Asian-Style Turkey Burgers and Giant Homemade Fries: the Q Way

By now, you know the introduction: this recipe is one of the millions of ways in which you can alter your ingredients to create a dish in a quarantine world. I will recreate a typical Asian-Style burger with what I have on hand, basically showing you how to find tons of replacements for your go-to classic recipe while staying on theme. I have no blab in me today no matter how much coffee, so let's get started.

It will look (something like) this:

• Cabbage for the slaw with wasabi or bbq mayonnaise- replaced with soy sauce, sesame seeds and sesame oil on arugula, with chili mayonnaise

• Crunchy red onion- replaced with a sautéed yellow onion ring

• Fresh ginger- ginger powder

• Bok Choy or Gai Lan sides- homemade fries with golden potatoes (grilled with sesame oil instead of plain olive oil)

• Beef for a typical General Tso-like meatball- ground turkey from the freezer

You will end up with,

Ground Turkey (I used half a pack, enough for 2 patties)

Burger buns (2, from the freezer, lightly grilled)

Soy Sauce (3 tbsp)

Hoi Sin sauce (1 tbsp)

Ginger powder (1/2 tbsp)

Green onions (2, ever-so-thinly sliced)

Brown sugar (1 tbsp)

Arugula (a handful)

Sesame oil (as much as your heart desires- no really, a lot)

Sesame seeds (a pinch)

Yukon potatoes (2-3 large, sliced in 1/8 pieces)

Yellow onion (1, sliced in rings, lightly fried)

For the mayonnaise,

Mayonnaise (3 tbsp)

Chili-garlic sauce (1 tbsp- or chili oil, or 1tbsp of chili powder)

Scallions (half of the green top pieces you have chopped)

Salt-pepper

Garlic (1 of your cloves, minced)

Alternate sides,

• Sautéed broccoli with sesame oil, sesame seeds and crunchy shallots

• Carrot-cabbage slaw with creamy sesame dressing

• Homemade Kale chips

• Rice vinegar marinated cucumbers with coriander, honey and a dash of soy sauce

A few simple steps,

1. First prepare your potatoes: washed and sliced, drizzled with sesame oil, sea salt and pepper. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, flipping them halfway.

2. While the potatoes cook, prepare your onions. Place slices over medium-heat on a drizzle of olive oil, evenly spread onto the skillet. Heat for about 5 minutes until they brown, and flip them while lowering the heat. I like to leave them for at least an extra 10 minutes until they are tender and golden.

3. While the onions cook, prepare your patties. In a medium bowl, mix ground turkey, soy sauce, white scallion bottoms, half of the green scallions, a dash of sesame oil, Hoi Sin sauce, brown sugar and ginger. Make 2 even patties and heat them over medium-heat with a drizzle of sesame oil for 8-12 minutes. Turn them a few times and flatten them to ensure they cook evenly.

4. For the arugula, mix a handful of salad in a bowl with salt, pepper, sesame oil and a drop of soy sauce. Mix with your hands and set aside.

5. For the mayonnaise, mix chili sauce, mayonnaise, green scallions and garlic with salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly for a few seconds. Voilà!

6. For the buns, I like to set the patties aside for 1 minute and use the oil and flavour from the skillet to grill the buns for 2-3 minutes while flipping them. It intensifies the existing flavours and really ties everything together.

7. Assemble: lather mayonnaise on both buns while topping your patties with the onions and then the arugula mix. One full onion will be plenty to place rings under and over the patty in each burger- a delight! Enjoy!