Sunday, December 7, 2014

Navy Bean Veggie Burgers

Recently I made bean pie and I had extra beans left over [Read the bean pie recipe]. I decided to make veggie burgers and hummus.

Navy bean burger cooking in iron skillet

For the veggie burgers I originally planned to add black rice and chopped veggies, but when I saw how much it looked like "white meat" I decided to keep it pure and simple and light in color. Plus I like to know what I'm working with before I make too many modifications.

2 cups navy beans in large bowl



I used 2 cups of cooked/prepared navy beans, which is the equivalent of about 1 can, as cans tend to be 15 or 16 ounces. If you're not sure how to prepare navy beans read the bean pie recipe.

Here's the RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS
2 cups cooked/prepared navy beans
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
chopped/diced onion
About 2 tablespoons flour (I used oat flour)

Mashed navy beans with spices, flour, etc.

INSTRUCTIONS
Mash navy beans.
Mix in remaining ingredients.
Grease hands with oil such as olive oil or canola oil.
Form mixture into patties of desired thickness and shape. Use wax paper so patties won't stick.
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes; can be refrigerated overnight.
Fry in oiled skillet over medium-high heat, turning after 3-4 minutes.
Serve on bread or buns as desired.

Navy bean burgers formed, ready to be refrigerated

THE RESULTS
I only got 3 fairly large (but not thick) burgers from the 2 cups of beans. I make black bean burgers often, and I was pleasantly surprised that the navy beans seemed to hold together better than black beans. I refrigerate or freeze my veggie burgers to they'll hold their shape better during cooking. I thought the navy beans might not need refrigeration at all, but they started coming apart a little at the edges during cooking, and were a little hard to flip without breakage. Next time I'll probably chill them longer, or put them in the freezer for at least 15 minutes before cooking. Making them thicker would probably also reduce breakage.

Navy bean burger cooking

As far as the taste, they were pretty good, but a bit bland for my tastes. They reminded me a little bit of tofu, which takes on the flavor of whatever it's seasoned with. I was surprised that the burgers had a certain...crispiness to them. Somehow they reminded me of McDonald's fish fillets in texture. Keep in mind I probably haven't had those for 30 years, but that's what came to mind.



In the future I think I'll probably add more spices and flavors. Black rice, peppers, celery, and maybe even some black beans. Spicy black and white veggie burgers - now that sounds fabulous. I'm now obligated to make them. ☺

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For now, I intend to make hummus with the remaining navy beans. Knowing they can be bland I'll try to make it spicy with perhaps lime and jalepeno peppers. I'll see how it goes and I'll be sure to share the recipe.

ENJOY!!

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