The elusive zucchini disappears again! Put your burger on a bun and don with your favorite condiments. See the Variation Tofu Cheese Burgers for a built-in cheese-boost, and Tofu Nut (Seed) Burgers and Tofu Cheese and Nut Burgers for brain-boosting additions. You can also skip the bun and top with a sauce. The balls can be used with pasta and, of course, for fun sauce-dipping.
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound firm tofu
- 1/4 cup packed, grated carrot
- 3/4 cup packed, grated zucchini
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or ghee
- 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
- 2 tablespoon finely chopped onion
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon dry ground fennel
- 1/4 teaspoon dry ground mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/3 cup whole wheat flour or barley flour
- 2 tablespoon finely chopped Italian parsley
- 3/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- null freshly ground black pepper
- null olive oil for frying
Directions
- Cut tofu, widthwise, into ¼ inch slices; lay them on several layers of paper towel. Put several layers of towel on top, and press out excess moisture.
- Spread carrot and zucchini out on several layers of paper towel. Put several layers of towel on top, and press out excess moisture.
- Heat oil (or ghee) in a frying pan on low heat. Add garlic, onion, basil, coriander, fennel, mustard, and paprika, and cook and stir for 30 seconds. Add carrot and zucchini, and cook for 3 minutes, stirring a couple times.
- Put the spiced veggies, flour, and parsley into a food processor; pulse until just combined and crumbly, not a paste. Break tofu into pieces into the processor; add salt, and pepper. Pulse a few more times to combine, but remain crumbly, not pasty. Form into 5 patties, or 1 inch balls (about 20).
To fry:
Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet on medium-low heat (cast iron works great).
For burgers: Fry about 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until browned. Add more oil if needed. Drain on paper towel. Let rest 5 minutes to firm up.
For balls: In 2 batches, add the balls, toss to coat in oil, and fry, turning about every 2 minutes, until mostly browned. Add more oil as needed. Add some new balls before completely emptying the pan, so oil doesn’t burn between batches. Drain on paper towel. Let rest 5 minutes
to firm up.
To bake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake on a lightly greased, or parchment lined, cookie sheet for 20 minutes. Flip burgers over with a spatula (or toss balls), and bake about 10 minutes more, until brown on both sides. Let rest 5 minutes to firm up.
Variations
Tofu Nut (Seed) Burgers
Add 2 tbsp ground walnuts or 1 tbsp ground sunflower, pumpkin, or flax seeds
Tofu Cheese Burgers
Add 2 to 3 tbsp of crumbled feta or grated Parmesan cheese
Tofu Cheese and Nut Burgers
Add 2 tbsp ground walnuts and 2 tbsp crumbled feta cheese or grated Parmesan cheese