Burger Queen

This is a special occasion for me, as it turns out that the cow and I don’t get along. I haven’t been able to eat beef since I moved back from London. Dairy either. And now I think I know what’s at the root of the problem: the beef in this country is fed some weird hormones that really twist my stomach into knots.

Now that's what I call a proper burger.

Not that I need to eat beef often, for sure, but cheese? Are you kidding me? That’s just cruel. I love cheese, and sorry–none of the vegan stuff comes close. Except the stuff with casein in it, which is a) technically not vegan and b) milk protein, so it still does my stomach in.

But I made a discovery, finally. Cheese made with goat or sheep’s milk does not hurt my stomach! And neither does bison! Oh, happy days! Here’s the super delicious burger I made to test this theory out, and I’m happy to report that it was not just tasty, it was also painless.

There’s quite a bit going on in this recipe, and we used the same fries as before. This time I finally shallow-fried them in a little coconut and grapeseed oil mix, because last time I had to actually stick them under the broiler to get them to brown, and even after that, they still weren’t very crispy. And we’re still loving those Japanese yams for fries.

Patties all prepped and ready for the grill.

Bison Burgers (Serves 2)

3/4 lb. ground bison*
2 tbs. spiced mayo (recipe follows)
3 tbs. panko breadcrumbs

Combine with hands until mayo and breadcrumbs are well distributed through the meat. Shape into two patties; refrigerate until time to grill.

Spicy Mayo

1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. coriander seeds
1.5 tsp. smoked paprika
1 clove of garlic, minced or finely grated
2 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 cup mayonnaise or Vegenaise

Stir together well. Stores for ages in the fridge.

I can imagine that all of you know how to grill a burger, so I’m not going to go into that here. But we used some nice whole-wheat rolls from Whole Foods as buns (toasted on the grill, natch), manchego or cheddar for the cheese topping, a little extra of the spicy mayo on the buns, then a generous handful of arugula on top. Serve with sweet potato or regular wedge-cut fries. We also grilled some romaine head halves and put some of my vegan cilantro dressing on top:

The salad dressing looks a bit weird here, but it's darn tasty!

Vegan Cilantro Salad Dressing

1 handful cilantro
1/2 cup soy yogurt
1/2 ripe avocado
3 garlic cloves
Juice of 1 lime
Dash of agave syrup

Purée everything together—I use a stick blender, but you could easily use a regular blender if you’ve got it. This gets better the longer it sits, and it lasts for about a week in the fridge.

* Vegetarians and vegans: I recommend Boca Burgers to substitute here. They are the most realistic-tasting non-meat burgers I’ve encountered. But please use your own favorite substitute! The mayo can be used as a topping.

Tags: bison, bison burgers, cliantro, coconut oil, coriander seed, cumin, goat cheese, grilled romaine, grilled salad, japanese yams, manchego, smoked paprika, spicy mayo, sweet potato fries, vegan cilantro salad dressing, vegan salad dressing