Recipes

Vegan Beetroot and Lentil Burger with Coriander Aioli

This Vegan Beetroot and Lentil Burger with Coriander Aioli is great for those of you who have made the change to a vegan lifestyle, or for when you are just craving a big, filling and satisfying meal. Maybe some of you decided to go vegan for a New Year’s resolution and are finding it difficult to adjust, or are lacking ideas for those proper ‘comfort food’ meals. I decided to create this burger centred around a vegan mayonnaise recipe which I discovered and then developed. This mayo is great plain, or with added variations such as sundried tomato, basil and garlic. Try it out for your Green Monday lunch or dinner today! (Still have no idea what Green Monday is? Head over to this website to find out.)

Vegan Beetroot and Lentil Burger with Coriander AioliFor the burger patties (makes 4 large patties)

1 medium beetroot grated or finely diced
1 tin of lentils, drained
1 T tomato paste
½ and onion, finely diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
¾ cup Ground flaxseed
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Combine all ingredients and mix by hand until the lentils are squashed and the mixture comes together and becomes firm. Heat a pan and fry a little bit of the mix in some olive oil to check the seasoning, adjust if necessary.
Divide into your desired sized patties and work them with wet hands to get them to stay together nicely.

For the vegan mayo (makes about one to 1.5 cups)

1 x 300g carton of plain tofu
1 tbsp water
1 pinch of salt
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 tsp brown sugar
1 heaped teaspoon English mustard
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tsp white vinegar

Place all ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. Check the flavour and add more acid or seasoning if necessary.

For my variation

5 cloves of garlic
1 handful coriander
Roast the garlic in the skin at 180c until soft. Squeeze out of the skin and add to the mayo. Add the coriander and blend until combined.

The mayo needs to rest for about 3 hours so that the flavour can intensify. It can be kept in the fridge for about 3 – 4 days.

To assemble

Fry the patties in olive oil for about 3 minutes a side.
Toast the burger bun and smear with the aioli. Layer it up with lettuce, tomato, red onion, gherkins, your patty, fried mushrooms and brinjal. Basically, go wild with whatever toppings and fillings you want! Homemade basil pesto works well too. Serve with crispy onion rings, chips, and some more mayo for dipping.Vegan Beetroot and Lentil Burger with Coriander Aioli Vegan Beetroot and Lentil Burger with Coriander Aioli Vegan Beetroot and Lentil Burger with Coriander Aioli Vegan Beetroot and Lentil Burger with Coriander AioliVegan Beetroot and Lentil Burger with Coriander Aioli

Alex Poltera

There was probably no way on Earth that Midlands Chef Alex Poltera was not going to end up in a kitchen. Growing up in a household of accomplished and award-winning chefs was bound to have some effect on his upbringing. From a young age, Alex would spend family holidays catching fresh seafood along the Wild Coast.

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Author: Alex Poltera

There was probably no way on Earth that Midlands Chef Alex Poltera was not going to end up in a kitchen. Growing up in a household of accomplished and award-winning chefs was bound to have some effect on his upbringing. From a young age, Alex would spend family holidays catching fresh seafood along the Wild Coast.

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