Vegan Tempeh Cajun Burger

Vegan Tempeh Burger

Vegan Cajun Tempeh Burger with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto and caramelized onions

I still love me a good burger…I was brainstorming on how to still appreciate and indulge in a good satisfying burger without the guilt and fat at the end…So 4 hours of thinking led me to this burger! I’m fairly happy with the results…considering I was able to make it vegan, no dairy products at all as binding agents…Me and Tempeh are cool…we are becoming close friends. LOL! The trick to this burger I found was using short grain brown rice and bread crumbs as the binding agents…Someone’s hand was on the burger so I had to take a quick shot…I hope you got a good idea of how it came out….always put your own twist on things…this is encouraged and appreciated! 

Ingredients- (I was cooking in a mass amount on this one to feed up to 24. So some of my measurements may be off to feed about 2 to 3…use your best judgement in spice profile…sometimes cooks just add a little bit of this and that to get the desired result) You can always freeze the burgers for enjoying at a later date if you make more than excepted.  2 patties per burger do the job.

1 to 2 packets of Tempeh ( I am totally in love with the LightLife brand….They make really good products…I would go with them…)

1 ½ cup green bell peppers diced finely

½ red cup bell peppers diced finely

1 ½ diced cup yellow onions

1 whole jalapeno pepper (pitted and diced finely…be careful…use gloves if you rub it on your hands or face…this will give a nice burn to your eyes or skin)

3 cloves of fresh minced Garlic

Cajun Mix: If you have a Cajun spice then that is even better…however I didn’t have one so on the fly I had to think of a “Creole/Cajun spice with help from my cooking bud Anthony. We came up with this:

3 TBSP of Garlic Powder

4 TBSP of Onion Powder

4 TBSP of Chili Powder

3 TBSP of Cayenne Pepper

1 Cup of Vegetable base

2 TBSP of Cumin

½ of a small Tabisco sauce (think the restaurant Chipotle)

1 cup of Short brown rice…cooked and then processed in a Cuisine Art, blender or Robocoupe.  (This is your major binding adjacent…)

1 cup of Breadcrumbs;  (from day old bread or store ready breadcrumbs.  I like the spiced Italian Breadcrumbs found at most grocery stores…adds a nice distinct flavor to it.)

2 TBSP of liquid Smoke (Wright’s is a great brand).  Mostly used in Bar-b-que sauces…This is a major ingredient! It gives depth to the burger…A nice smoky savory effect. Don’t over do it. It’s a strong flavor and you need just a little at the end to top it off….

Crumble the Tempeh into small pieces…sautee all ingredients leaving out the tempeh (reserve your tempeh, brown rice and bread crumbs in another bowl) ….Sautee all your other ingredients in olive oil or margarine….. add the brown rice, bread crumbs and veggies to the tempeh…slowly kneed and grind the mixture until you are able to make patties….I had a reserve of my Cajun mix to ‘ coat’ the patties at the  and then baked them off for 30 minutes….at 350 degrees

Sun-dried  Basil Tomato Pesto

Originally I tried a completely different sauce…a Chipotle Vegan Tofu dressing that was a flop. It just didn’t work with this burger. So I switched it up and went with a Vegan Sun-dried Tomato Pesto that was perfect for it….accompanied by caramelized onions and a whole roasted red pepper.

2 cups of Sun-dried Tomatoes (Soaked in lukewarm water before blending makes them even better)

¼ cup fresh Basil

2 to the 3 fresh cloves of Garlic

½ cup of roasted walnuts (Put the nuts in the oven for 20 minutes…it’s well worth it in the long run…they come out with a nice robust taste at the end)

I cup of Lemon Juice (adds some acidity and tang to it at the end)

Lots of olive oil as you blend all the ingredients to come out with a nice “paste” of a pesto at the end

Caramelized Onions, Roasted Red Peppers and Mixed  Greens to top it off...

Always

Peace. Love. Light.