Viet Burgers

This is a fusion of a Vietnamese dish and the all mighty American burger. My husband and I had Vietnamese stuffed grape leaves at a restaurant in Virginia and when we returned home we made it ourselves. We had some left over filling and thought it might make a tasty burger and that's how it all began.

Ingredients:

3 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 medium onion
1T chopped Thai Basil (Thai Basil has a slightly different flavor than Italian Sweet Basil, if you can't find Thai Basil use Italian Basil)
3T finely minced lemongrass (if you can't find this in your store try an Asian market, if you can't find an Asian market, use 2T ground coriander)
2 eggs
1 tsp sesame seed oil
1 1/2 tsp black pepper
1T + 2tsp garlic salt
2T fish sauce (this can be found in the ethnic section of your grocery store or at Asian markets)

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl place ground beef. Chop onion and basil and put in the bowl with the beef. When preparing lemongrass use only the bottom, pale part of the stalk. Slice off the top green part and root end and peel away the tough outer layers. The easiest way to get lemon grass nicely minced is to first, chop it up into small pieces and then put it in a coffee grinder and pulse it until it looks minced or use the fine grate of a box grater. Add the lemon grass and the rest of the ingredients to the meat.
Now its time to get your hands dirty, so remove your rings. Mix all ingredients together until well combined. Form patties and throw on a hot grill or in a hot skillet, cook to desired done-ness. Place on a bun with sriracha-lime mayo, lettuce, tomato, and pickled veggies. We made home-made fries but store bought works just the same! Enjoy!

Sriracha Lime Mayo:

1c mayonnaise
1T Sriracha (it's a brand of hot chili sauce, you will be able to get this at the grocery store too)
3T lime juice
Combine all ingredients and mix well. If you want it spicier add more chili sauce

Pickled Carrots and Daikon root:

1/4 lb carrots -shredded in food processor or cut into thin match-like strips.
1/4 lb daikon radish – cut same as carrots.
2 cups warm water
2T vinegar
2T sugar
1T salt

Wash, peel, and cut carrots and daikon, place into a mixing bowl and sprinkle salt on the vegetables, mix well. The salt will draw out excess moisture from the veggies. In a pot, pour water, vinegar, and sugar. On the stove top, turn on a medium low heat and stir until sugar is dissolved, turn off heat. Get a mason jar ready or any glass jar you might have. Squeeze out any excess liquid from your vegetables and then place vegetables inside the jar. Pour vinegar liquid into a pitcher or liquid measuring cup for easier pouring and then pour into the glass jar. Fill the jar with the liquid and then place it in the refrigerator. Let this sit for at least an hour before you eat it. Of course the longer you let it sit the more pickled it gets. Its a good idea to make this ahead of time so that its ready for your burgers.

Side Note - When buying fresh lemongrass: Look for stalks that are fragrant, tightly formed, and of a lemony-green color on the lower stalk (near the bulb), then turning to a truer green at the end of the stalk.
Avoid purchasing stalks that are loose and coming apart as well as stalks that are brown and crusty or crumbling. These are old and probably not that fragrant or nutritious any longer. Lemongrass also freezes well.