Sriracha Bean Burgers

Tears, singed nostrils, 32 oz. of water, copious mint ingestion, and a maniacally giggling sister. That, my friends, sums up my first sriracha sauce experience-- a hot mess with hot sauce.

At a Thai restaurant many moons ago, we spotted the fiery red sauce. Apparently a bottle stamped with a rooster and written in a foreign language was too much temptation. That, and my sister is really good at saying "DO IT! DOOO IT!." 


But I have since bucked up and bought a bottle for myself. I wanted to face my fears, yet in a comfortable burger form. Also, without my totally-lame-yet-loveable sister. And with nostrils back in healthy form.

The original plan was to use ground sirloin. But after gaping at the $7.00 price tag, I went for the .89 cent black beans, instead. I'll put the extra $6.11 towards getting my hair done. Momma needs to bleach her roots!

These are really fabulous burgers-- and the sriracha flavor is pretty tame. It just gives a gentle spicy kick. The trick to making bean burgers is to bake instead of cook them in a skillet. Trying to flip them is basically, well, a crapfest. Baking in the oven crisps the exterior and leaves the middle soft. And I actually added more sriracha to my burger. What's up, taste bud maturation?

Sriracha Bean Burgers   Makes: 2 Burgers
1 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
2 T. chopped green pepper
2 T. chopped carrot
1 green onion, sliced
1/4 t. cumin
1/2 t. salt and 1/4 t. pepper
1/2 t. sriracha sauce
1 egg, beaten
1 T. dried breadcrumbs or panko
1.) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil sprayed with non-stick spray
2.) Meanwhile, add green pepper, green onion, and carrot to a food processor. Process until minced finely. Add beans, salt, pepper, cumin, sriracha, breadcrumbs, and 1 T. of the egg. Process until the mixture is fairly smooth but still has some bean chunks in it.
3.) Scoop out the mixture and form into two burger patties. Place on the baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes, or until the edges are crisp. Serve on a bun with sour cream, lettuce, and a bit more sriracha if you're feeling dangerous.