Kimchi Burgers with Sesame Miso Shake

August 01, 2023 2 Comments

Recipe and text by Lynne Char Bennett.

Summertime is grilling time, and burgers are a fast and easy favorite. While lettuce-tomato-onion is classic, a kimchi-mayonnaise topping enhanced with Oaktown’s Sesame Miso Shake can help elevate your burger – whether meat or plant-based – to a new level.

I think of Sesame Miso Shake as an all-purpose blend with an Asian flair that can be sprinkled on noodles and rice as well as all kinds of vegetables and proteins and even snacks. A co-worker turned me on to tossing some into a package of Trader Joe’s Mochi Rice Nuggets, and I haven’t looked back.

This blend has a mild warmth from chiles that is tamed and enhanced with ingredients including umami-rich red miso, sesame seeds, coconut sugar, nori and a touch of Szechuan pepper and MSG. (Not to worry -- MSG (monosodium glutamate) is naturally occurring in everyday foods that also provide umami such as tomatoes, mushrooms, Parmesan cheese and anchovies. You can read more about MSG here.)

My kimchi burger recipe is, of course, very flexible and my quantities are guidelines, so use spice, salt, kimchi and mayo to taste.

Serves 4

Time: 20-30 minutes

Difficulty: Beginner

Ingredients

For the topping:

2 cups drained kimchi, chopped (about 12 ounces)
5 to 6 tablespoons mayonnaise, as needed
2 teaspoons Sesame Miso Shake

For the burgers:

1 pound 85% lean ground beef or plant-based equivalent
2 teaspoons Sesame Miso Shake
¾ teaspoon kosher salt such as Pacific Flake Sea Salt or Diamond Crystal, or to taste
4 burger buns
Romaine, butter or bibb lettuce (optional, for garnish)

Directions

Optionally hold back some of the chopped kimchi to use as a garnish and mix the remainder with the mayonnaise and spice.

Preheat grill then clean grates when hot. Divide ground beef into four patties (larger than your bun size). Mix spice and salt together then sprinkle onto patties and grill to desired doneness.

Spread some of the kimchi-mayo mixture on the bottom buns. Place patties and lettuce, if using, on top. Add more kimchi mayo and garnish with reserved kimchi, if using. Keep any extra kimchi mayo for another use.

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