Tuesday 23 February 2016

The Vegemite burger and random notes

One of the best fast food burgers I ever had was from Burger King on a trip there in 1996.  They no longer do the burger.  So I am always on the look out for a copy cat recipe.  Hence my interest in the vegan Burger King by Mouthwatering Vegan.  Then I saw the marmite and chili quarterpounder by The Veg Space.  I was inspired to try a similar style burger with vegemite.  It was amazing.

The mixture was both vegan and gluten free.  It was a bit fragile but mostly managed to stay together.  I really loved how much the mixture tasted of vegemite despite me using less than The Veg Space's marmite.  Marmite is a little sweeter after all.  Vegemite is unrelentingly salty as a few unsuspecting foreigners have discovered.  A little is advisable on a piece of toast.  A lot of vegemite works well in the burgers.  It was less discernable in the final product.

When I was a kid we mostly had burgers as an alternative to sausages at a BBQ.  We would eat them on fluffy white bread with lots of tomato sauce.  However occasionally my dad bought a burger with the lot from a fish and chip shop instead of flake (yep shark in batter).  This was before MacDonalds had hit our shores.  Though I am not sure I ever had one of these burgers myself I still see them in fish and chip shops and get nostalgic for them occasionally.

Or perhaps my nostalgia is for when my mum made burgers.  She made me burgers a year or two ago and her way of toasting the buns made me feel quite nostalgic though I don't have strong memories of eating them as a kid.  What I know is that I have a soft spot for the Aussie style of burgers with the lot.  So we ate ours with cheese (Biocheese is a great vegan alternative), tomato, lettuce, tinned beetroot and fried onions.  (With not enough energy to add the egg nor certainty whether pineapple is usually included.)  It also works with toasted bread but it is not as amazing as the buns.

The mixture keeps well in the fridge for a few days.  I made it last week and loved it.  Then I was sick the next day and had to wait to make it again.  We still had some on the weekend.  It was a delicious and easy meal after a hectic day that started with an emergency call to a plumbers and then found us in the afternoon in a supermarket with their EFTPOS and credit card facilities down.  To add injury to insult while we went to get cash from an ATM, someone stole our doughnuts.  We really needed the doughnuts but at least we had the burgers.



Random notes:
  • Sylvia and school friend were chatting.  Friend said she was grown up now and got angry at her teacher.  I asked Sylvia if she did.  No, she replied, she's pretty.
  • You might notice the Aboriginal flag on the burger alongside the Australian flag.  I was so annoyed at so few Aboriginal flags on Australia Day and then noticed there were very few on my blog too and wanted to make more effort to include the Aboriginal flag in Australian posts.  I regret to say this was was drawn up in a hurry while the burger cooked but I hope it will put me on the right path to recognising Aboriginal Australia more.
  • I had a dream a while back about a tofu bacon and vegan cheese sandwich.  Then in that half conscious state between sleep and waking I had visions of the Vegan Past where everyone ate ominvore cheese and bacon sandwiches, the Vegan Present where some have discovered the vegan alternative, and the Vegan Future where everyone ate vegan sandwiches.  Perhaps it is the effect of too many Smith and Deli sandwiches!

I am sending these burgers to Healthy Vegan Fridays #87, Meat Free Mondays and Cook Once Eat Twice.

More vegan burgers at Green Gourmet Giraffe:
Cauliflower burgers (gf v)
Quinoa and sun-dried tomato burgers (gf, v) 
Sweet potato, chickpea and hemp seed burgers (v)
Tamale burgers with mole sauce (gf, v)
Watercourse Foods tempeh burger (gf,v)

The Vegemite Burger
Adapted from The Veg Space and Mouthwatering Vegan
Makes 6 burgers

olive oil
1 small red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
150g button mushrooms, finely chopped
400g tin brown lentils, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup (200g) cooked brown rice
2 tbsp vegemite (or other yeast extract)
1 tbsp tahini
1 tsp old bay seasoning (or other seasoning mix)
1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped
2 tbsp besan flour - more
extra flour, for dusting

Serving suggestion: burger bun, cheese, lettuce, tomato, tinned beetroot slices, fried onions, tomato sauce, and mayonnaise.

Fry onion and garlic in 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat until softening.  Add mushrooms and cook until any juices evaporate and the mushrooms are dark and aromatic.

Meanwhile mash lentils and brown rice.  Mash in the onion and mushroom mixture once it is cooked.  Stir in the remaining ingredients.  Use hands to shape into flat patties.

Fry burgers in a couple of spoonfuls of olive oil over medium high heat for about 5 minutes or until deep brown.  Flip over, being careful as they can be a bit fragile.  Cook another 4-5 minutes until well browned on the other side.

