Burger buns, turmeric tahini sauce, pickled onion, smashed avocado, beetroot relish, lettuce, tomato, extra dill- to serve
Instructions
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large shallow frying pan on medium. Add leek, cumin seeds, ginger, garlic and chilli flakes. Sauté for a minute or two until leek starts caramelizing.
Add chickpea. Increase heat to medium-high. Cook for 3-4 minutes until chickpeas are heated through and the mixture has dried a bit. Turn off heat.
Using a potato masher, mash the chickpeas until you get a coarse mixture.
Add dill, spring onions, zucchini, salt, nutritional yeast, paprika, baking powder, chickpea flour (besan) and breadcrumbs. Mix well using a spoon. Taste the mix and adjust seasoning. The burger mixture should be like a soft but firm dough consistency (if it is too loose, add extra breadcrumbs until you get a dough you can shape into a patty).
Line a baking tray with baking paper. Place pepita seeds in a medium shallow bowl. Take about half a cup of the burger mixture in your hand and shape it into a half inch high patty. Place the burger patty gently on the pepitas. Turn it gently so the pepitas coat the other side as well. Place on the baking paper. Repeat with the remaining burger mixture. You can refrigerate the mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes to 1 hour in order to ensure easy frying
Heat oil in a large frying pan on medium low. Place two patties in the pan. Shallow fry each side for 3-4 minutes until golden. Then reduce heat to low and continue to cook for at least 8-10 minutes on each side, turning gently a couple of times (total time about 16-20 minutes). This slow cooking ensures that your burger patty cooks through and through and that there are no soggy bits in the middle. Remove from the pan when firm, cooked with golden sides and quite dry. Repeat for the remaining burger mixture.
Burgers can be stored in the fridge in an air-tight container (separated by baking paper) for up to 4 days and in the freezer for up to a month.
To serve the chickpea and green garden burger, slice a burger bun in half. Smear some tahini sauce on each side. Add a lettuce leaf to one half of the bun, top with a huge slice of tomato, some pickled onion, a little beetroot relish, more tahini sauce. Place the burger patty on top. Add smashed avocado over the burger patty, top with more relish and dill. Cover the other half of the burger bun and enjoy.
Notes
I don't always roll the burgers in pepitas. Although the pepitas add a nice crunch and nuttiness, they aren't essential.I use Panko crumbs for this recipe and any recipe that requires crumbing or crisping. Panko crumbs are made from crustless white bread and hence are drier than regular breadcrumbs creating. This makes things crispier when cooking.