The age old big mac burger. It’s everyones favourite, and some struggle to recreate such a thing, especially making it vegan AND healthy. Challenge accepted. After looking around the internet, and searching some flavours, we did it. We actually did it. We created a VEGAN HEALTHY BIG MAC!
This rich burger is super delicious and so like beef in texture, flavour, and appearance. Mushrooms and grains form the bulk of the burger – the mushrooms are tender, and the grains stay firm. Everything coats together, and the separate elements in the burger hold together nicely which makes it more firm, and not flaky like most veggie burgers. The patty absorbs lots of grill flavor to deliver a charred, smokey patty just like a traditional beefy burger! PLUS each burger is packed with approximately 30g protein – PROTEIN YAY!
Ingredients (makes around 4-6 patties)
- 1 cups walnut halves
- 4 ounces portobello mushrooms, gills removed, roughly chopped
- 1 ounce chilled vegan butter, cubed
- 1 cups cooked freekeh, bulgur, brown rice, quinoa or other grain (I used quinoa and brown rice mix)
- 1/4 cup uncooked regular rolled oats
- 2 tablespoons grated red beetroot
- 2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoons black pepper
- 2 garlic cloves
- Hamburger buns
- Hamburger toppings
Instructions:
- Process walnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Place ground walnuts in a bowl. Process portobellos in a food processor until chopped. Add butter; process just until combined. Add mushroom mixture, grain, oats, beet, mayonnaise, soy sauce, salt, pepper, and garlic to ground walnuts; mix thoroughly to combine. Chill 1 hour.
2. Shape mixture into 10 (1/2-inch- thick) patties. Heat a grill pan over high. Coat with cooking spray/coconut oil/rapeseed oil/hemp oil. Cook patties until heated through and lightly charred, about 3 minutes per side.
3. Remove from pan, and serve on buns with your favourite burger toppings!
- We used hamburger buns from a vegan store (check ingredients, make sure there is no sugar/animal products)
- Our toppings were: iceburg lettuce, flash fried onion cubes, violife cheese, gerkins & tomatoes
It is always handy to have a Dutch-man in the kitchen for cheese slicing!
Sauce
The famous BIG MAC sauce!
- Vegan mayonnaise
- Mustard
- Vinegar
- Salt
- Paprika
- Garlic and onion powder
Mix all of these things together, with the vegan mayo being the biggest ingredient, the rest just a teaspoon full, until you get the desired taste.
Fries
Rustic fries, with a great crispy finish!
- 2 potatoes, chopped into shape
- Paprika
- Garlic salt
- Chilli powder
- Fry the chopped potatoes in a little coconut oil until covered, on a medium heat (this gives you the crispiness)
2. Add the spices, as much as desired, and cover again, stirring in the pan.
3. Transfer to a baking tray, and bake for 30-40 minutes until golden brown and crispy!
The finished product…
