There was a recent sale on Amazon for an Air Fryer. I had heard about this alternative to deep frying many years ago, but have never experimented. We have been doing a lot of work this year on the Plant-Based diet, so for Earth Day this year, I decided to try this new Vegan Burger Recipe and make home-made Air-Fried French Fries. Here's the recipe:
Peel & slice 12oz of potatoes. Soak in cold water for 30minutes to release extra starch.
Open one 15oz can of Cannelloni beans and rinse. Soak in water dry thoroughly.
Add 1 cup of Farro to a sauce pan and cook in salted water until tender.
Now let's work on the veggies:
1 1/8oz fresh minced garlic
5oz minced onion
3oz shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and diced
4oz fresh spinach trimmed
Use 2 tbsp of Canola oil to sautee the vegetables. Heat oil, add onions. Cook until translucent. Add mushrooms & garlic. Cook until tender. Lastly, add spinach and sautee until well combined.
Ensure that the beans are dried thoroughly. Extra water will make the burgers fall apart or require lots of extra filler to firm up. Puree the beans until a smooth paste.
Add the cooked farro and pulse together again with the blender until you reach the desired texture. I prefer more texture rather than a smooth puree. Mine looks like this:
Now, add the cooked vegetables and mix together
Now, for the seasoning. You can change it up here based on the flavor profiles you enjoy. Here is the seasoning mix I use:
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup umami powder
2 tbsp texas smokehouse seasoning
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1/4 tsp kosher salt -as needed
Combine all seasoning and portion mix into patties. Form into patties. I recommend 4-5oz portions. You'll notice I gave them an extra dredge into some panko bread crumbs because I enjoy the extra texture and it gives the burgers a nice crust. You'll need approximately 1/4 cup
I also use a ring-mold or cookie cutter to make all the patties uniform in shape
Now you're ready to sear the burgers in a cast-iron pan or put on the grill. They also keep very well in the freezer. Put them on a baking sheet in the freezer until firm, then transfer to a tightly-wrapped ziplock bag or food saver.
While the burgers cook, put the fries in the air fryer. Drain the water thoroughly. Add 2 tbsp canola oil and season. I used Lawry's Seasoned Salt. The burgers and fries take about the same time to cook. I cooked in a cast-iron pan and put it in the oven at 350 while the fries cook. It takes about 15 minutes for both. ENJOY!
Here is the nutritional panel for the burger patty itself:
