There’s something fundamentally satisfying about the textural contrast of biting through a crisp savory shell into a juicy turkey burger. It’s not like burgers needed to be reinvented, but I’m all about trying new things to see if there’s something novel and delicious to be discovered.
Breakfast can be many things to many people. Hash browns come in many shapes and sizes. They can be prepared in various ways. Some consider it the ultimate breakfast food that needs to be served with eggs.
Brion has always enjoyed hashbrowns, not the diced, fried to a crisp in a deep fryer kind, but the nice shredded, golden kind. My inventions for new culinary techniques that revolutionize the way we eat usually happen in the middle of the night during a bout of insomnia. But all it takes is a quick Internet search to reveal that I’m far from the first person to have invented the cookery method, and hundreds of recipes already exist. Nevertheless, this idea for an interesting breakfast is a good example of that.
I crusted the turkey burgers with some shredded potatoes, so when they cook and get crispy, they act as a barrier that locks in all the juices. The roasted tomatoes add a nice little garnish to the burgers. I topped the burgers with poached eggs, because when you cut into it, the velvety, creamy yolk pours out onto the burger and acts as a sauce…and what goes better with potatoes than eggs, right? So, there you have it …. crispy, golden hashbrowns, meat, eggs & tomatoes …. what a breakfast!
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Breakfast Turkey Hashbrown Burgers
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Instructions
Hashbrowns
Thaw shredded hashbrowns on paper towel. In a bowl, place the flour, cheese, egg, onion, garlic, coriander, smoked paprika, salt & pepper. Add 'dried' shredded hashbrowns. Using a fork, mix everything until combined being careful not to break up the hashbrowns. Set aside until burgers are ready to be coated with the mixture.
Turkey Burgers
In a bowl, combine burger ingredients & divide into 4 equal portions. Form into burger patties. Coat burgers with hashbrown mixture, gently pressing coating down to make sure it adheres well.
Roasted Cherry Tomatoes
In a small bowl, place cherry tomatoes & add some Italian dressing to coat. Place on a foil lined baking dish.
Cooking
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In a skillet, heat 1 Tbsp EACH butter & olive oil. Carefully place hashbrown burgers in skillet & cook burgers on each side only until they are a golden brown. Remove to a baking pan & place in the oven to continue the cooking process until the meat is fully cooked. Roast the cherry tomatoes at the same time.
While the burgers are in the oven, prepare the poached eggs. Heat a small pot of water until it is almost at a boil. Add 1 Tbsp vinegar to help the eggs to congeal. Crack the eggs gently right above the surface of the water. Turn off the heat & cover the pot for about 3-4 minutes or until the whites of the eggs are fully cooked but the yolks are still runny. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon.
When the burgers & tomatoes are cooked, remove them from the oven. Place them on serving plates & top each burger with a poached egg. Garnish with sprigs of fresh thyme if you wish.
They’re not just for snacking—Ritz crackers go in casseroles, main courses, appetizers, side dishes and even desserts! Everybody loves Ritz, and even more when they’re on pork chops.
Breading is an essential ingredient in so many recipes. Turns out that many pantry staples (including crackers, chips, and other dried goods) can be used as a breading. All it takes is crushing up some crackers to get the same effect as your usual breadcrumbs and you may even find that you like some of these swaps better than the real thing! Ritz Crackers make a great substitute for traditional breadcrumbs.
Why use breading? Firstly, there’s the elements of taste and texture. Seasoned breading on a chicken or pork cutlet, for instance, helps encrust the meat in more flavor. It also adds a bit of texture and along with a good blend of spices, a humble pork chop becomes amazing!
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Ritz Cracker Crumb Pork Chops
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Votes: 2
Rating: 3.5
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Instructions
In a small dish, combine spices. Mince onion (chopping by hand).
Empty 1 1/4 sleeves of crackers into a large zip-lock bag. Crush crackers finely until you have a uniform size. Add seasoning mixture & onions to the bag & toss well to incorporate.
Create a breading station for pork chops. One dish with flour, one with the beaten egg & one with the cracker crumb breading.
Dip one of the chops into the flour & flip it over a couple of times . Coat all sides of the pork chop well with a thin layer of flour. Dip the flour coated chop into the egg, coating all sides.
Lastly, dip coated chop into cracker crumb breading mixture. Press the crumb mixture onto the pork chop with your hand to ensure it is coated well. Lie breaded pork chop onto a platter. repeat this process for the rest of the pork chops.
Place breaded chops in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. This will help the batter adhere to the chops better.
