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Today’s recipe brings all the splendor of a lentil burger, yes lentil burger!
Who is not a burger lover?
There are for all tastes, shapes and sizes, with sauces, without sauces, with pickles, without pickles, with lettuce, without lettuce, the hamburger is a democratic boy and each one can eat and enjoy a burger according to their own preferences. I believe this is the reason why I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like hamburgers.
The story tells us that the human being began to eat minced meat in the middle of the 13th century with the Mongol horsemen, and they made this way of eating meat travel to Russia, where it became popular as the well-known Steak Tartare. It is clear that the success of such a delicacy was not closed in just one place, and arrived later, around the 17th century in Germany, more precisely in Hamburg, becoming one of the most loved dishes by the German people. It was nothing like what we know today as a burger, at that time it was a kind of smoked sausage made with minced meat and seasoned with pepper, garlic, salt, nutmeg, wine…
“Salted and smoked food was ideal sustenance for long sea voyages and in the 18th century the ‘Hamburg steak’ made its way across the Atlantic. Ships of the Hamburg-America line brought thousands of immigrants to the New World and soon Hamburg-style beef patties were served from eating stands in New York.”
And that’s how the burger jumped across borders and arrived in the United States! The answer to the question of “Who created the hamburger as we know it today?” it is not consensual, but whatever was the first, he never imagined that he was creating one of the most popular products on the entire world! It is only known that the first hamburger in a bun was officially presented in 1904 during a culinary fair in St. Louis, Missouri.
Today the hamburger is seen worldwide as one of the symbols of North American gastronomy and I dare to say that there is no one who has never tasted one, regardless of their diet or food restriction.
What in its genesis started out being exclusively made from beef, today is made from any other type of meat, and even vegetables! Yes, vegetables! Not to mention the Next Level and Beyond Meat burgers, a vegetable “meat” produced in a laboratory that mimics almost 100% the flavor, texture and nutritional density of an animal meat burger. All in the name of the sustainability of our Planet!
Talking about vegetable burgers, the possibilities for new recipes and new experiences are endless. We have beans, chickpeas, quinoa, soy, mushrooms, peas, beets, cauliflower, … and so the chances of finding at least one that you like is 99.9% (statistical data collected by me over 5 years of experience).
The recipe that I bring to you today is a burger made with brown lentils. Lentils are a super versatile legume, not to mention how practical and quick to cook they are compared to any other legume. They are also a very affordable legume which makes them an excellent item to always have in the pantry for any eventuality.
Rich in iron, protein and fiber, lentils also give us a generous amount of folate, copper, phosphorus and manganese. Did you know that lentils are the legume with the highest antioxidant level? All good reasons for lentils to be part of our daily meals!
EASY | CHEAP | DELICIOUS |SUCCULENT | GLUTEN FREE | VEGAN
For this recipe, you will only need a food processor, which doesn’t even need to be an ultrasonic super food processor, a knife, a cutting board, a medium bowl, a frying pan and a wooden spoon or spatula. Then put all the ingredients in the food processor, grind and voilá! The last part is to give the shape to your burgers and freeze or cook them right after.
So, let’s get to know the ingredients and the recipe so you can roll up your sleeves and make these delicious lentil burgers, which I can guarantee you that everyone will love!
300gr of precooked brown lentils
80gr of cooked brown rice
¼ cup of whole rolled oats
½ roasted red pepper
1 sliced onion
1 finely chopped garlic clove
3 tbspn of roasted pumpkin seeds
1 and ½ tbspn of dijon mustard
1 tbspn of paprika
Black pepper
Salt
Thyme
Toasted sesame seed oil
300gr of precooked brown lentils
80gr of cooked brown rice
¼ cup of whole rolled oats
½ roasted red pepper
1 sliced onion
1 finely chopped garlic clove
3 tbspn of roasted pumpkin seeds
1 and ½ tbspn of dijon mustard
1 tbspn of paprika
Black pepper
Salt
Thyme
Toasted sesame seed oil
1- Start by placing the onion, the garlic and the sesame oil in a frying pan and sauté until you get a soft, golden translucent onion. Remove from the heat and place the onion inside of a food processor.
