"1UP Mushroom" Mushroom Burger!

"1UP Mushroom" Mushroom Burger!
Your veggie nerd friends will gawk and awe over this deelish burger with a sense of humor.
Remember all those childhood summers spent playing the NES indoors when it got too hot outside? Summer vacation, BBQs, and the NES. Ah...Those were the days.

When I cook dinner for my friends, I tend to put as much attention to the vegetarian dishes as the meat ones. Why not dress up the veggie burgers to make your guests feel special and have a spiffy time at your barbecue?

This instructable was inspired by Barry Rosenstein's The Red Fez Burger from Build a Better Burger Challenge from the Food Network a few years ago. He colored his top bun red to look like a fez to reflect a Moroccan theme. I thought that was the coolest frakkin' thing ever.

For this instructable, I made my own veggie mushroom patties. They taste like okonomiyaki so it has like a soft fritter/pancake/omelet texture. Okonomiyaki is a Japanese household savory pancake dish where vegetables, meat, and noodles are all mixed together in a pancake batter and placed on a griddle, then topped off with a special soy-based sauce. Feel free to change according to your taste: Boca burger, Gardenburger, meat patties, or just a slab of meat... unless you are Bowser, who desperately needs to cut down his meat intake if he wants to be in good princess-kidnapper shape.

Makes 4 burgers

INGREDIENTS FOR THE PATTY:
half of one white onion
2 large portabello mushroom caps (or 6-8 ounces of whatever mushroom you like)
1 tsp. of kosher salt
1 egg
1 tbs. of pancake mix
1 tsp. of minced garlic
black ground pepper to taste

INGREDIENTS FOR THE FIXIN'S:
4 large slices of mozzarella cheese
1 tomato, sliced at least quarter inch thick at room temperature
4 spoonfuls of pesto
*optional: mayonnaise (I personally hate mayo, but it's like crack to some people

INGREDIENTS FOR THE BUNS
4 *very round* rustic crusty buns. The type I decided to go with are my favorite whole wheat kind.
1/2 tsp. green food coloring
1 tsp. of water
4 large slices of mozzarella cheese for the circle decoration
*optional: I also tried this recipe with basil juice instead of the food coloring in attempt to be more "natural." The green looked good but it made the burger WAY TOO PUNGENT. Whew!

 
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Step 1Prepping the Patties

Prepping the Patties
First, wash your hands!

Then wash your produce!

Washing is important!

If you are deciding to use the portabello mushroom caps, then here's an extra step. As most foodies know, portabello mushrooms, when cooked, turn black and muddy. This is because of the dark gills on the underside of the mushroom caps. They also tend to burn easily and make the whole thing taste a bit burnt and bitter (a little like gasoline). To avoid this, use your fingers and rub off the gills. Do this over a running faucet and the gills come off fairly easily.

Dice! Dice! Dice! Chop the onion into itty bitty pieces. To be exact, I would say into less-than-1/4" rough square pieces. Now, chop the mushroom caps into the same rough size. Add the chopped mushrooms, chopped onion, minced garlic, salt, black pepper, and the olive oil into a bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the egg and the pancake mix together until the lumps are gone. Add it into the mushroom mix.

I know that the pancake mix sounds weird-- usually, people use breadcrumbs, flour, or cornstarch as a binding agent. I personally like the buttery taste of pancake mix. (It's great for making fritters and veggie pakora too!)

Mix the whole thing well until the pancake mix and egg are well incorporated into the mushroom bowl bonanza.
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97 comments
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Dec 14, 2011. 1:46 PMjennabee25 says:
Thank you stressing that one must clean their portobella mushrooms. I've got to try this recipe. :)
Nov 27, 2011. 12:28 AMbulbasaurguy223 says:
I'm gonna try this recipe with chicken patties and chicken tikka patties. i'm a little bit of a Bowser myself :) :) :)
Jun 8, 2011. 11:25 PMldupalco says:
This looks good!

Maybe if I know more Mario and Luigi related foods and recipes, I might get a restaurant!

I'll name it: Super Mario World

Simple, but I think it will attract many gamers.
May 26, 2011. 10:16 AMarticice says:
You should try using mate tea for the green - on the opposite to the food additive(s), it's gonna be light brown first and then will get green (or dark green) after drying out/air contact.
Dec 12, 2010. 9:30 AMdramioneforinfinity says:
I personally don't like mushrooms, so maybe just a meat burger would work. Otherwise, great recipe!
Nov 26, 2010. 1:37 AMrhoddity says:
This is SOOO cool! It's too bad I can't cook worth a damn... Anybody want to make me a 1-UP? =)
Apr 27, 2010. 1:04 PMgeodez says:

*gets hurt*
*eats burger*
"Just what i needed!"

