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posted by martyb on Tuesday March 06 2018, @01:57AM   Printer-friendly
from the it's-not-an-Impossible-Burger dept.

Blending around 70% ground beef with 30% chopped mushrooms could reduce the environmental impact of beef:

The idea is that mixing chopped mushrooms into our burgers boosts the umami taste, adds more moisture and reduces the amount of beef required for a burger. And reducing the need for beef has a big impact on the environment. According to the World Resources Institute [WRI], if 30 percent of the beef in every burger in America were replaced by mushrooms, it would reduce greenhouse emissions by the same amount as taking 2.3 million vehicles off of our roads.

[...] Richard Waite, from the World Resources Institute, is thrilled. "I think it's great!" he says. WRI has been pushing the blended beef-mushroom burger as a candidate to become one of America's most-served menu items, which WRI calls "power meals." According to Waite, the list of the top 20 meals served by food service companies currently contains only one plant-based item, a veggie wrap. The rest are meat-centric, including four versions of the classic hamburger.

Many niche burger makers and school cafeterias have joined the blended burger bandwagon. In the dining rooms of Stanford University, Waite says, it's the only kind of burger you'll find. But Sonic's 3,500 drive-in restaurants represent a huge boost to the concept.

Here's a recipe for a roasted mushroom base and beef-mushroom burgers.


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  • (Score: 5, Insightful) by bob_super on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:08AM (27 children)

    by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:08AM (#648303)

    Step away slowly from the 99% beef patty (gotta have spices), and nobody gets hurt.
    You may want to zigzag as you leave the place, just in case I have ideas about you sharing your ideas.

    2.3M cars is what? 1% of the US's total? Start by enforcing proper pollution controls, if you care about the environment. Then save more gas by slowing them down by playing frogger in the 405 (at 4AM, when it's actually hard). Your odds of survival are better than if you try to put you shrooms in our meat.

    • (Score: 3, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:16AM (16 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:16AM (#648306)

      You haven't really thought too much about the environmental impact of high density cattle farming on an industrial scale, have you?
      Look, I'm all for a good burger now and then and I don't want to take that burger away from you. You clearly enjoy it and that's great, I think you should be able to keep enjoying. But maybe take a step back and think about those spices you so eagerly want and combine that with the extra flavoring you'll get from mushrooms. Also maybe try to eat it in a bit more moderation, if you can.
      On top of that, you are aware that eating veggies does not in fact turn you into a gay wuss, are you? We'll still think as much of you as a manly man if you eat your veggies as well (See, an AND, not an OR) instead of just pigging on protein.

      Also, about that 99% beef patty... have I got news for you, my friend. Because that what you've been sold as 99% beef, may be 99% beef, but that does not mean it's 99% /meat/.

      • (Score: -1, Troll) by leftover on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:07AM

        by leftover (2448) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:07AM (#648335)

        You dissemble a lot about topics you really don't understand, don't you. Instead of posting here as an anonymous blowhard, I really think you should look into a couple of topics. First, find the sources of the "killer cattle" story. Second, look into the effects on human development when we started eating meat then think about who might want to reverse those effects. Perhaps you do not mind the idea that your children/grandchildren could be reduced to prey animals. I do mind rather a lot and I consider bloviators like you to be on the wrong side. Pathetic, still on the wrong side. Have a nice evening doing your homework.

        --
        Bent, folded, spindled, and mutilated.
      • (Score: 2, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:49AM (14 children)

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:49AM (#648351) Journal

        thought too much about the environmental impact of high density cattle farming

        First, maybe you should define "high density cattle farming". Industrial scale, also. Most American cattle farmers are pretty small scale, and they aren't they aren't exactly "high density". Let me stick a disclaimer in here: I AM NOT defending the big commercial operations! The thing is, most beef comes from individual farms and ranches. The big operations are big - but there aren't all that many of them.

        I suspect that you might be a city boy, and you've seen very little of America's country sides. You've watched a couple documentaries, in which an activist group has portrayed animal husbandry as a gross, evil, cruel, inhumane business. And, you've gobbled up a couple more documentaries about how much the cattle industry pollutes the environment. Well, those documentaries aren't exactly the norm.

        Groups like PETA mostly have their heads up their butts, and contributors to those groups are mostly just virtue signaling tools. Life in rural America just isn't what all those activists would have you believe.

        Cows fart. Big deal. Cows happen to be ruminants. Do you know what that means? They have more than one stomach. They produce a lot of gas in the process of digestion. Do you know what other animals are ruminants? Deer, buffalo, elk, sheep, goats, and more.

