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Vegan Quinoa Burgers Two Ways

Making two of my favorite restaurant burgers at home using quinoa as the "meat"

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, burgers, hamburgers
Servings: 4 people
Author: Michael Monson
Ingredients
For the Basic Burger patties:
  • 1 cup red quinoa (red makes for a more convincing burger)
  • 1 cup water
  • A dash of liquid smoke
  • 2 teaspoons Better Than Bouillon No Beef flavor
  • ¼ cup finely minced onion
  • 2-3 tablespoons chickpea flour
  • A splash of dark soy sauce
For the In-N-Out variation you will need:
  • Basic Burger patties
  • vegan "Spread"
  • Lettuce
  • Tomato
  • Onion
  • Pickle
For the vegan “Spread”
  • 6 ounces firm silken tofu or vegan mayo
  • ¼ cup soy milk or plant milk of choice
  • 3 tablespoons ketchup
  • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
  • 1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
  • 1 tablespoon finely diced dill pickle
  • 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
  • ⅛ teaspoon xanthan gum (optional for thickness)
For the Kalbi Burger variation you will need:
  • Kalbi burger patties instructions below
  • 1 tablespoon Korean BBQ sauce or marinade for every cup of cooked quinoa
  • Green Onions
  • Kim Chee
  • Romaine lettuce
  • Gochujang Mayo
For the Gochujang Mayo:
  • 6 ounces firm silken tofu or vegan mayo
  • ¼ cup soy milk
  • 2 tablespoons gochujang or korean bbq sauce
  • 1 teaspoon korean chili flake or crushed red pepper flake
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vinegar
  • ⅛ teaspoon xanthan gum (optional for thickness)
Instructions
To make the Basic Burger patty:

  1. Add the quinoa, onion, liquid smoke, water and Bouillon to an electric pressure cooker and cook on high pressure for one minute. Let the pressure release naturally. Test your quinoa. You want it to be almost overdone. If if feels like it has too much bite, turn your pressure cooker to the saute setting and cook it until it is more tender (adding more water if necessary). Strain out any extra liquid and place add the quinoa to a medium sized bowl.

  2. Add a splash of dark soy sauce, and stir to taste. This will be the last time you will be able to adjust the seasonings before it’s cooked. Raw garbanzo bean flour has a bitter taste, so you don’t want to sample it after you add that in. How is it? Does it have a solid flavor that makes you want to eat more? Add more salt or soy sauce if you feel it needs a bit more flavor.
  3. Stir in the chickpea flour and form a paste. You want the mixture to be a bit gummy. You should be able to form it into a ball that mostly holds its shape.
  4. Place a nonstick pan on medium heat, and add a bit of oil if you don’t trust your pant to be completely nonstick. Using an ice-cream scoop, drop a portion of the batter into the pan. If you have a ring mold, or the lit of a mason jar, use that to serve as a guide as you press the batter down into a burger shape. Let the patty cook on one side until you are able to flip it. Let it cook on the other side until you can touch the center of the patty and it feels like it’s firm all the way through. Repeat.
  5. You can make all of the patties in advance and store in the fridge or freezer. They save very well.
To make the vegan "Spread"

  1. Combine everything but the pickles and the relish into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add in the pickles and relish and stir to incorporate.

To make the Gochujang Mayo:

  1. Add the ingredients into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

To make the Kalbi variation:
  1. Prepare the quinoa as you would for the basic burger. Instead of adding the soy sauce, add 1 tablespoon of korean bbq sauce for every 1 cup of cooked quinoa. Taste before adding the chickpea flour to see if it needs more. This will be the last time you will be able to adjust the seasonings before it’s cooked. Raw garbanzo bean flour has a bitter taste, so you don’t want to sample it after you add that in.
  2. Stir in the chickpea flour and form a paste. You want the mixture to be a bit gummy. You should be able to form it into a ball that mostly holds its shape.
  3. Place a nonstick pan on medium heat, and add a bit of oil if you don’t trust your pant to be completely nonstick. Using an ice-cream scoop, drop a portion of the batter into the pan. If you have a ring mold, or the lit of a mason jar, use that to serve as a guide as you press the batter down into a burger shape. Let the patty cook on one side until you are able to flip it. Let it cook on the other side until you can touch the center of the patty and it feels like it’s firm all the way through. Repeat.