Spicy Bean Burgers

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The Fort St George in Cambridge used to do a spicy bean burger. I can't remember why I first picked it from the menu but I did every time I visited until they stopped doing it. The texture and taste was just stunning and I never thought it was missing meat.

I've tried to replicate it for a while and never come close. Then I saw Kelly's recipe for bean burgers on her site, Chickpeas and Charcoal. Her recipe gives you the basic makeup of the burger but lets you flavour it the way you want and use the beans of your own choice. I therefore was going to use this recipe and add the spicy element to it. I remembered the kidney beans from the Fort St George burger so I was nearly there.

What a good BBQ'd burger needs is some earthiness. Cumin is my spice of choice for this. For the heat, I could have gone with chilli powder or chilli flakes, however I think kidney beans work particularly well with jalapeños.

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 10

Total Time 25

Servings: 4 people

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, British

Ingredients Equipment Method Video Notes

Ingredients

1 tin(s) chickpeas drained
1 tin kidney beans drained
3 tbsp plain flour
4 tbsp fresh coriander chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds crushed but a little chunky
10 slice(s) light brown sugar from a jar
salt and black pepper plenty to taste

For your burger

brioche buns
lettuce shredded
Halloumi cheese grilled, optional
onion(s) Sliced
tomato ketchup or relish
French's American mustard
mayonnaise

Equipment

Grill Temperature

Surfaces

Method

Drain both your chickpeas and kidney beans before adding to the bowl of your food processor.
Add the plain flour, coriander (including stalks), cumin seeds and jalapeños.
Blend these ingredients briefly leaving the mixture very coarse.
Add salt and pepper.
Now blend a little more.
Taste the mixture to check your seasoning. You're safe doing this.
If you're happy with the seasoning then blend a little further but keep it chunky.
Split the mixture into 4 parts and form into 4 patties.
Place these on a lightly floured plate and place in the fridge to firm up for an hour or so.
Get your Egg lit and setup for a direct cook at 180°C.
I cook my burgers in either a cast iron pan, on the half moon cast iron plancha or on the full cast iron plancha. Preheat whichever of these you're going to use.
Put a little oil on the cast iron surface before you add your burgers.
Cook the burgers for at least 5 minutes, without moving them, to allow a nice crisp skin to form.
Flip them after 5 minutes and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Serve them in a bun with your favourite condiments and toppings.

Video

Notes

There are so many ways to stylise your burger. Being a veggie burger I'll skip adding bacon but go for it if you fancy.

My preferences are for some crunchy veg such as shredded lettuce, shredded cabbage and sliced onions. To this I like to add ketchup, Frenches mustard and mayo.