My Favourite Veggie Burgers

So over the weekend, my Instagram account went kaput and I’m crossing everything I can to make sure it comes back. In the meantime, I’m filling the void in my life and my tummy with these fabulous veggie burgers.

The thing with veggie burgers at many restaurants is that they’re usually deep-fried, dripping with grease and about 95% potato. This does not help the impression that veggie burgers are a big, unsatisfying joke.

But these, are no joke. In fact, let’s take them very seriously.

They’re hearty, packed with good stuff, easy on the arteries and over the top delicious.

These are not ‘as good as meat’ or ‘a great substitute for meat’. No, they are simply veggie burgers but great veggie burgers at that. And I think they would do us good once in a while.

My Mom’s been making these for a long time, I’ve made them a few times and I decided I should share them with you 🙂

Let’s dig a little deeper. The burger patties are made with soya, fresh veggies and just enough potato and breadcrumbs to hold them together. They don’t require more than a spray of oil to be pan-fried and therefore you don’t get up feeling like you ate the whole house.

They are seasoned with smoked paprika and smoked chipotle, oregano, salt and pepper. And that’s it. There’s a whole flavour explosion in there and I don’t even know how.

The burgers are customisable to no end. Add the spices and veggies you love and I promise you can’t go wrong. 

The patties are crispy on the outside, moist on the inside. Topped with sautéed mushrooms and peppers, layered with cheese and lettuce. Sandwiched between whole wheat buns with wholegrain mustard spread generously on them.

You have to squish them down to be able to take a polite bite, and even then stuff will fall out, just like a good burger should behave.

I really, really think you should make these!

Recipe makes about 7 large patties. Some tips and tricks below 🙂

What you’ll need:

For the patties

1 cup soya granules

1 large carrot, peeled and roughly chopped

1 green capsicum, deseeded and roughly chopped

1 medium onion, peeled and roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, peeled

1 medium sized potato, peeled and boiled till soft

2 slices of day-old bread, blitzed to form breadcrumbs

Salt, pepper and your favourite seasonings (Sweet paprika, dried oregano and chilli works great! I’ve used Indian spices with great success too :))

Vegetable oil, for frying

To assemble (go crazy here, add what you like!)

Whole wheat burger buns

Wholegrain mustard

Sliced red and yellow peppers

Sliced button mushrooms

Butter for sautéing

Fresh lettuce leaves

Cheese slices, optional

What to do:

1. Add the soya granules to a saucepan of simmering water, making sure they are well soaked. After about a minute, they will have fluffed up and softened. Drain them and squeeze out as much water you can using the back of a spoon while they’re still in the sieve. Set aside. Squeezing out the water  is important because the veggies will release water too, and a wet mixture will be impossible to shape into patties.

2. In a food processor, blitz the carrot, capsicum, onion and garlic until very finely chopped. You could do this by hand if you have great knife skills 🙂 Large pieces will cause the patties to break, so I prefer relying on a machine to do this evenly.

3. In a large bowl, combine the cooked soya granules, chopped veggies and the boiled potato. Mix it all up with your fingers, till the potato is mashed in and the mixture comes together. Now add the breadcrumbs and finally the spices. Mix well. If you are able to clump the mixture together, great. If not, add some more breadcrumbs. Check for seasoning and adjust as needed. Keep in mind that the mixture will remain on the wetter side, so don’t add too many breadcrumbs. They will hold their shape eventually.

4. Heat a frying pan on medium heat. Drizzle about half a teaspoon of oil and while the pan heats, shape the patties to fit the buns you are using. Cooking time will depend on how thick they are. Don’t worry if the patties are a little moist. Place them on the pan and allow them to cook on each side for about 2 minutes, till well-browned. I suggest cooking these one at a time, because they are fragile and could break if there’s not enough room to flip them. Also helps to let each one get an even heat distribution so they firm up well.

5. When the patties are ready, quickly sauté the peppers in a knob of butter till slightly browned and blistered. Next sauté the mushrooms till golden-brown.

6. Now assemble your burgers. Reheat the patties if required for a few seconds on low heat. Slice the burger buns and toast the halves on the same pan, with a little butter if you like. Spread the mustard on, top with a cheese slice, lettuce, burger patty, and the sautéed mushrooms and peppers. Press down and eat immediately!

The burger patties can be stored in the refrigerator and reheated for great leftovers 🙂