In a world where everything new that’s edible seems to be a “foot long” (Carl’s Jr one of our West Coast chains just launched the foot long Burger I was horrified to read today, to go up against Subway, Quiznos and all those other sandwich chains), the Slider seems like a delightful throwback to a gentler, slimmer era where satisfaction came in small bites and food didn’t have to be super-sized to represent good value.
These mini burgers have “cute” written all over them, and like a Mini or Smart car are the perfect antidote to American excess. I just came across this fabulous recipe for Indian Vegetarian Sliders in Australian Gourmet magazine (trust me it’s a lot more delicious than it sounds). It’s like Kumar abandoned Harold and went to White Castle on his own!
Indian Vegetarian Sliders: Serves Three for about $10
12 1/2 oz russet potatoes, boiled in their skins, peeled and cut into 1/2″ cubes
12 1/2 oz butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2″ cubes, cooked in boiling water until tender.
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp brown mustard seeds, cooked in 1 tablespoon of oil until it begins to pop
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
2 cups AP flour
6 mini burger buns
2 carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
Mint Yogurt sauce
1 english cucumber, seeds removed and grated
1 small container of plain yogurt
1/3 cup finely chopped mint leaves
Mix the potatoes, squash,garbanzo beans, cumin, coriander and the mustard seeds, just until it is combined. Add the cilantro and season to taste with salt and pepper, gently mix until combined. Using wet hands, form the mixture into 1/4 cup patties and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Heat a large fry pan with oil, dust the patties with the flour and fry until golden brown on both sides.
For the mint yogurt sauce, combine all the ingredients and season to taste.
Toast the buns , top with some carrots, patties and mint yogurt sauce.
Fresh&Frugal 