So my beloved Boca Meatless Spicy Chicken Patties are back! They didn't actually go anywhere. Boca just made the stupid move, to cut costs I assume, of adding egg whites to their recipe. One of the first things I ate my very first day of my vegan bet was this patty with vegan ranch dressing. This patty helped me to realize it wouldn't be that hard to be vegan. I ate these all the time. I couldn't understand why Boca would suddenly make them not vegan. But thanks to the tons of angry vegans out there, Boca has made it vegan again. Go get some!
Showing posts with label burgers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label burgers. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Boca is back!
So my beloved Boca Meatless Spicy Chicken Patties are back! They didn't actually go anywhere. Boca just made the stupid move, to cut costs I assume, of adding egg whites to their recipe. One of the first things I ate my very first day of my vegan bet was this patty with vegan ranch dressing. This patty helped me to realize it wouldn't be that hard to be vegan. I ate these all the time. I couldn't understand why Boca would suddenly make them not vegan. But thanks to the tons of angry vegans out there, Boca has made it vegan again. Go get some!
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The Burger
Sorry it took me a minute to post this. I got a little overeager with some spaghetti squash I bought and completely neglected to post this recipe. Have you ever tried spaghetti squash? You should.
There isn't much to say about this burger. I summed it up in my last post [[check it out for pictures]]. I'm a little ashamed of how frantic I became in the final hours. Mostly because I won. But maybe the "franticism" is necessary. Time constraints weigh on the best of us, anyway, so I shouldn't be too ashamed. If you don't believe me, watch the food network. Those people go nuts.
[[Spicy Seitan Burger]]
I really like this burger. It packs some heat, and a lot of flavor. I would recommend dressing it how I did: fried onions and Creole cream sauce. Tomatoes would be great, too.
Base:
2 cups finely chopped seitan
1 can black beans, drained and smashed
1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cumin
dash of salt and pepper
Puree:
5 Serrano chilies, chopped and seeded
1 large Chipotle chili in adobo marinade
1/2 tbs adobo marinade from canned chilies
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tbs finely chopped cilantro
1 tbs safflower oil
-- Preheat over to 375 F.
-- Combine all base ingredients in a bowl. Be sure the seitan is finely chopped. If the pieces are too large, the burgers won't hold well. You can leave some whole beans, but try to smash the black beans thoroughly. You may need slightly more whole wheat flour if your mixture seems excessively wet still.
-- Combine all puree ingredients in a blender. Be sure to remove the white part of the Serranos. You can find canned chipotles at Whole Foods.
-- Add the puree ingredients to the base ingredients and combine until they come together. You can test the patties, form some in your hands, and see if they are too wet or dry. If they are too dry you can add more water or oil.
-- Place them on a greased baking sheet and bake them for 30 minutes. Flip them over half way through baking.
-- You can then remove them from the oven and cook them on the stove with a little olive oil. They should be slight solid and easier to handle. If not, leave them in the oven for a little more.
-- Lightly brown each side in an oiled pan, about five minutes each. I wouldn't recommend placing these on a grill as they are slightly fragile.
There isn't much to say about this burger. I summed it up in my last post [[check it out for pictures]]. I'm a little ashamed of how frantic I became in the final hours. Mostly because I won. But maybe the "franticism" is necessary. Time constraints weigh on the best of us, anyway, so I shouldn't be too ashamed. If you don't believe me, watch the food network. Those people go nuts.
[[Spicy Seitan Burger]]
I really like this burger. It packs some heat, and a lot of flavor. I would recommend dressing it how I did: fried onions and Creole cream sauce. Tomatoes would be great, too.
Base:
2 cups finely chopped seitan
1 can black beans, drained and smashed
1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cumin
dash of salt and pepper
Puree:
5 Serrano chilies, chopped and seeded
1 large Chipotle chili in adobo marinade
1/2 tbs adobo marinade from canned chilies
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tbs finely chopped cilantro
1 tbs safflower oil
-- Preheat over to 375 F.
