers are my favourite, as they hold their shape so well and let’s face it, beans are the most wonderful and versatile ingredient. They go with EVERYTHING. These go really well with a homemade tomato sauce.

INGREDIENTS

• 100G MUSHROOMS
• 1 RED ONION
• 50G CHOPPED COURGETTE
• FRESH THYME LEAVES
• HANDFUL FRESH PARSLEY
• 50G CHOPPED CARROTS
• 250G COOKED BEANS
• 1 BEATEN EGG (OR EGG SUBSTITUTE)
• SALT AND PEPPER
• HANDFUL OF OATS
• 50G FLOUR (I USED RYE)

So, the first thin you’ll need to do it make the bean burger patties. It’s easier to do these first as they’re the most time consuming. Take the cooked (and washed!) beans and pop them into the blender. I used a combination of kidney and butter beans as they’re my favourite, but you could definitely use others! Chickpeas would be delicious here. Just whizz up the beans with the courgette and carrot in the blender until it’s smooth and creamy. My blender is quite awful so this took far too long, but if you have a decent blender it will only take a few minutes. This alone tastes so good – I accidentally stole a few spoonfuls – but this is only the beginning.

Next dice the onion very, very finely in a lightly oiled frying pan along with the mushrooms and a large handful of fresh thyme. Cut them up into very small pieces, as they can’t be chunky in the burger ‘patty’. Once they’re all lovely and brown, add in the bean mixture, along with a handful of oats with some chopped parsley. Season with salt and pepper!

Once everything is all mixed together well, take the pan off the heat and allow it to cool. Once it’s cooled, add the beaten egg and 30g of flour. Pop it in the fridge for about 15 minutes so it firms slightly.

Set the oven to 180 degrees centigrade and prep an oven tray with a small amount of oil.

Once the 15 minutes are up, take the mixture out of the fridge and prepare a cutting board/surface with flour. Rub flour all over your hands and take a large handful of mixture and mould into burger patties. This should make 4 decent sized burgers! Place them all on the oiled baking tray and cook until the tops go a lovely golden brown in the oven.

I’m always on the hunt for the perfect non-meat burger, and these are a pretty good contender. I could eat them all day every day. My next challenge is tofu burgers. I’m slightly in love with tofu burgers.

This is a base recipe, so you can really add and substitute other ingredients. I’m going to give these a go with chilli and lime. I made potato wedges in the oven with these and served them with spinach. Me oh my were they tasty. Always use fresh herbs – they really do make all the difference.

bon appetit