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Merle O’Neal, known for her self-named YouTube channel, recently shared a video on Jamie Oliver’s famous veggie burger, a vegetarian black bean burger she has made vegan. O’Neal is no stranger to veggie burgers – though she admits she doesn’t usually love them. “Sometimes I feel like I should have my V-card that’s my vegan card, revoked because I don’t like salads and I don’t like veggie burgers,” she says. But with summer in full swing, and grilling season underway, she decided to give Jamie Oliver’s version a try.
In the video, O’Neal walks through every step of the recipe, from prepping vegetables to taste testing the final burger. Along the way, she offers kitchen tips, small tweaks, and plenty of personality. Even if veggie burgers aren’t your thing, this one might change your mind.
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The recipe also makes great use of vegan pantry staples like beans, mushrooms, breadcrumbs, and cashew yogurt – solid inspiration for anyone looking to recreate their own famous veggie burger at home.
You can find the original Jamie Oliver recipe here on the New York Times Cooking website.
Making the veggie burger base
The first step was prepping the ingredients in a food processor. O’Neal starts with a red onion. “I’m going to peel it and I’m going to roughly chop it up and then we’re going to toss it in the food processor,” she explains. She then adds mushrooms, pulsing until finely chopped.
Next, she makes homemade breadcrumbs using torn bread slices. “I don’t know if breadcrumbs make sense to me just because my fear of veggie burgers is always that they’re going to be too dry,” she admits. But she sticks to the recipe and blends the bread down to crumb texture.
She combines everything in a bowl with coriander, salt, and pepper. “Now I’m going to go in with my hands and I’m going to mix this up,” she says. “Cuz I find your hands are a great mixing tool.” She then shapes the mixture into patties.
Shaping and baking the patties
O’Neal forms the mix into four large patties and places them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. “This is going to make way more than four the way I’m doing it,” she says, “but we’ll start with four.” She preheats the oven to 400°F and brushes the patties with olive oil before adding a final sprinkle of coriander.
After baking, she’s pleasantly surprised: “They held together more than I thought they would. And I’m intrigued to see how they’re going to taste.”
Assembling the burger
While assembling the burger, O’Neal realizes she made a small error: “I put all the onion in. I guess I was only supposed to put half of the onion in.” Still, she presses on, layering the bun with vegan yogurt, mango, and a tomato salad. “You’re supposed to do half the onion chopped up and added with this tomato with a little bit of squeeze of lime,” she says.
She tops it all off with the baked patty and some vegan cheese she melted on the bun. “How am I going to fit this in my mouth?” she laughs. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
Try the viral veggie burger yourself
The taste test
The final verdict on the famous veggie burger? “That’s yummy. That’s good,” O’Neal says after her first bite. “The bread makes it nice and crispy and like crunchy. It’s crispy on the outside. It’s chewy on the inside, but cooked through. A nice sweetness from the onions and the nice like savory mushroom flavor.”
She gives it an 8.8 out of 10 and suggests one tweak: “The yogurt on its own for me is not enough. Maybe it’s because it’s vegan yogurt. I think I would probably like make a crema out of it – maybe with like chipotle peppers. Maybe even harissa could be really good.”
Still, she’s impressed. “This is a veggie burger I would be happy to be served at a restaurant,” she says. “I would think someone put some love and care into this.”
A simple recipe with big flavor
What stands out most for O’Neal is the simplicity of the recipe. “It tastes so good for how simple it is,” she says. “A lot of the magic is in the toppings, but the patty itself is actually really really delicious.”
She also appreciates that Oliver makes the effort to include plant-based recipes in his catalog. “That’s cool,” she says. “Great job, Jamie”
This famous veggie burger may have converted a self-proclaimed skeptic and it just might do the same for you.
For more of Merle O’Neal’s vegan recipe reviews check out her YouTube channel.
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