Grillable Veggie Burgers
Servings: 6 burgers
Calories: 266kcal
Equipment
- mesh strainer
- large stainless steel covered skillet
- potato masher
- gas grill
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup dry brown lentils
- 3/4 cup dry brown basmati rice
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 cup diced baby bella mushrooms
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1-1/2 cups vegetable broth, low sodium
- 1-1/4 cups tomatillo salsa, homemade or store bought such as Kitchen Garden brand
- 1/4 cup pumpkins seeds (pepitas)
- 1/3 cup garbanzo bean flour (chickpea flour)
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- pinch (or two) of cayenne pepper
Instructions
Preparing the Veggie Burgers
- Measure the lentils and then sprinkle them slowly into a mesh strainer; watch carefully for dirt, pebbles, or other debris. Once you’ve added all of the lentils to the strainer, pick through them making sure you didn’t miss anything.
- Add the measured rice to the same strainer and rinse the lentils and rice well under cold running water. Drain while you continue with the recipe.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat with a bit of onion. When it begins to gently sizzle, add the remaining onion and mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes or until softened. Add the carrots and cook while stirring for about 30 more seconds. Scrape everything from the skillet into a large bowl and set aside.
- Put the lentils/rice, broth, and tomatillo salsa into the same skillet over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat and cover. Adjust the heat, if necessary, to keep at a simmer.
- Cook the lentils/rice for 25 minutes. Stir, shake the pan so the contents even out, and recover. Cook for another 25 minutes.
- Uncover the pan and mash well using a potato masher; some of the lentils and rice will remain intact and that's just fine. Continue to cook, while stirring, for about 5 more minutes or until the excess liquid is evaporated.
- Remove from heat and stir for a few minutes so the steam evaporates and the lentils/rice cool down. The idea is to end up with a cooked, mashed, and fairly dry lentil/rice mixture.
- Transfer the lentil/rice mixture to the bowl with the cooked veggies; add the pumpkin seeds, flour and spices. Stir well with a large spoon; the batter should be fairly stiff (if necessary, add more garbanzo bean flour, one Tablespoon at a time). Transfer the batter to a cutting board.
- Using your hands, shape the batter into an even mound. Cut the mound in half, then cut each half into three equal-sized pieces. Shape each of these six pieces into a thick patty. Secure the edges of the patties by pressing them with the flat edge of a large butter knife.
To Grill the Veggie Burgers
- Preheat the grill for 10 minutes on high heat.
- Brush a bit of refined avocado oil onto each side of the patties so they don't stick to the grates when grilling. If you don't have a pastry brush, use your fingers.
- Cook the burgers directly over the heat, with the lid closed, for 5 minutes or until grill marks form. Flip and cook, with the lid closed, for about 5 more minutes or until grill marks form on the second side.
Notes
- Kitchen Garden's tomatillo salsa is quite spicy. So if you use their brand you can skip the added paprika and pinches of cayenne!
- Baby bella and cremini are different names for the same brown button mushrooms.
Nutrition
Serving: 1burger | Calories: 266kcal | Carbohydrates: 42.8g | Protein: 13.3g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1.3g | Sodium: 93mg | Potassium: 558mg | Fiber: 12.4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 3709IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 39mg | Iron: 4.4mg