Vegan burger with plant-based mayonnaise and 'bacon' recipe
This veggie burger has a great, firm texture – no mushiness! It’s packed full of flavour and cooks beautifully in the pan, the oven or even on the grill. The recipe makes four small patties or two large ones if you're feeling hungry.
You could also use shop-bought vegan mayo as it's easy to find in supermarkets but sometimes you just can't beat homemade, and it's so simple.
Ingredients
For the vegan mayonnaise (400ml/14 floz)- 120 ml unsweetened soy milk, at room temperature
- 2 tsp white (distilled) vinegar
- 0.2 tsp fine sea salt
- 0.5 lemon, juice only
- 1 tsp English mustard
- 250 ml sunflower oil
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 0.5 tsp sea salt
- 4 sheets of rice wrappers
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for cooking the burgers
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp yeast extract or miso paste
- 120 g shiitake or chestnut (cremini) mushrooms, finely chopped
- 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
- 1 tbsp brown sauce
- 0.5 tsp mustard powder
- 1 x 400g/14oz can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 125 g cooked rice
- 40 g porridge oats (oatmeal)
- 4 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour
- 1 pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 vegan cheese slices
- 2 seeded burger buns
- 1 little gem (bibb) lettuce, leaves separated and washed
- 1 beef tomato, sliced
- 1 amount of vegan mayonnaise
- 1 amount of ketchup
- 1 amount of crispy bacon strips
Details
- Cuisine: British
- Recipe Type: Burger
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation Time: 35 mins
- Cooking Time: 35 mins
- Serves: 2
Step-by-step
For the vegan mayonnaise
- Add all the ingredients, except the oil, to a blender and blitz to combine. On medium speed, very slowly pour the oil in as you blend, until you have a thick mayonnaise consistency. It will thicken more as it cools.
- Transfer to a container or jar and keep in the fridge for up to 4 weeks.
For the vegan bacon
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC fan/200ºC/400ºF/gas mark 6 and line a large baking tray with greaseproof paper.
- Mix the oil, soy sauce, vinegar, maple syrup, paprika and salt together in a shallow dish.
- Stack two sheets of the rice paper on top of one another and soak in a bowl of cold water briefly to soften them. Using kitchen scissors, cut the sheets into bacon-sized strips.
- Dip each strip into the mixture, coating the paper on each side, before laying on the prepared baking tray. Use a pastry brush, dipped into the mixture, to give them a second coating on the baking tray.
- Bake for 5–8 minutes, watching carefully to make sure they don’t burn. They should be crispy and textured with a good crunch. Serve immediately as they will lose their crunch after a few hours.
For the burger patties
- Heat the oil in a large pan and sauté the onion and garlic for 5 minutes, until softened. Add the balsamic vinegar, yeast extract or miso paste and mushrooms and cook for a further 8 minutes until brown and sticky.
- Add all the remaining ingredients and use a potato masher to crush and combine everything together into a thick, chunky mixture. (You can also pulse the mixture in a food processor.) Shape the mixture into two large or four small patties.
- To cook, heat a frying pan with enough oil to cover the base and fry over a medium heat for 5 minutes on each side, until slightly charred.
- Add the slices of cheese to the burgers whilst they are still warm in the pan and let the cheese melt slightly.
- To serve, lay out the bases of the buns and place a cheesy burger on each. Top with lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, ketchup, bacon slices and any other toppings you like, then pop the bun lid on top and enjoy.
This recipe is from Great British Vegan by Aimee Ryan, £20 White Lion Publishing. Photography by Jamie Orlando Smith.
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