Go beyond the Beyond by gently pounding these fantastically faux burger patties into convincing schnitzels, and if that’s as much prep as you’re up for on a sunny summer day, feel free to skip the cabbage pickle and spicy mayo, and top with store-bought kimchi and good old-fashioned dills and mayo instead. This recipe calls for pickle brine. We suggest getting into the habit of saving the dregs of any pickles you have in one big jar and using it up in recipes—pickled and devilled eggs, salad dressings, brining meats and so on—it’s useful stuff! Easily multiply this recipe for a crowd.
Ingredients
1 cup pickle brine
3 cups shredded cabbage (approx. 1/2 a head)
1 small red onion, finely sliced (approx. 1 cup)
3 tbsp Asian chili garlic sauce or sriracha, divided
1/4 cup free-run egg mayonnaise
2 Beyond Beef burger patties, thawed overnight in the fridge
1/4 cup plain panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup seasoned Italian-style bread crumbs
1 well-beaten free-range egg
1/2 cup oil for shallow frying
2 rolls or other favourite sandwich buns, sliced in half 2 to 4 garlicky dill pickles, sliced lengthways
Method
Make the pickled cabbage first—up to 2 days ahead is fine—by adding pickle brine, cabbage, red onion, and 2 tbsp of the chili garlic sauce to medium saucepan with lid over medium heat. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes covered, then remove lid and continue to simmer for until softened and mostly dry, about 10 minutes. Set aside and let cool, then chill in fridge overnight. Keep any leftovers in covered jar for up to 1 week in fridge.
Spicy Mayo: Whisk together mayo and 1 tbsp of the chili garlic sauce; transfer to small jar and store in fridge until ready to use. Any unused Spicy Mayo will keep in the fridge for several days.
Place the thawed patties between 2 sheets of plastic wrap, and with a rolling pin or wine bottle, begin to gently and gradually pound and roll the patties into thin, flat, wide disks—about the size of a saucer or dessert plate. Once pounded to about 1/4 inch thick, place back into the freezer to set up, about 30 minutes.
Add panko and Italian-style bread crumbs to large plate; add beaten egg to soup plate wide enough to lay schnitzels in flat.
In large skillet over medium heat, add oil. When oil is hot, dip both sides of schnitzel into egg, then into bread crumbs, making sure to coat well by pressing crumbs lightly into schnitzel.
Transfer to skillet and fry until golden on the first side, about 5 minutes, then flip and fry the second side until golden, about 3 to 5 more minutes. Transfer to the buns, then top with mayo, pickles and pickled cabbage, or store-bought mayo and kimchi. Just as tasty at room temperature, these meaty-veggie treats can be wrapped up in waxed paper or reusable beeswax wrappers and enjoyed on the go.
TIP If faux meat isn’t your thing, use eggplant, chicken, pork or veal. The cabbage pickle and spicy mayo will still be delish with whatever you choose!
Recipes, text and food styling by Signe Langford
Photographs by Tristan Peirce
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From Hudson, Quebec, now living in Port Hope, Ontario, Signe is a restaurant chef-turned-writer who tells award-winning stories and creates delicious recipes for LCBO’s Food & Drink, Manna Pro Hearty Homestead, The Harvest Commission, and Today’s Parent; she published her first book – Happy Hens & Fresh Eggs; Keeping Chickens in the Kitchen Garden with 100 Recipes – in 2015.