2- Add the remaining ingredients into the food processor, and grind for about 2 seconds. The mixture should look like crumbly, we don’t want to crush it too much and leave it without texture.
3- Take it out of the food processor and put it in another bowl. Stir/mash with your hands to combine, but be careful, don over mix cause you will destroy completely the texture of each ingredient.
4- Cover the mixture with a plate or lid and take it to the fridge for about 1 hour, or until it is completely cold. This is super important, because during this cooling period, the mixture will become firmer and more cohesive, therefore easier to shape out the burgers.
5- Shape the burgers with the help of a round burger press, or those used to cut mini cakes, placing the mixture inside the ring and pressing with the help of a spoon or even your hands. You can do this molding process using only your hands, but you will spend a little more time.
6- You can cook the burgers right away, but it is better to freeze them and do it the next day, this way you get a more firm and cohesive final result.
7- To cook the burgers you can use a frying pan and fry them with a drizzle of olive oil or sesame oil or you can bake them in the oven at 180ºC for about 10min +/-. If your burgers come from the freezer, let them defrost before cooking.
8- Enjoy your burger with bread and fries, or with some rice, baked potatoes, maybe some veggies…
9- You can keep the burgers for up to 4 months in the freezer.
1- Start by placing the onion, the garlic and the sesame oil in a frying pan and sauté until you get a soft, golden translucent onion. Remove from the heat and place the onion inside of a food processor.
2- Add the remaining ingredients into the food processor, and grind for about 2 seconds. The mixture should look like crumbly, we don’t want to crush it too much and leave it without texture.
3- Take it out of the food processor and put it in another bowl. Stir/mash with your hands to combine, but be careful, don over mix cause you will destroy completely the texture of each ingredient.
4- Cover the mixture with a plate or lid and take it to the fridge for about 1 hour, or until it is completely cold. This is super important, because during this cooling period, the mixture will become firmer and more cohesive, therefore easier to shape out the burgers.
5- Shape the burgers with the help of a round burger press, or those used to cut mini cakes, placing the mixture inside the ring and pressing with the help of a spoon or even your hands. You can do this molding process using only your hands, but you will spend a little more time.
6- You can cook the burgers right away, but it is better to freeze them and do it the next day, this way you get a more firm and cohesive final result.
7- To cook the burgers you can use a frying pan and fry them with a drizzle of olive oil or sesame oil or you can bake them in the oven at 180ºC for about 10min +/-. If your burgers come from the freezer, let them defrost before cooking.
8- Enjoy your burger with bread and fries, or with some rice, baked potatoes, maybe some veggies…
9- You can keep the burgers for up to 4 months in the freezer.
* On the steps 2 and 3 I mention the importance of not grind the ingredients too much. Vegetable-based burgers are incredible if well done, if we grind them too much we turn the hamburger into a thick purée without texture and not pleasant to eat. Remember, we don’t want to make hummus, we want to make hamburgers, so the textures are super important!
* Burgers cooked in the oven always get a little drier than cooked in the frying pan, so don’t forget them in there for a long time
* To toast the pumpkin seeds just put them in a frying pan, wait for it to heat up, and they will start to open like popcorn! The aroma they release is also incredible! Just a few minutes and they are ready.
* On the steps 2 and 3 I mention the importance of not grind the ingredients too much. Vegetable-based burgers are incredible if well done, if we grind them too much we turn the hamburger into a thick purée without texture and not pleasant to eat. Remember, we don’t want to make hummus, we want to make hamburgers, so the textures are super important!
* Burgers cooked in the oven always get a little drier than cooked in the frying pan, so don’t forget them in there for a long time
* To toast the pumpkin seeds just put them in a frying pan, wait for it to heat up, and they will start to open like popcorn! The aroma they release is also incredible! Just a few minutes and they are ready.
Tag @things_about_a_vegan_girl on instagram and hashtag it #thingsaboutavegangirl so we can see all the masterpiece you made!!!
Tag @things_about_a_vegan_girl on instagram and hashtag it #thingsaboutavegangirl so we can see all the masterpiece you made!!!