-- Combine all base ingredients in a bowl. Be sure the seitan is finely chopped. If the pieces are too large, the burgers won't hold well. You can leave some whole beans, but try to smash the black beans thoroughly. You may need slightly more whole wheat flour if your mixture seems excessively wet still.
-- Combine all puree ingredients in a blender. Be sure to remove the white part of the Serranos. You can find canned chipotles at Whole Foods.
-- Add the puree ingredients to the base ingredients and combine until they come together. You can test the patties, form some in your hands, and see if they are too wet or dry. If they are too dry you can add more water or oil.
-- Place them on a greased baking sheet and bake them for 30 minutes. Flip them over half way through baking.
-- You can then remove them from the oven and cook them on the stove with a little olive oil. They should be slight solid and easier to handle. If not, leave them in the oven for a little more.
-- Lightly brown each side in an oiled pan, about five minutes each. I wouldn't recommend placing these on a grill as they are slightly fragile.
Monday, July 27, 2009
I'm No Veggie Burger Cook
I can't tell you how many times I cursed this contest, wanted to quit and not show up, thought about punching Andrew in the face for getting me into this. It's one of the most discouraging things when patty after patty crumbles in a pan, won't adhere, or what's worse-- when it works out and tastes like crap.
Vegan burgers have the unique issue of trying to form patties without eggs to hold them together. And from that, I've discovered it's damn near impossible to make a vegan patty without beans. They're the vegan magical clue that binds all. Unless you're a big corporation with isolate soy protein and fancy chemicals. But I'm not.
My first burger was the black bean potato that I posted about a few days ago. I loved that burger, but I think Andrew was right to point out it was too soft. Coincidentally, one of the other contest entries was a Masala Potato Burger, so I'm glad we opted out of this one.
My second burger was suggested by a commenter [[Chris]]-- the vegan dad burger. I've only used this burger as gyro meat, and for whatever reason it failed for me as a burger. They were falling apart, and didn't get that stretchy, meaty texture I enjoy. I topped it like my Gambit hot dog: with creole sauce and fried onions.
Ultimately, I stuck with the gambit hot dog toppings, and made a seitan black bean burger. The road to this burger, however, was paved with many failures.
The night before I had tried making a straight sausage style seitan burger, but my ghetto homemade steamer wasn't getting the job done. I took the ghetto steamer off the stove, and stormed out of the kitchen. I told Andrew I quit and refused to go back for a good 10 minutes. It was about 11 at night, and I wasn't really in the mood for sudden apparatus failures.
I eventually came back, finished cooking the "sausage" seitan, instead boiling it in water like regular seitan. All the flavor and peppers were drained from the it while cooking and it wound up tasting like regular seitan when it was all done. At that point, I was really getting frustrated.
I didn't know what to do. All I had was a can of black beans. For some reason, I didn't want to do a black bean burger. I wanted to do something different. Alas, I chopped up all the seitan into tiny pieces, mashed up some black beans, and pureed a chili paste, pattied them, and baked them.
When they were done, my first two burgers just fell apart in the pan. I was about done with this contest, and began to satisfy myself with the idea that I was just not going to bring a burger. But I couldn't do it . . .
So, in the end, I made second batch, had Andrew help [[because he's awesome]] and he chopped up the seitan super tiny this time, and voila. I could only make 5 burgers, because I was out of ingredients, but they adhered and tasted great.
The contest itself was awesome. I won. I beat what I consider to be three very formidable opponents -- a masala potato, a meatless griller, and an artichoke burger. Check out the Cincinnati Beacon for more on the contest. Thanks again for all your help. The black bean/spicy combo conquered all.
[[I'll post the burger reciple tomorrow, too]]
Vegan burgers have the unique issue of trying to form patties without eggs to hold them together. And from that, I've discovered it's damn near impossible to make a vegan patty without beans. They're the vegan magical clue that binds all. Unless you're a big corporation with isolate soy protein and fancy chemicals. But I'm not.
