Kitchen Adventures || Bunless Black Bean Bison Burger Bowls
That’s a lot of Bs…. Really the title didn’t need all that, but you might as well right? 🙂 In my quest to make something different each week I was thinking “What can I do that does not involve chicken?” Not that there is anything wrong with chicken… I also did a salsa verde chicken chili (I’ll post that when it gets a bit cooler)… But sometimes you just want to mix it up. I’ve seen folks do hamburger salads and burger bowls in the past, but I can’t tell you the last time I made burgers and we can’t grill at the moment. I also generally stay away from burgers as meal prep because they tend to dry out.
In an attempt to make this more interesting and loaded with flavor, I decided to do a blend of ingredients for the patties. I kept the bowls themselves to only things we’d reheat, but threw in a kale salad on the side for some more veggies and I’m pretty dang pleased with this recipe.
I’d love to do these patties again and grill them at some point, because nothings beats a great grilled burger. For now though, these are a winning recipe and will definitely end up in the rotation!
Black Bean Bison Burgers
INGREDIENTS
**You need 2 lbs of meat. If you want to use all bison, great! You can also do 1 lb bison and 1 lb ground beef (which is what I used) or if bison is not available to you, go with ground beef, but all meat should be a 90/10 lean to fat ration.
2 lbs 90/10 ground meat
1/4 medium red onion – finely diced
1 cup cooked black beans – drained, rinsed and lightly smashed (not completely mushed)
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
pink sea salt & cracked black pepper
olive oil for cooking
For Topping
Lettuce
Tomato
Avocado
Bacon
Ketchup/mustard
Pickle
Onions…. Whatever you want!
INSTRUCTIONS
In a large bowl combine meat, onions, and beans & mix. In a small bowl mix the paprika, onion powder & garlic powder well and then mix with the meat mixture. Portion meat into 5-6 patties, cover and put them in the fridge for at least 20 minutes. Do not skip this step… They will crumble if you don’t chill them!
When you’re ready to cook, heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat for about 2:00. Season the outside of your patties with salt and cracked pepper. Add some olive oil to your pan and let it heat for 20-30 seconds and then add a patty or two to the pan. Don’t over crowd it. Use your thumb to push a little divot in the middle of the patty so it doesn’t plump up.
Cook for 2-3 minutes on one side without moving it so that it forms a good crust! Flip and cook to desired doneness. 2-3 minutes on each side (depending on the thickness of your patty) will leave them about medium rare. I usually like to cook mine a little under if I’m going to package them for prep so that when I reheat in the microwave they won’t dry out.
When they are done you can put them in your bowls alongside whatever you like! I did some simple oven baked sweet potato fries (cut sweet potatoes, coat in olive oil, bake at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes – flipping every 15) When you pack your bowls, only put the stuff you want to reheat in them! Save your toppings to be added after heating.
Serve these up with whatever you’d put on a burger!