Knowledge Base > Eric Wynkoop - Open Office Hours

Open Office Hours

Eric Wynkoop - Open Office Hours

This event was on Tuesday, November 29, 2022 at 11:00 am Pacific, 2:00 pm Eastern

Join Chef Eric Wynkoop in his virtual office as he welcomes all of your questions. This event was created for you and we encourage you to ask anything – from cooking techniques to co… Read More.

Recorded

Question:

When I use a simple recipe for a burger made of beans and rice, the finished product always falls apart too easily. Should I use an egg replacer like chia or flax seed or should I bake the burgers longer or at a higher temperature?

— Roy Doernhofer

Answer:

yes when we make plant-based burgers with Whole Food. Okay, so I'm not talking about these, you know high tech burgers that really mimic ground beef. But rather Whole Food based burger patties, in this case, you know beans and rice would be a perfect example, they tend to be crumbly and so number one kind of keep in mind that they are soft in their finished state in it. They tend to be more delicate because they just don't have that strong binding of effect that animal protein gives a meat Patty, okay. But what we are talking about is the binder and so you can certainly start out with something like ground flaxseed or chia seed to to give some of that stickiness and then you can also consider something like a ground legume flower and chickpea flour called Basin is readily available in Indian or other South Asian grocery stores, and that would be a strong suggestion as well and keep it in mind that these legume powders like chickpea flour will lend some flavor and you need to moderate that so that it's suitable for your palate. Okay, and sometimes that's very simply using less of it or using more herbs and spices to find that balance. Okay? Thank you. Oh second part of your question, excuse me, Roy regarding the temperature, you know, I don't necessarily recommend increasing the temperature because that will dry out the Patty and cause more crumbling at least around the edges. Okay. So maintain the same temp same time. So all the the only variable you're working with is going to be the binder. Okay, and then see how that works for you. Thank you.
Eric Wynkoop

Eric Wynkoop

Director of Culinary Instruction

rouxbe.com