My first burger was the black bean potato that I posted about a few days ago. I loved that burger, but I think Andrew was right to point out it was too soft. Coincidentally, one of the other contest entries was a Masala Potato Burger, so I'm glad we opted out of this one.
My second burger was suggested by a commenter [[Chris]]-- the vegan dad burger. I've only used this burger as gyro meat, and for whatever reason it failed for me as a burger. They were falling apart, and didn't get that stretchy, meaty texture I enjoy. I topped it like my Gambit hot dog: with creole sauce and fried onions.
Ultimately, I stuck with the gambit hot dog toppings, and made a seitan black bean burger. The road to this burger, however, was paved with many failures.
The night before I had tried making a straight sausage style seitan burger, but my ghetto homemade steamer wasn't getting the job done. I took the ghetto steamer off the stove, and stormed out of the kitchen. I told Andrew I quit and refused to go back for a good 10 minutes. It was about 11 at night, and I wasn't really in the mood for sudden apparatus failures.
I eventually came back, finished cooking the "sausage" seitan, instead boiling it in water like regular seitan. All the flavor and peppers were drained from the it while cooking and it wound up tasting like regular seitan when it was all done. At that point, I was really getting frustrated.
I didn't know what to do. All I had was a can of black beans. For some reason, I didn't want to do a black bean burger. I wanted to do something different. Alas, I chopped up all the seitan into tiny pieces, mashed up some black beans, and pureed a chili paste, pattied them, and baked them.
When they were done, my first two burgers just fell apart in the pan. I was about done with this contest, and began to satisfy myself with the idea that I was just not going to bring a burger. But I couldn't do it . . .
So, in the end, I made second batch, had Andrew help [[because he's awesome]] and he chopped up the seitan super tiny this time, and voila. I could only make 5 burgers, because I was out of ingredients, but they adhered and tasted great.
The contest itself was awesome. I won. I beat what I consider to be three very formidable opponents -- a masala potato, a meatless griller, and an artichoke burger. Check out the Cincinnati Beacon for more on the contest. Thanks again for all your help. The black bean/spicy combo conquered all.
[[I'll post the burger reciple tomorrow, too]]
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Burger Test Kitchen 1: Cajun Potato Black Bean Burger
Thanks for your advice yesterday, everyone. With your suggestions, I decided to do a little twist on the black bean burger. I shredded some potato and added some cajun flavor. I really liked the flavor, but since I don't know what I'm up against, I'm going to keep working so I have several burgers to choose from.
This burger wasn't very spicy at all, in spite of my efforts. The potato gave it some fluffiness like a potato cake which I liked. It tasted more like a black bean burger though. The first burger I tried to cook, I just pattied and cooked in a pan. It worked well, but it was soft in the center, so the next patty I decided to bake it for about 1/2 hour and then cooked it in a pan to give it some crispiness. These would be really good on a grill, too.
It's not winning any beauty contests, but it's pretty good for my first time pattying.
I'm getting sort of burned out on burgers already. After having them for dinner and lunch. Thanks to some great suggestions, I think I know what I'm doing tonight. I want to dress up the burger a bit, too. The patty is a big part of taste, but toppings go a long way too. I'm not sure if this is a pure patty challenge or not. If I can work some topping though, I think I'll do alright.
[[Cajun Potato Black Bean Burger]]
2 medium sized red potatoes, grated
1 can of black beans, cooked, drained
1/4 cup zucchini and carrot, grated
1/2 cup red onion, grated (about 1/2 of a small onion)
1/4 cup finely chopped baby bello mushrooms (about 4-5 mushrooms)
1/4 cup frozen corn
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbs red pepper flakes
1 1/2 tbs cajun seasoning
1 tsp cajun hot sauce
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs tomato paste
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tbs yellow corn meal
1 tbs freshly chopped cilantro
a dash of chili powder
-- Pre-heat your oven to 375 F.
