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We had a bit couscous left over from dinner the night before. Not enough to make a new meal out of but too much to throw away.. So when I spotted the risottoburger van Maura on her blog I had an ephiphany! She used goatcheese in her recipe and because I still had some delicious goatcheese it was only logical I would make a similar burger.
And that’s what I did!
The biggest difference between risotto and couscous is ofcourse the fact that couscous is a lot less sticky than risotto. So that had to be solved first. I added an egg to the couscous (which already had paksoi and onion in it and was cooked in stock) and about 2 tbsp of flour. And to give it a bit more taste too I kneaded some of the fresh goat cheese through the mix. It’s still not the firmest burger you’ll find so be a little careful when handling the burger so it stays together. The egg did make it a lot firmer once baked but before it’s baked it is handle with care.
And because this burger is made entirely out of leftovers I also used our leftover buns. Not the prettiest buns to be honest for a photo but sometimes you’ll just have to do with whatever is on hand. But these – incredibly delicious – burger did give me a lot of ideas for more burgers, so watch and weep! For now I give you the recipe for a real vegetarian couscous burger. It’s delicious with red onion chutney on top, but it can also be served with mango chutney, rhubarb chutney or tomato chutney with onions.
Couscous goatcheese burger with red onion chutney
Ingredients
- leftover couscous mine had paksoi and onion in it and was cooked in vegetable stock approx. 200 gr
- 1 egg
- 2 tbsp of flour
- 50 gr soft goatcheese
- 25 gr pistachio
- 1 tbsp rolled oats
- arugula
- red onion chutney
- goatcheese spread naturel
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220 C.
- Step 1 is making sure you’re couscous is sticky enough to form a burger. I first added one entire egg and one tbsp of flour but the ratio of flour to egg wasn’t good so I added a bit more flour to make it less wet. Depending on your final mixture you’ll have to try it out and see if it stays together if you form a burger from it.
- Knead some of the goatcheese through your mixture and add some other herbs and spices to taste.
- Make two large hamburger of your couscous mixture and put those carefully on a plate.
- Make a mixture of chopped pistachio and oats and roll the burgers through it. Because the egg will have made it quite sticky it will be easy to get it to stick on the outside
- Heat some oil in a frying pan on high and add a bit of butter for browning if you want. Turn the heat down and carefully place your burgers in the pan and leave them alone. Once you start turning them around the chance is big they will fall apart.
- As soon as one side is done, carefully turn around and bake the other side golden and crispy. Add both burgers to a baking tray covered with baking paper.
- Bake for about 15 minutes in your oven. In the meantime gril the buns quickly on a griddle or in the oven. Spread the goatcheese on one side of your buns, ad a bit of rocket and whatever else you feel would be good and put the burger on top. Put a large amount of the red onion chutney on top and eat away!
Disclaimer:
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
Disclaimer: De geitenkaas is verstrekt door Bettine als proefpakket
Now that is one ingenuous way to re-purpose leftover couscous! I always despair over how it clumps together as it cools, but now I see that it might actually be a very good quality indeed. Next time around, I’ll make a point of cooking more than I can eat to play around with this idea.
I’m sure you will manage to make a beautiful vegan version out of it Hannah! Let me know if you make something similar. I was kind of blown away by the awesomeness of it!
I am intrigued by this unique ingredient combination. It is a beautiful looking meatless burger that I must try.
You should definitely try Cathy. It’s a winner as far as I’m concerned and the options are endless!
Fantastic burger! I love couscous and that I can use leftovers to make this. Perfect weeknight supper. That red onion chutney really makes this my kind of treat!
I think that red onion chutney is quite key in this burger. It just wouldn’t be the same without!
Wow!!! With those colours, so vernal and joyfull! I will do it tomorrow… Fantastic!
Let me know how you like it if you do make them!
Very gorgeous photographs.. Awesome!!
Thanks so much Hari!
I don’t think I’ve ever made a meatless burger and the ones I’ve bought have left a lot to be desired but with this; I think it’s something I must try. I love all of the elements; well, except now I need to go make some ‘leftover’ couscous!
It’s funny about the buns but I didn’t notice them until you mentioned them and went back to look. I’ve been there but you did such a great job of making them a part of the background that those stupid wrinkled tops didn’t matter!
You know… Now that I think about it, I’m not sure how many meatless burgers I’ve made so far… I’m assuming salmon burgers don’t count right? And I really think it’s quite delicious so I will be trying soon again too!
Wow. These look totally awesome. What a perfect dish for a meatless Monday!
Yes and I never really knew it would be so easy to use leftovers to make such delicious veggie burgers!