Heat a griddle to a medium-low heat & spray griddle with cooking spray. Grill chops on both sides until cooked through & nicely browned. Serve with pork gravy if desired.
Onion rings first made their appearance in an ad for Crisco in a New York Times magazine that was published in 1933. The advertisement included a recipe for onions that are sliced, dipped in milk, dredged in flour, and then deep-fried.
With the expansion of fast-food restaurants in the 1950s and 1960s came the inclusion of the onion ring. As our society has evolved, and so has the onion ring.
Onion rings in their most basic form are cross-sectioned onions cut into ‘rings’ that are then coated in a batter, then fried. Simple, but within this, there are variations such as beer batter, tempura batter, pancake batter, onion strings, or even the ‘onion bloom’ where the whole onion is cut into ‘petals’ battered and fried whole. All of which are usually accompanied by a dipping sauce or rémoulade.
But the thing is, not all ‘alliums’ are created equal. Leeks may be delicious in a soup or braise, but good luck trying to turn them into onion rings. Shallots make a beautiful crunchy topping when fried, but their tiny frame and shape will make it nearly impossible to yield a ring suitable for dredging and battering. If you want onion rings, bigger tends to be better. White and yellow varieties are decent picks, but for optimal onion rings, go for sweet onions. These kinds don’t have as strong of a sulfuric taste and frying them brings out their caramelly aromas. If you’re short on sweet onions, you can tamp down the potency of other types by soaking the sliced rings in ice water.
Onion rings aren’t just sides for hamburgers—they pair well with beef, chicken, and seafood. There are many takes on onion rings nowadays, including variations of ‘stuffed’ onion rings. Today I’m making a pork/shrimp filling to place inside the rings then frying them. Served with rice they make an interesting entrée for our supper.
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Stuffed Onion Rings
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Instructions
Combine all stuffing ingredients & set aside for 15 minutes.
Lightly dust onion rings with flour. Place the onion rings on a flat surface & divide filling evenly between them, filling the inside of the rings. Smooth out filling.
Heat a non-stick skillet; add some oil for shallow frying the rings. Brush sides of the rings with beaten eggs. Carefully place rings in skillet & fry until filling is cooked & golden brown.
Top with grated cheese of choice & serve on a bed of rice.
A while back, I was speaking with my neighbor, Meg, who told me about an ancient grain I had never known about. It is called Teff. This word originates from the Amharic word ‘teffa’ which means ‘lost’ due to the small size of the grain. An annual bunch grass native to the central highlands of Ethiopia and Eritrea. It can survive both wet and dry climates, high temperatures and bright light as well as not being subject to as many plant diseases as other cereal grains. It’s high nutritional value and reliable cultivation have made it Ethiopia’s most important grain crop. Teff’s size makes it convenient because it doesn’t take a large volume of teff seed to plant a field.
Ground into flour, teff is used to make the traditional bread called ‘injera’, a sourdough risen flatbread with a slightly spongy texture similar to a crepe. It can also be found in many gluten-free options of pancakes, breads, cereals, pie crusts, cookies and other snacks.
Meg had given me a package of ‘authentic‘ teff flour so I was anxious to try it. I noticed a great looking recipe for seeded teff rolls on the computer so I was all set. To compliment the teff rolls I made some shrimp burgers w/ avocado aioli. Nice meal!
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Shrimp Burgers on Seeded Teff Buns
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Votes: 1
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Instructions
Seeded Teff Buns
In a small bowl, whisk together water, yeast, honey, oil & vinegar. Let stand 3-5 minutes or until yeast is dissolved & beginning to proof.
In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Add yeast mixture to dry ingredients & mix on low speed until combined. Add in egg whites. Once combined, mix on high speed for 3-5 minutes.
Grease a 9-10 inch round baking pan. Scoop the batter into pan (with a spring release scoop) making about 6 buns. Place rolls right next to each other. Cover & let rise in a warm place for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 F. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven; cool slightly.
Shrimp Burgers
In a small bowl, combine all ingredients for shrimp burgers. Form into 4 patties & set on a plate with squares of wax paper between them. Put in fridge until ready to cook.
Avocado Aioli
In a small bowl, Combine all ingredients for avocado aioli until smooth. Cover & set in fridge until ready to use.
Assembly
In a large skillet, add 3 Tbsp oil & turn heat to medium-high. Gently place shrimp burgers on skillet & cook 3 minutes until golden, flip & cook another 3 minutes.
On each of the sliced, warm teff buns, place a shrimp burger with a generous dollop of avocado aioli. Don't hesitate to add some lettuce & tomato slices if you wish.
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