Rice burgers with kalbi patties

Rice burger

A delicious kalbi hamburger patty topped with fried kimchi and onions sandwiched between two sesame rice ‘buns’! (Please ignore the big honkin’ onion in the picture.)

This has been this summers biggest hit!  Anytime I ask the kids what they want for dinner, they all chant “rice burgers, rice burgers”. They’ve decided these beat out any other kind of hamburger out there.

taronjainakyah

Last summer, when I was very pregnant, I was craving these burgers I had had in Korea over 10 years ago.  That is what happens when you are pregnant: crazy cravings for obscure foods from the other side of the world.  I had googled how to make them, but since they are a little labour intensive and I was close to labour myself, I decided against them at the time.  Fast forward to this summer, when I have much more energy, and I decided to tackle them.

The work comes from making the rice ‘buns’.  They are rice balls flattened and fried.  Not as easy as pulling the bread buns out of a bag, but worth the work.  As a bonus, they are gluten free.  Give them a try!

Yield: 6 rice burgers

The things you need:

  • 6 cups of cooked white sticky rice.  For a tutorial, see this post here
  • salt to taste
  • sesame oil to grease the pan
  • plastic wrap for making the rice ‘buns’
  • 6 easy kalbi hamburger patties or flattened Korean beef patties (duk kalbi)
  • 1/2 an onion fried in butter
  • 1/2 cup kimchi fried in oil.  Note: I only make onions and kimchi for me and my yobo, the kids top them with ‘normal’ hamburger toppings like ketchup and relish

The how to:

  • salt the rice to taste
  • scoop 1/2 cup of rice on to a piece of plastic wrap
  • cover it with another piece of plastic wrap
  • form the rice into a ball
  • flatten firmly

rice buns

  • oil the fry pan with sesame oil
  • when hot, place the rice buns in the pan and lightly fry till golden
  • assemble burger by topping with fried kimchi and onions (and another rice ‘bun’ on top)
  • wrap in aluminum foil.  This makes for handy hand-held eating and holds the burger together.

rice burgersEnjoy!


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