        You like nature, right? Well, before the white man arrived, and destroyed a lot of nature, buffalo wandered this land in the millions. Elk probably not so numerous, but deer probably competed in terms of numbers. Ruminants are everywhere. And, they all fart like mad. That's nature.

        Why you wanna mess with nature? You need to concentrate on reducing the number of internal combustion engines, and stop worrying about cattle. Cattle aren't unnatural, at all. They HAVE replaced the huge herds of buffalo, or American bison. But the cattle are probably a close approximation of the former herds of buffalo.

        Run along now - verify my statements if you like. Then, get out there and protest against automobiles. Leave the burgers on the hoof alone!

        Oh - here is a list of ruminants for you - https://www.animalwised.com/ruminant-animals-full-list-and-fun-facts-206.html [animalwised.com] Just for fun, you might look some of them up. Which of them are on endangered species lists? Which of them once numbered in the millions, or maybe even billions, but have been reduced to hundreds of thousands - or less? I leave you to learn, and to think. Maybe after you've put things in a more proper perspective, we can discuss the issue of bovine pollution some more.

        • (Score: 5, Informative) by Whoever on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:06AM

          by Whoever (4524) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:06AM (#648355) Journal

          So, let's start with numbers:

          there are just under 100M cattle in the USA, while the deer population is estimated at less than 1/3 of that.

          Most American cattle farmers are pretty small scale, and they aren't they aren't exactly "high density".

          That is an irrelevant number. What's important is what proportion of the livestock are in large farms that confine their livestock.

          Approximately 80% of livestock were sold by farms with confined livestock.
          https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/home/?cid=nrcs143_014121 [usda.gov]

          You were saying?

        • (Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @05:08AM (2 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @05:08AM (#648367)

          Their diet has changed. Cattle nowadays are fed corn. Corn makes them expel gas far more than when grazing grasses. I'm not saying how much that contributes to climate change, only that looking at the raw head counts isn't good enough.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @11:13AM

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @11:13AM (#648450)

            Corn is a grass.

          • (Score: 2) by Taibhsear on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:32PM

            by Taibhsear (1464) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:32PM (#648526)

            Do you have a citation for the relative amounts of gas production of grass vs corn? I'm genuinely curious how large the difference is.

        • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:02AM (9 children)

          by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:02AM (#648389) Journal

          They HAVE replaced the huge herds of buffalo, or American bison. But the cattle are probably a close approximation of the former herds of buffalo.

          Replace them with huge herds of kangaroos - they fart much less methane [theguardian.com].

          Just don't try to milk them (especially the males) you may end gutted [youtube.com].
          And don't punch them unless they are busy keeping your dog in a headlock [nationalgeographic.com].

          (if you really want to know, you'll have to try it yourself, but the taste of kangaroo meat is pretty close to the one of a veal, except some more herby overtones and a somehow tougher texture)

          --
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
          • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @10:37AM (8 children)

            by Phoenix666 (552) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @10:37AM (#648441) Journal

            "(if you really want to know, you'll have to try it yourself, but the taste of kangaroo meat is pretty close to the one of a veal, except some more herby overtones and a somehow tougher texture)"

            I can attest to that. It's tasty.

            If we all start eating kangaroos, though, will PETA complain we're eating Kanga and Roo?

            --
            Washington DC delenda est.
            • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday March 06 2018, @12:08PM (7 children)

              by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @12:08PM (#648462) Journal

              If we all start eating kangaroos, though, will PETA complain we're eating Kanga and Roo?

              Mate, I dare you to eat a kanga [kangaloader.com]
              Roo meat is available at major retailers downunder.

              --
              https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
              • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @01:47PM (6 children)

                by Phoenix666 (552) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @01:47PM (#648485) Journal

                Kanga and Roo [wikia.com]

                Did you miss the reference because you were looking at it upside down? ;-)

                I'm impressed you can get kangaroo meat anywhere in Australia. I've longed for the native meat, buffalo, to be widely available in America, but no luck.

                --
                Washington DC delenda est.
                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:57PM

                  by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:57PM (#648512)

                  Hmm I find that odd, because I have no issues here in Colorado finding buffalo meat.

                  All of the major grocery stores in the area sell buffalo. One of them even sells ground kangaroo along with elk and boar.

                  https://www.thebalance.com/sprouts-farmers-market-profile-1325948 [thebalance.com]

                • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:09PM

                  by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:09PM (#648538) Journal

                  I've eaten a lot of beefalo, starting with my sophomore year of high school. The local burger/ice cream stand somehow acquired some buffalo, and started a breeding program. Beefalo is great stuff! Buffalo meat is good, but, somehow, it never lived up to my expectations. It compares to average to good quality beef, but it's just not really special, IMO.