Oct 21, 2010. 9:17 PMMatt W. says:
I laughed so hard...
Nov 6, 2010. 6:02 PMgeodez says:
Yes.
Oct 20, 2010. 10:03 PMveggielife4me says:
I love the mushroom pattie idea, that's pure genius! I HAVE to try it! My gamer boyfriend would freak out if I made him a 1 Up burger!!!
Jul 6, 2008. 2:46 PMheydavis says:
One additional IMPORTANT tip: Always store mushrooms refrigerated in paper (unwaxed or unlined) bags or plastic net bags (like those in which garlic or shallots are often sold), and NEVER in plastic or other non-breathing bags or sealed containers!
Jul 7, 2008. 10:29 PMheydavis says:
'Shrooms need to "breath", but one of those special produce bags would be ok, not the "special" overpriced ones in the infomercials, but those with many tiny holes. White ones especially will keep longer if there's good air circulation, but in a sealed plastic bag they can turn to a disgusting pool of glop in very few days. Some Agaricus bisporuss that got lost in the back of a reefer shelf dried and dried until they shrank from 1 - 1½ inches to the size of a cranberry. Pop 'em in a stew and they add lots of flavor and soak up the broth as they reconstitute, but remain some what chewy. Yum!
Apr 1, 2010. 7:26 PMcorndawg49 says:
i dont really cook alot but that looks like a nice burger
Jul 6, 2008. 3:16 PMFunkNattidelic says:
I usually do store my 'shrooms in paper bags, but why is it not good to store them in plastic bags?
Oct 5, 2009. 11:59 AMPoelite says:
Make the buns yourself, and add sauteed/pureed spinach and garlic.
Even tastier I'd bet. =]
Aug 23, 2009. 8:54 PMon a path to instruction says:
and thus the flood were born
Sep 25, 2009. 11:17 AMWhiteTigerTails says:
Comment not related...
May 8, 2009. 6:23 AMthe_planarian says:
Have you tried food-colouring the buns with Pesto (or maybe adding the food colouring *to* the Pesto to 'make the colour stick')? :)

Just a thought... (i have yet to try this recipe myself.. x.X ' )

Pr0pZ! :D \m/
Sep 14, 2009. 10:28 PMcatboo22 says:
i had the exact same thought about pesto before i saw this step i thought it was pesto
Aug 1, 2009. 10:01 AMBrismo7 says:
thanks for the AWESOME idea. I made these for someone and it was a huge success! Thank you again
Jul 4, 2009. 5:32 AMtwocvbloke says:
I once tried a red one, I was burping fireballs all day long... :P
Jun 24, 2009. 1:59 PMfirecracker125 says:
now u are making me hungry lol
May 7, 2009. 9:44 AMcrampedyogapositions says:
im going to make a poision mushroom burger when my freinds come, i wonder if they would eat it ???
May 3, 2009. 10:21 PMkenshin5150 says:
now im hungry
May 1, 2009. 3:29 PMcodongolev says:
sorry, but i really find it disconcerting to eat any bread product dyed green. it makes me think of mold and then I want to puke.
Jan 20, 2009. 7:32 AMriku-riku-chan says:
okay... so this DID NOT turn out well for me! the buns were cute (i had to broil them before adding the green because i couldn't find any that were crusty enough and round) but the "mushroom burgers" were a bowl full of liquid-y chopped veggies that would NOT form patties... we had to make an emergency trip to the store for ground beef, and we fried up the mushroom mess (kind of like a hash) to put on top... not sure what happened... also, you say to add "the olive oil" but no amount is given...
Mar 27, 2009. 8:52 PMrattyrain says:
Did you add eggs? Or pancake mix?
Mar 30, 2009. 4:51 AMriku-riku-chan says:
yes! i made it just as instructed.
Mar 30, 2009. 9:56 AMrattyrain says:
But did you add a touch of love?
Mar 30, 2009. 10:47 AMriku-riku-chan says:
i tried! 8-(
Nov 16, 2008. 11:29 AMPKTraceur says:
Perhaps a form of mint juice for the bun? Looks good!
Dec 28, 2008. 9:53 PMRedneckAsian says:
um who wants a peppermint veggie burger????
Dec 29, 2008. 9:39 AMPKTraceur says:
I dont know, I think that sounds pretty good.
Mar 24, 2009. 5:47 PMconrad2468 says:
are you pregnant?
Mar 24, 2009. 6:03 PMPKTraceur says:
wth? Im not, in fact... -PKT
Mar 24, 2009. 6:06 PMconrad2468 says:
im kidding...pregnant women get all the weird munchies........right?
Dec 30, 2008. 8:09 AMRedneckAsian says:
still i would think the strong mint would overpower the rest of it and make taste like a breath mint. Plus, all peppermint oil and essence of peppermint is clear and extremely powerful
Dec 30, 2008. 1:13 PMPKTraceur says:
Hey, just food for thought...
Jan 2, 2010. 2:18 PMDuct Tape Dude says:
Or... that's thought for food ( i.e. making a veggie burger WAY worse XP)
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Author:momo!
I like whiskey on the rocks, bears, videogames, my rottweiler Cisco, and ring pops. I work for an uber rad gaming outlet as a designer, an occasional writer, and a World of Warcraft podcast host. Asid...
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