Vegan Burger Sliders with Curry Slaw and Fried Onions

Hey there. Welcome back to Pop Kitchen. You may have found your way here due to a certain cute, little vegan burger. I left it there to taunt you. To tease you. It was like shark bait, but, like meatless.

And you couldn’t resist.

Because if there’s anything all smart people know, and you are a smart person, it is that vegan burgers are so the bomb dot com (is that showing my age?)… I can’t even.

And this little vegan burger, an earthy patty made with roasted beets and beans, topped with a creamy coconut curry slaw and crisp fried onions, is exactly what you want to serve as one of the dishes at your New Year’s Eve party this weekend. Because you are friends with all the smart people.

If there’s anything you’ve learned from these NYE recipes it should be that you always need fancy toothpicks on hand.

If there’s anything you’ve learned from these NYE recipes it should be that you always need fancy toothpicks on hand.

Ok, so even if you don’t have a vegan burger fetish, like moi, chances are you have had that moment before. That second of sheer panic when you learn your best friend’s boyfriend went vegan, and of course she’s bringing him to your New Year’s Eve party in 3 days. That you’ve already done all of your menu planning and grocery shopping, obviously. And also, you can literally think of no one thing that is vegan. Guacamole?

And now you need a drink (speaking of drink, I have a champagne cocktail recipe for you tomorrow).

These little beet and bean burger sliders are just the perfect thing for you.

Three reasons:

They are insanely delicious/bright/fun/colorful.
The burgers themselves are just 4 ingredients and therefore easy to make.
Making these for that vegan boyfriend of your friend (and seriously everyone else at your party) will make them feel like you really care about them.

Let’s break it down.

These burgers are meant to be subtle and earthy in flavor. To be upstaged by it’s bright and tangy co-star. The coconut curry slaw is a serious recipe I will be passing down to my grandchildren. Cookbook? The crisp cabbage and shredded carrot give the texture that is the perfect platform for the slightly sweet coconut milk curry sauce to dance on.

The two ingredient vegan fried onions brings it all together with the comfort of home. Like mom’s green bean casserole. But like vegan and healthier and well…a burger.

And, the contrast of the naturally red burger against the bright turmeric tinted slaw is going to get everyone asking, “Ooh, what are those?”

Bonus: they are super tiny so you can def have 2!

Roasted beets. Beans. Breadcrumbs. Ground coriander seed.

With the exception of salt, those are all the ingredients. The best part, they require you to sit around and wait for ingredients to cook (which is my favorite method of cooking) followed by quickly pulsing in a food processor. You form the burgers into small patties and then sit around while they bake in the oven allowing for all the Netflix and chill.

I’ve used this word before: a cinche.

Maybe you are fortunate enough to be an omnivore with no allergies and who loves all the foods. Maybe you have never been out for dinner or to a party and thought, “the only thing here I can eat are some carrot sticks”. So maybe you do not understand how it feels to show up to someone’s house expecting to eat carrot sticks once again and see this delicious dish that loudly screams “ you belong “. Yes, you are [add dietary preference/allergy here] and you matter and should have something delicious to eat.

I fluctuated between vegetarian and vegan for about 12 years. Many of my friends and family have different food weirdnesses. I totally get how it feels to never feel thought about and then to suddenly feel, because the host made you, say, vegetarian chili for instance, like either this person is in love with me or they are the best host ever.

Being a smart host is making sure that all your people have something substantial and delicious to eat.

We’ve already established that you are smart. And I know you don’t like being told what to do. So, in better words, be yourself. Be that smart host who knows a good vegan burger when they see one. The host that is thinking about all the people on their guest list. And even if you find out last minute that a vegan is coming to your party, you don’t have to worry. Because you were going to make these mini vegan burgers anyway. You don’t have to be vegan to know that these are the bomb dot com.

When you try these or the bacon wrapped scallops or the mini earl grey crepes with lavender ricotta I have designed for your NYE menus, let me know! Rate the recipe and share your thoughts and questions in the comments below. Use the hashtag #popkitchen when you post recipes you’ve made on Instagram and tag @pop_kitch. I’ll share my favorite photos on Pop Kitchen’s account.

Recipe

Vegan Burger Sliders with Curry Slaw and Fried Onions

Ingredients

1 cup dry or 2½ cups cooked cranberry beans. Substitute pinto beans if you can’t find this heirloom variety
4 medium beets
½ cup whole wheat panko bread crumbs
1½ tsp sea salt
pinch of ground coriander seed (optional)
4 cups shredded (thinly sliced) savoy or green cabbage
1 large carrot, shredded
½ tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1 Tbsp yellow curry powder
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 small clove of garlic, finely minced or microplaned
¾ cup full fat coconut milk
2 small white or yellow onions
1 cup cornstarch
pure olive oil (not extra virgin) or vegetable oil
sea salt
12-14 mini pitas or slider buns
Pickles for the top!
Tin Foil
Food Processor
Parchment paper

Instructions

Play the new “A Tribe Called Quest” album. If you haven’t listened already you’ll thank me later
Preheat your oven to 350° F/176° C.
Rinse your cranberry beans and add to 4 cups of salted water, cover, and bring to a boil. (Obviously, you can also just use canned beans and skip this step)
While you’re waiting for your beans to boil, cut the tops and the bottoms off your beets. Place them on a large sheet of tin foil, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Combine two ends of the foil and roll together like it was a lunch bag. Then roll the two other ends in. Think hobo pies. Place on a sheet pan.
Once the beans are boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and put the pan of beets in the oven. Cook both for 1 hour.
To make slaw: While the beans and beets are cooking, toss together all the ingredients for the coconut curry slaw. Make sure it is seasoned well. It should taste just a little bit saltier than you’d like as it is going to be the main flavor component of the burger. Allow to chill but not too long. The coconut milk will solidfy, and while it is still delicious, it’s not as sexy looking. Not something you want to make the day before.
To make French Fried Onions: heat a cup of olive oil in a medium sized sauce pan. If you have a thermometer, bring the oil temp up to 350°F/176° C. Cut onions into thin slices so you have lots of little rings. If you have a mandolin, now is a chance to finally use it. Toss onions with cornstarch in a medium sized bowl. Put the cornstarch coated onions into a fine mesh strainer to shake off the extra cornstarch and put in the hot oil (you will need to do this in 3-4 batches). Allow to cook until crisp and edges are turning golden brown. They will be whiter than what you’d expect. Place on a paper towel lined plate and immediately season with some fine sea salt.
When your beans and beets are finished, (beets should be fork tender) drain beans and place in a food processor. When the beets are cool enough to handle, wrap each beet in a paper towel and rub at the skins. They should just fall off. Roughly chop the beets and place in the food processor with the beans. Season with salt and pinch of ground coriander and process until you get a smooth, hummus like paste. You will have to stop and mix several times. DO NOT ADD WATER IF IT SEEMS TOO THICK. It will thin out. Trust me.
Transfer beet and bean puree to a mixing bowl and mix with panko bread crumbs. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes to let the breadcrumbs absorb some of the moisture. (A good pause to check twitter or do some dishes.)
Line the same sheet pan you used previously with parchment paper. Form the burgers into 14 small patties. Think about the size of a donut hole and then nicely flatten it out without tapering the sides. To do this, gently pinch the middle with thumb and pointer finger and rotate around with the other hand, gently pushing in the sides. Place burgers on parchment paper.
Bake for 30 minutes, turning halfway.
Assemble burgers with slaw, onions, and a pickle if you like. A little toothpick just makes these babies even cuter.