-- Cook and smash the black beans. You can leave some whole black beans, but you want to get a little black bean paste.
-- Add the first set of ingredients to the bowl. You can grate the vegetables using a cheese grater. Mix until fully combined.
-- Divide burgers into 5 patties. Using the palm of your hand, scoop some of the black bean mixture into your hand and work into a flat disc. It will be fairy wet and difficult to mold. Place your formed disc onto a GREASED cookie sheet. Bake on one side about 15 minutes. Flip over and bake the other side for another 15 minutes.
-- When you are done, they should be fairy firm but still soft. You can now grill them or cook them on the stove top to give them a crispy, greasy exterior.
-- They freeze well, too. [[We had them for lunch today!]]
This burger wasn't very spicy at all, in spite of my efforts. The potato gave it some fluffiness like a potato cake which I liked. It tasted more like a black bean burger though. The first burger I tried to cook, I just pattied and cooked in a pan. It worked well, but it was soft in the center, so the next patty I decided to bake it for about 1/2 hour and then cooked it in a pan to give it some crispiness. These would be really good on a grill, too.
It's not winning any beauty contests, but it's pretty good for my first time pattying.I'm getting sort of burned out on burgers already. After having them for dinner and lunch. Thanks to some great suggestions, I think I know what I'm doing tonight. I want to dress up the burger a bit, too. The patty is a big part of taste, but toppings go a long way too. I'm not sure if this is a pure patty challenge or not. If I can work some topping though, I think I'll do alright.
[[Cajun Potato Black Bean Burger]]
2 medium sized red potatoes, grated
1 can of black beans, cooked, drained
1/4 cup zucchini and carrot, grated
1/2 cup red onion, grated (about 1/2 of a small onion)
1/4 cup finely chopped baby bello mushrooms (about 4-5 mushrooms)
1/4 cup frozen corn
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbs red pepper flakes
1 1/2 tbs cajun seasoning
1 tsp cajun hot sauce
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs tomato paste
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tbs yellow corn meal
1 tbs freshly chopped cilantro
a dash of chili powder
-- Pre-heat your oven to 375 F.
-- Cook and smash the black beans. You can leave some whole black beans, but you want to get a little black bean paste.
-- Add the first set of ingredients to the bowl. You can grate the vegetables using a cheese grater. Mix until fully combined.
-- Divide burgers into 5 patties. Using the palm of your hand, scoop some of the black bean mixture into your hand and work into a flat disc. It will be fairy wet and difficult to mold. Place your formed disc onto a GREASED cookie sheet. Bake on one side about 15 minutes. Flip over and bake the other side for another 15 minutes.
-- When you are done, they should be fairy firm but still soft. You can now grill them or cook them on the stove top to give them a crispy, greasy exterior.
-- They freeze well, too. [[We had them for lunch today!]]
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Burger Challenge: I'm in deep
Truth be told, I've never made my own veggie burger patties. And somehow, Andrew's got me up in some semi-official burger cook off on Sunday. It's between this amazing artichoke burger in Cincinnati [[that I've never tasted]] and some Trader Joe's brand burger [[that I also have never tasted]]. His friend Jason swears by the artichoke burger, and in a moment of sheer cruelty [[well, it was out of love of my food]] Andrew claimed that I could make a better one.
Today begins my "burger test kitchen". And even though I have no idea how awesome this burger is that I'm up against, I'm going to try.
And that's where you come in. I'm tettering between a black bean burger or maybe a seitan burger -- but I don't know. Does anyone have any advice? What's your favorite burger? I'll report back tomorrow. Any help is much appreciated.
Today begins my "burger test kitchen". And even though I have no idea how awesome this burger is that I'm up against, I'm going to try.
And that's where you come in. I'm tettering between a black bean burger or maybe a seitan burger -- but I don't know. Does anyone have any advice? What's your favorite burger? I'll report back tomorrow. Any help is much appreciated.
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