Posh vegan burgers
If you thought Made
In Chelsea star Lucy Watson’s main skill was icy glare takedowns, you’d be wrong. The dedicated vegan has also released a book of tasty recipes, Feed Me Vegan (Sphere, £16.99). As it’s World Vegan Month, why not give meat-free a chance with this lip-smacking burger?
Ultimate Cheeseburger Ingredients (serves 4)
● 4tbsp olive oil ● 1 onion, diced ● 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped ● 1 red pepper, deseeded and diced ● 1tsp ground cumin 1tsp salt ● 2tsp hickory liquid smoke ● 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed ● 40g rolled oats ● 250g cooked Puy lentils from a can or pack, drained ● 50g plain flour ● 4 slices vegan Cheddar cheese ● Freshly ground black pepper
To serve:
● 4 wholemeal burger buns, halved and toasted ● Vegan mayonnaise ● 8 little gem lettuce leaves ● Ketchup ● 2 dill pickles, sliced thickly ● American mustard ● French fries
Method:
1 Heat 2tbsp of the oil in a nonstick pan over a high heat. Add the onion and cook for 3-4 mins or until translucent. Add the garlic and red pepper, and cook for 4 mins. Stir in the cumin and salt, cook for 1 min and then remove from heat. Leave to cool. 2 Put the onion mixture into a food processor, followed by the liquid smoke and chickpeas. Pulse until it combines, but is not smooth – you want to retain some texture. Transfer to a large bowl.
3 Put the rolled oats into the cleaned food processor and blend until they resemble a coarse flour. Add this to the bowl followed by the cooked lentils. Mix well and season with black pepper. Divide the mixture into four burgers and chill for 2-3 hours until firm.
4 Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan/gas 6). Sprinkle the flour over the entire burgers.
5 Heat the remaining oil in a non-stick pan over a high heat. Add burgers and cook for 2-3 mins on each side until browned. Transfer to a baking tray and oven cook for 5 mins. Remove, add a slice of vegan cheese, and return to the oven for 2-3 mins.
6 Spread buns with mayonnaise and put two lettuce leaves on the bottom half of each. Top with the burger, ketchup, pickles, the rest of the mayonnaise and mustard. Serve with hot, crispy fries.