Serving suggestion: Toast burger buns, (butter if you like it) spread one half with tomato sauce and the other with mayo, melt cheese on burger if desired, pile buns with burger, cheese, lettuce, tomato, beetroot, fried onions and eat with a hearty appetite.

On the stereo:
Folk Music in America:  Vol 13: Songs of Humour and Childhood: Library of Congress Collection

24 comments:

  1. This looks much much better than the original!

    VEGETARIAN COURTESYFACEBOOK

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  2. Vegemite is so salty but it's perfect as a seasoning in savoury dishes. I add a teaspoon to my pie filling. Hehe that little story about Sylvia was so funny :P

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    1. Thanks Lorraine - I add it to savoury dishes occasionally though I go through phases - love it in a tomato sauce in tsp rather than tbsps.

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  3. I've had burgers and made veggie burgers with marmite/yeast extract many times, but have never thought of giving it the overall title of Marmite Burger, as I don't think it suffices with a few tablespoons, but I guess its the title that attracts people and get you hits esp. if your a PR blogger. I need to track down some Old Bay seasoning, I've seen it recommended on so many recipes; and I will need to try Vegemite too! - thanks to you.

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    1. Thanks Shaheen - though so cynical about writing titles for hits! Actually I did think of renaming it and calling it the vegemite, rice, lentil and mushroom burgers just seemed ridiculous so I just left it as the vegemite burger. Yes it seemed catchy but also easy to remember. And there was quite a strong taste in the mixture - far more than other savoury foods I add vegemite to

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    2. :) Johanna, thanks for your warm response to my cynical comment. But I do agree with you, your title is better as the other would have been way to wordy. Thanks for being kind x

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    3. Also wanted to say Thank you so much for sharing the Aboriginal Flag, even if it is drawn, its adds something special to your Vegemite Burger.

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    4. Thanks Shaheen - it is a fraught exercise naming recipes sometimes when an ingredient list is not the answer! And thought of your request when I did the ABoriginal flag - will try to put it on my blog a little more

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  4. Sounds lovely - I used to think Marmite was nice until I was introduced to Vegemite...soooo much nicer! Never had it in a burger though...must try that sometime :-) Eb x

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    1. Thanks Eb - I much prefer vegemite to marmite too though I went through a promite phase until sylvia refused to have it and it was easier to have one 'mite

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  5. How fantastic - I really love the sound of this and your burgers look brilliantly hearty. I would enjoy it with vegemite or marmite I think (we have both in the cupboard at any point in time!).

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    1. Thanks Kari - am sure it would work with marmite as well as vegemite

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  6. That's a great burger Johanna. Love the combo of lentils and walnuts. I love walnuts and think they are underused, so great to see them being used extra-creatively!
    I have never had Vegemite..... I sort of assumed it was the same as Marmite, but Australian! We use Marmite to season sauces and soups more than spreading on toast and I always think it is quite salty..... so interesting to hear Vegemite is more salty!
    Good to see the aboriginal flag!! x

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    1. Thanks Kate - I love walnuts and lentils together too - and vegemite is more salty than marmite I think but it is a long time since I tasted marmite. I go through phases of using vegemite in stocks and stews but there is something very comforting about vegemite on toast especially when I have an unsettled stomach

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  7. This burger looks great - and I am pleased to see that you put beetroot onnit :)

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    1. Thanks Cakelaw - it can't be aussie without beetroot :-)

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  8. It sounds really tasty! I've never had vegemite but we have marmite at home and my children love it on toast. I know you can use it to add flavour to things but I rarely think of using it when I'm actually cooking. I need to be a bit more adventurous with it! Thank you so much for joining in with #CookOnceEatTwice.

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    1. Thanks Corina - my little girl loves vegemite on sandwiches for school - and sometimes it is just easier than convincing her to try anything else :-)

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  9. Those look wonderful Bet they have a really good flavour. I do love homemade veggie burgers. Thanks for submitting them to Meat Free Mondays, I featured them :)

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    1. Thanks Jac - they were very flavourful - am sure you would enjoy these

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  10. I might be a bit biased (!) but I think that vegan future sounds pretty good! I still fall down on the side of marmite vs vegemite, but I like them both very much - that burger is right up my street. And good choice of flags too!

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    1. Thanks Joey - I am sure there are a few waiting for that vegan future - as long as it has vegemite and good burgers I will be happy when the day comes :-) Oh and good chocolate cake too :-)

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  11. Just wanted to let you know that I made this last month and added it to the March #CookOnceEatTwice round up. I loved it but used marmite as we don't have vegemite at home. Otherwise I made it the same but with pecans instead of walnuts and a different seasoning mix. Thank you so much for the inspiration as I would never have come up with this mix of ingredients by myself.

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