This burger was so amazingly delicious that I had one for lunch and one for dinner (yesterday). I've been buying ground beef from Costco and it is the best tasting hamburger I have had for awhile. I have always preferred freshly ground meat, and always avoid buying that yucky prepackaged ground beef that seems tough and has an off taste. Plus it always looks like it has too many sinewy pieces which are usually tough and harder to chew.
BTW, do you need help removing lettuce leaves for wrapping your burgers or sandwiches? Check out my post which has a helpful video demo: Lettuce for Lettuce Wraps
Anyway… I was really craving a burger, and I'd bought some grapeseed oil from Costco, too. And, I had a bottle of walnut oil from a food box donation.
So, I made some mayonnaise, following this Homemade Mayonnaise recipe from Nourished and Nurtured
I have tried in the past to make mayonnaise using only egg yolks… as it just didn't seem right to use raw egg white in mayonnaise. And I had some phenomenal beginner's luck the first time. Unfortunately, subsequent attempts did not work out so well. Except for the Avocado Mayonnaise. That always works out great.
But the author of this blog, Sarah Smith, says in this post, “I started making homemade mayonnaise about 6 months ago, and now I wonder what took me so long! It is delicious and super easy to make…” and that inspired me to try again.
I followed her recipe almost exactly, I even used the egg whites, except I used different kinds of oil:
- 2 whole eggs [affiliate link]
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 3 T. lemon juice
- 1 cup walnut oil
- 1/2 cup grapeseed oil
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt [affiliate link]
- pinch freshly ground pepper
The result was a delicious mayonnaise. It was slightly green due to the grapeseed oil, but nonetheless very creamy and delicious.
Okay, so on to the burger!
I heated a skillet on medium heat with some fat in it, and added in one half of an onion sliced, and three large mushrooms sliced. I put in about 1/4 cup of water, placed a lid on the skillet and turned my timer on for 10 minutes. Listen to the sounds your skillet is making… if the sounds grow louder, it could mean the water has cooked out and your veggies are frying in the fat. This is perfectly okay, but they could start to burn and there is nothing more disappointing than starting to make dinner only to burn it by not paying attention to what's happening.
While the onion and mushrooms were cooking, I formed a small patty from the hamburger, I made a small, thin patty, using I would say 3 ounces of ground beef. I removed two leaves of iceberg lettuce from the head, rinsed the lettuce and spin dried it (Amazon affiliate link) for my favorite Salad Spinner.
Check the onions [affiliate link] and mushrooms… when the onions look transparent, they are done, but feel free to leave them in the pan, just spread them to the sides and nestle the raw ground beef patties in the middle. Replace the lid and allow to cook a few minutes, turn and cook another few minutes.
Be sure to stir the veggies so they don't stick and burn!
Place the lettuce on a plate, dollop a tablespoon or what the heck, dollop two tablespoons of mayonnaise onto the lettuce. Nestle the hamburger onto the mayonnaise, and spoon the mushrooms and onions on top.
Salt to taste.
The way to eat a hamburger with a lettuce bun like this is to just start at one side and fold over the lettuce onto the burger where you are planning to take a bite. Go about the entire burger in this manner… fold over the leaf of lettuce where you next plan to take a bite.
Yummy goodness.
- Hamburger:
- 3 oz. hamburger
- ½ onion, sliced
- 3 large mushrooms, sliced
- ¼ cup water
- 2 large lettuce leaves, washed
- Homemade mayonnaise
- Heat a skillet on medium heat with some fat in it, and add in one half of an onion sliced, and three large mushrooms sliced.
- Put in about ¼ cup of water, placed a lid on the skillet and turn timer on for 10 minutes. Listen to the sounds your skillet is making... if the sounds grow louder, it could mean the water has cooked out and your veggies are frying in the fat and more water is needed.
- Check the onions and mushrooms, when the onions look transparent, they are done, but you can leave them in the pan.
- Spread them to the sides and nestle the raw ground beef molded into a patty in the middle. Replace the lid and allow to cook a few minutes, turn and cook another few minutes.
- Be sure to stir the veggies so they don't stick and burn.
- Place the lettuce on a plate, dollop a tablespoon or what the heck, dollop two tablespoons onto the lettuce.
- Nestle the hamburger onto the mayonnaise, and spoon the mushrooms and onions on top.
- Salt to taste.
If you love recipes like this, I have two cookbooks you really need to check out ASAP! Beyond Grain and Dairy for gluten-free recipes and Winter Soups.
Hamburgers have become my go-to thing for lunch. I just got some local grassfed beef and their hamburger is delicious! There are some bits of sinew here and there but I figure it’s good for me. I usually have my hamburger with some mayo and LF ketchup, LF veggie (sauerkraut or kimchi) and avocado (plain with salt or made into guac). After I fry the hamburger, I put it into a thermos and add a spoon or two of butter – it melts all over the hamburger and when I’m ready to it, I cut it into pieces and they soak up the fat. YUMMY!!
I’m not a blogger, just a lurker (who’s doing scd). I just wanted to tell you I’m totally with you. I have fibromyalgia myself and I suffered a pinched nerve in my back a few weeks ago. I’d forgotten just how hard it is to stick to healthy eating when I’m in pain and don’t have the energy for a lot of cooking. But we can do it and we are doing it! And we’re so much better than we were before we started, right? And your hamburgers sound delicious!
We’ve been eating burgers here a lot, too. I like them topped with melted cheddar cheese, tomato and avocado. I usually just eat mine with a fork, but I may have to try that lettuce trick sometime. Either way I never miss the bun. =)
@Meghan, I don’t miss the bun either! If you had told me this 2 years ago I would have told there is NO way I would be happy with a lettuce bun burger. But I am, so yummy. I would rather have extra homemade mayo than a bun anyday! Yum!