BBQ Vegan Protein Burger

Summer is officially here! That means barbecues and beach days. Now Barbecue food can either be healthy or unhealthy, but one thing is for sure it is easy to grill up a lean burger or chicken breast for protein when looking for a healthy option. But what if you’re a vegetarian or vegan? Finding healthy, macro balanced protein options at a BBQ can be hard! So this one’s for you! Below we wrote up a healthy and delicious Vegan BBQ burger that will give you 39 grams of protein! Much better than any frozen vegan burger!

Recipe makes 3 burgers Ingredients

1 cup textured vegetable protein (TVP)

1/2 cup cooked red kidney beans

3 tbsp oil

1 tbsp maple syrup

2tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp each: paprika, ground chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano

1/8 tsp liquid smoke

1/4 cup water (or beetroot juice)

1/2 cup vital wheat gluten

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the textured vegetable protein and simmer for 10-12 minutes. Drain the TVP and rinse it a couple of times. Squeeze the TVP with your hands to remove the excess moisture.

Using a large food processor bowl, add the cooked beans, oil, maple syrup, tomato paste, soy sauce, nutritional yeast, spices, liquid smoke, and water. Process for about 20 seconds, scraping down the sides if needed and process again until it forms a purée. It doesn't have to be completely smooth.

Add the TVP and process until the TVP is very finely chopped, and resembles a Bolognese sauce. (No big chucks!)

Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and add the vital wheat gluten. Mix using a wooden spoon first, and then knead with your hands for 2-3 minutes to develop the gluten.

The mixture should be soft and have a slight elasticity. Divide the mixture into 3 and form patties.

Carefully wrap each burger in parchment paper and then in aluminum foil.

Place the wrapped burgers in a pressure cooker (you can stack them) and pressure cook for 1 hour and 20 minutes. You can use a stovetop pressure cooker or an Instant Pot.

Once cooked, unwrap the burgers and let cool for 10 minutes. You can now pan-fry the burgers in a little bit of oil until golden brown on each side.

Burgers will keep for up to 4 days in the refrigerator. They will harden a bit in the fridge but will soften once heated.

Nutrition information Serving: 1 Burger Calories: 394 Carbohydrates: 28 grams Protein: 39 grams Fat: 14.5 grams Fiber: 8 grams