Poljak Bean and Chickpea Patties With Wholegrain Buns

© Nihad Mameledzija

Ingredients

for 4 servings

• 500 g Poljak beans (Ark of taste variety from Bosnia-Herzegovina, you can instead use Cicerchia in Italy, dried peas or big brown lentils varieties)
• 200 g chickpea flour
• 100 g onion 20 g garlic 100 g celery
• olive oil
• salt, pepper
• 100 g fresh tomatoes
• baking soda
• 3 eggs
• 1 lemon
• a little mustard lettuce
• rucola

Buns

• 200 g 00 flour (flour traditionally used for pizza baking, the closest equivalent would be for ex. 405 in Germany or 55 in France)
• lentil flour
• 2 eggs
• milk
• butter
• fresh yeast

Instructions

1. One day before cooking, soak the beans in water for a few hours, preferably overnight.
2. Grind the beans and add bean flour and stewed vegetables – the bean flour binds the burger with its fibers, and it takes the moisture from the Burger so that they bake easily and do not fall apart.
3. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Make burgers and grill them on a grill or pan.

For the buns

1. One day before: Mix the flour 00 with the lentil flour.
2. Add salt, milk, sugar, and yeast.
3. Knead the dough and then continue mixing and adding fat.
4. Let it rise for 24 hours in the fridge.
5. After that, boil smaller balls of 100gr and let them rise at room temperature for 2 hours.
6. Brush with beaten egg and bake for 10 minutes at 200C

More information

The poljak bean (Lathyrus sativus), or grah poljak, was well known in the area of Trebinje and was an important staple for centuries. It was once considered the “meat of the poor.” The beans have an irregular shape, resembling crushed pebbles, and come in a variety of colors. This bean was traditionally cultivated in Popovo Polje, near the Adriatic coast, for its extremely short vegetation period and ability to grow in poor soil.

Gallery