Asian Burger with Brown Rice Tiger Bread

          Sara and Erica of Baking JDs were our March 2012 Daring Baker hostesses! Sara & Erica challenged us to make Dutch Crunch bread, a delicious sandwich bread with a unique, crunchy topping. Sara and Erica also challenged us to create a one of a kind sandwich with our bread!

         As soon as I learnt about the challenge for this month, I made up my mind to cook an Asian burger – I guess, the rice flour that is used for the crunch topping, gave me an impetus to go in this direction. Can you imagine my surprise when I found out that Dutch Crunch bread (also called Tiger bread after the tiger-like shell) was initially made with sesame oil?! It seemed that my idea of using Asian flavours was more than appropriate!

       I loved the recipe of the brown rice bread the girls provided us with: I figured out that it would be a perfect base for my dish. However, I decided to make bread rolls instead of a loaf and they turned to be much better than plain burger buns, with a sweetness of honey, earthiness of a brown rice and a scent of sesame oil.

       Instead of beef I used prawns, chicken and fish to make meat cakes for the burger: I simply adapted the recipe of Chao Tom that I had in my cooking book. Chao Tom is basically a Vietnamese dish – an entrée made with prawns grinded to a paste, wrapped around the sugar cane sticks and grilled. Of course, I didn’t use any sticks and changed the shape of the dish in general but it was still packed with flavours: the use of different types if meat and Asian condiments made it a lip smacking treat!

      An Asian cole slow was served as a side to the dish: Chinese cabbage, apple, capsicum and carrot with soy and honey dressing and toasted sesame seeds – can you think of a better accompany to the chaw tom cakes and brown rice tiger bread?

     Thanks to Sara and Erica for an opportunity to have fun in the kitchen and to come up with a new, fusion, delicious dish!

Ingredients:

Brown rice bread rolls (recipe adapted from the original one of Sara and Erica)1/3 cup warm water (41 – 46C)
5 gm active dry yeast
2 gm sugar
1/3 cup buttermilk
40 ml honey
20 ml sesame oil
1 tsp salt
75 gm cooked and cooled brown rice
2 cups plain flour

Dutch crunch topping (the original recipe from Rose Levy Beranbaum’s “The Bread Bible”)5 gm active dry yeast
1/3 cup warm water (41 – 46C)
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp sesame oil
a pinch of salt
80 gm rice flour

Chao tom cakes (recipe adapted from the original one by Sanjeev Kapoor)
300 gm prawns, shelled
¼ cup minced chicken
¼ cup white fish fillet
3 garlic cloves
3 shallots
1 tsp sugar
1 egg white
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp rice flour
¼ tsp crushed black pepper
2 tbsp olive oil

Sesame sauce2 tbsp mayonnaise
3 tbsp Greek yoghurt
2 tbsp sesame oil

Asian burgers5 brown rice bread rolls
5 chao tom  
½ cup sesame sauce
2 tomatoes, sliced
a few lettuce leaves

Asian slaw¼ red cabbage, thinly shredded
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 red capsicum, julienned
1 Granny Smith apple, julienned
1 carrot, julienned
1 cup mint leaves, shredded
1 cup coriander, shredded
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

Method:

1. For brown rice bread rolls, pour the warm water in a small bowl; sprinkle yeast and sugar over surface. Stir to dissolve and let stand until foamy, around 10 minutes. In a large bowl, using a whisk or electric mixer combine the buttermilk, honey, sesame oil and salt; add brown rice and beat until smooth. Add the yeast mixture and beat for a few minutes more. Add flour, ½ cup at a time, until a soft bulky dough that just clears the side of the bowl is formed. Turned it onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and springy. Place the dough in a greased bowl; turn the dough once to coat the top and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, 1 ½ to 2 hours.
2. Gently deflate the dough. Turn it onto a slightly floured surface. Divide it into 5 portions. Shape each into a ball and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet (try not to handle the dough too much at this point). Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 15 minutes while you prepare the topping.
3. For Dutch crunch topping, combine all ingredients in a bowl and beat hard. The consistency should be spreadable but not too runny. If you pull some up with your whisk, it should drip off slowly. Add more water or rice flour if necessary. Let stand for 15 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 200C. Coat the top of each roll with a thick layer of topping. Let stand, uncovered, for 20 minutes; and then bake for 30 – 35 minutes until golden brown in colour. Transfer to a cooling rack.
5. For chao tom cakes, grind prawns, chicken, fish, garlic, shallots and sugar to a paste in a blender. Add egg white, fish sauce, rice flour and crushed black pepper. Use wet hands to divide the mixture into 5 equal portions and to shape them into rounds. Heat oil in a pan over medium heat and cook the cakes for a few minutes on each side. Drain on the absorbent paper.
6. For sesame sauce, combine Greek yoghurt and mayonnaise in a bowl. While whisking, add sesame oil in a thin but steady stream; whisk till smooth.
7. For Asian slaw, put all the vegetables, with the apple and the herbs in a large bowl. Combine soy sauce and honey to make the dressing, pour it over the salad ingredients and toss to combine.
8. To serve, cut each bread roll horizontally into two. Spead 1 tbsp of sesame sauce on the base of each roll. Put a chao tom cake, followed by a few slices of tomato and a lettuce leaf. Spread the remaining sauce on the cut sides of the remaining halves of the bread rolls and cover the burgers. Place on the serving plate, with some Asian slaw, sprinkled with the toasted sesame seeds, on the side.