Climatarian Burger Recipe

• 500g mince beef
• 500g grated veg (e.g. mushrooms)
• 100g porridge oats or bread crumbs
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• Salt and pepper
• Spices (we love paprika, garlic, and onion powder, and smoked paprika can offer an extra note of BBQ taste)

1. You can cook these on a flame or bbq, in a frying pan on the stove top, or in the grill/ broiler of an oven. If you’re batch cooking loads for easy mid-week meals, preheat your oven to 200°C.
2. Grate your chosen vegetables. (Mushrooms also do well if minced in a food processor.  Cooked lentils can be used whole or mashed with a fork).
3. Mix your mince beef and vegetables together in a bowl until combined.
4. Add your porridge oats and spices to the bowl and mix well. Try forming a patty. If it holds together, no need to add egg. If it falls apart, add a bit of egg at a time until the mix feels tacky and like it will stick.
5. Form your patty by taking a handful of the mix, making a ball and then slightly compressing it. Remember when these cook they will shrink so look at the bun you want to use and make them slightly larger than that.
6. Once your patties are made, chill them them a bit (15 mins freezer or 30 minutes fridge) so they will hold their shape.
7. Cooking: If you are frying, use a medium-high setting to sear the meat. Cook on a preheated BBQ or a frying pan for 5 minutes from chilled for medium rare, longer for a more well done burger. You only need to flip once; just let it sear. If using the grill or oven, arrange the patties on a grill pan or roasting pan and cook for 10 minutes on each side to sear for a medium rare, or longer for more well done. If you are serving with cheese, add that to the top and return to oven for 5 minutes before serving to melt the cheese.
8. We love to top our burgers with the American classics: lettuce, tomatoes, red onion, and pickles on a bun with your favourite sauce!

You can use any veg in this recipe, including carrots, onions, garlic, celery, or mushrooms. We recommend grating the veg as it creates a nice soft texture that combines well with mince. However, home chefs may find that mushrooms more closely mimic the texture and umami taste of beef. (Many are surprised to learn that mushrooms are more closely related to animals than they are to plants!) We like shitake mushrooms in this one, if you can find them in your home market, as they are more chewy than some other mushroom varieties.

Another fine alternative is to use cooked lentils, which, like red meat, are packed with protein.

You can use almost any breadcrumbs for this recipe, but we find porridge oats add a nice nutty flavour.

Grate cheese into the burger mix or add a dash of soy sauce or liquid smoke for a bit more flavour.