                  The superior meat, IMHO, is either angus, or brahma, or a mix, called brangus.

                  Of course, everyone has an opinion, right? If you like buffalo meat, I hope you can find all you want, at reasonable prices.

                • (Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:51PM (2 children)

                  by Grishnakh (2831) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:51PM (#648639)

                  I've longed for the native meat, buffalo, to be widely available in America, but no luck.

                  Do you only shop at Walmart or something? You can get buffalo at any decent grocery store these days; I even saw some (ground) at Costco last time I was there.

                  It's not as easily available as regular beef, but that's because it's more expensive and Americans are cheap, but it is out there. But you're not that likely to find it at crappy stores.

                  • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:55PM (1 child)

                    by Phoenix666 (552) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:55PM (#648682) Journal

                    Hardly. I'm in Brooklyn. We have Costco, BJ's, Sam's, Whole Foods, Fairway, you name it. None of them carries buffalo. The meat seems to be more available in the West now than when I was a kid, and that's good, but it doesn't seem to made it to the East Coast yet.

                    It being NYC, I'm sure I could find it at some specialty shop if I looked really hard, but I don't want to pay $15/lb for it or make special trips to Queens. Tja, not a need, only a minor want.

                    --
                    Washington DC delenda est.
                    • (Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Tuesday March 06 2018, @09:50PM

                      by Grishnakh (2831) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @09:50PM (#648727)

                      Hardly. I'm in Brooklyn. We have Costco... None of them carries buffalo. The meat seems to be more available in the West now than when I was a kid, and that's good, but it doesn't seem to made it to the East Coast yet.

                      I saw it in a Costco in a small city in Virginia a little south of DC. I wonder if there's just something weird about NYC. Or maybe I was just lucky at Costco that day.

                • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday March 06 2018, @09:22PM

                  by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @09:22PM (#648710) Journal

                  Did you miss the reference because you were looking at it upside down? ;-)

                  Well, part of it, yes it came from "upsidedown look" - I was giving you a "taste" of what the usual bloke in outer suburbs here will have in mind when he hears "kanga".
                  Otherwise, yes, the reference was missing from my culture.

                  --
                  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
    • (Score: 2) by jelizondo on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:20AM

      by jelizondo (653) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:20AM (#648312) Journal

      Another 'merican who has not tried the real mushrooms [wikipedia.org] and thinks weed is a veggie...

      Probably from California to top it off!

      ;-}

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:25AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:25AM (#648316)

      Step away slowly from the 99% beef patty (gotta have spices), and nobody gets hurt.

      What if we call it "Mushroom Meatloaf" instead? Will that allow you not to shoot people?

    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Fluffeh on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:09AM (5 children)

      by Fluffeh (954) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:09AM (#648356) Journal

      Actually, I love to cook - and I love a good burger - and I think that a patty with some vegetables in with the meat actually tastes a lot better than straight meat. I generally add some onion, some mushrooms, a tiny bit of carrot and sometimes a tiny bit of leek as well. But I put the veggies through a meat mincer, then put the meat and veggies through the mincer again to mix it properly (or just chop the veggies up super fine, then knead it in by hand) - but then the usual salt, pepper and other spices... man, it's the best burger you can get! MUCH better than plain meat. It looks like 100% meat when cooked - but has a much more rounded taste.

      • (Score: 2) by AthanasiusKircher on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:09PM (4 children)

        by AthanasiusKircher (5291) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:09PM (#648519) Journal

        I don't doubt your burger tastes quite good. On the other hand, I wonder if you're covering up the taste of bland beef.

        We have a food industry in the U.S. dedicated to maximum production and speed. Taste and flavor is secondary. Cattle are bred and fed to make the most meat at the fastest rate. That's not going to necessarily produce the most flavorful beef. I imagine this is true to some extent in industrial farming in other countries too.

        I often grind my own beef at home when making burgers. For many years I also used to throw in some vegetables and a complex mixture of spices, sometimes dashes of sauces, etc. And it tasted good.

        But then I started trying to find better beef with a stronger flavor... Which can be hard to find. (Mixing beef from a couple different cuts of the cow can help.). And I found all those fillers covered up the good flavor of the pure beef. Nowadays, I often only add just a little black pepper (occasionally a dash of another spice or herb) to the mix. Salt actually radically changes the texture of burgers during cooking, so I've taken to frequently excluding that from the mix too and only salting after cooking.

        To each their own, though. I have no problem with those who want to add significant filler to a burger -- eventually you end up with something that's more like a meatball or sausage, but that can be good too. I just think GOOD beef can be great on its own too.

        • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:17PM (1 child)

          by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:17PM (#648541) Journal

          You remind me of an old friend. Most of my life, when I had a steak or anything, someone was handing me some A1 or something similar to put on the steak. Went to a restaurant with this guy, and we both ordered steaks. Waitress asked if we wanted steak sauce, and his reply was, "Why, is the steak that bad?" That got me to thinking, so I ate my steak without any sauce. Yep - it was a great steak, and putting A1 on it would have pretty much ruined the flavor.

          I don't mind mixing in some veggies or whatever in a meatloaf. Don't mind condiments on a burger. But, if I'm having a steak, just trot that thing across the fire, and bring it to me. Good beef doesn't really need any help. Bad beef can't get enough help! Mediocre beef should have been ground up for hamburger.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 07 2018, @07:22AM

            by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 07 2018, @07:22AM (#648915)

            You remind me of my friend who would go ballistic if someone tried to serve him hot dogs or hamburgers (lamb burgers are OK).

        • (Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:54PM

          by Grishnakh (2831) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:54PM (#648644)

          All meat is somewhat bland in flavor; that's why we do things like marinades and sauces and use spices, and it's been this way for centuries and in most cultures around the world.

        • (Score: 2) by Kawumpa on Wednesday March 07 2018, @04:46AM

          by Kawumpa (1187) on Wednesday March 07 2018, @04:46AM (#648883)

          This, most people buy either store ground beef or the wrong cuts and then wonder why the burger tastes bland. Everybody will have to find their own blend, but I recommend at least a third of short rib and if you want it a little funky, grind in some oxtail as well. You can salt post-forming, pre-grilling/searing. Don't handle the meat excessively and keep it cool.

    • (Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:17AM

      by maxwell demon (1608) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:17AM (#648396) Journal

      What's wrong with offering beef/mushroom burgers besides the traditional beef-only burgers? If those new burgers taste as great as the article claims, they will be bought not because of the environmental impact, but because of the taste. And if not, well, then they'll not be able to sell too many of them, will they?

      --
      The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
    • (Score: 3, Funny) by DannyB on Tuesday March 06 2018, @06:34PM

      by DannyB (5839) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @06:34PM (#648608) Journal

      This is how it begins.

      It ends with the 99% eating flavorless gray goop.

      No more twinkie farmers.

      --
      People today are educated enough to repeat what they are taught but not to question what they are taught.
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:09AM (5 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:09AM (#648304)

    Why do they hate my freedoms?
    Because they're free to do so, that is why!

    This is a good idea!

    • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:09AM (4 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:09AM (#648336)

      Yeah. I would totally buy burgers like that, maybe not every time, but sometimes. I think I'll try this over the weekend.

      • (Score: 3, Insightful) by KiloByte on Tuesday March 06 2018, @12:44PM (3 children)

        by KiloByte (375) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @12:44PM (#648473)

        The rule is to never, ever, buy pre-made mincemeat. You buy actual meat and mince it — usually in a batch, freezing the rest to save time. Commercial mincemeat consists mostly of udders, gizzards and such if you're lucky, wet cardboard if you're not.

        You then have full freedom to add chopped mushrooms or whatever else the recipe calls for.

        --
        Ceterum censeo systemd esse delendam.
        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:26PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:26PM (#648545)

          I don't know anyone that grinds their own meat. Ill just continue to purchase from Costco. I trust them enough.

        • (Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:20PM (1 child)

          by DeathMonkey (1380) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:20PM (#648620) Journal

          You can use a food processor as well if you don't have a grinder. Chop it up pretty small then pulse in small batches until desired consistency.

          I make gyros meat that way sometime too you just go a bit finer.

          • (Score: 2) by Kawumpa on Wednesday March 07 2018, @04:53AM

            by Kawumpa (1187) on Wednesday March 07 2018, @04:53AM (#648887)

            For small batches, like for example Mapo Tofu, I prefer using a knife over food processor and meat grinder. The cleaning takes longer than hand chopping everything. Just teach yourself some knife skills.

  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:16AM (7 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:16AM (#648307)

    Mushrooms are great, but they're more expensive than ground beef unless you get the cheap flavorless kind.

    • (Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:33AM (5 children)

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:33AM (#648320) Journal

      If you're talking about Agaricus bisporus [wikipedia.org], I don't think they taste flavorless at all. You'll want to sauté or roast them before sticking them in your burger meat.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
      • (Score: 4, Informative) by dbe on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:06AM (2 children)

        by dbe (1422) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:06AM (#648334)

        Agreed, saute in butter (the real kind, not margarine), a lot of it... and you can get an amazing mushroom flavor.
        Also don't cut them in too small pieces as they reduce a lot, you still want to have something to chew on.
        Incidentally if you have to "re-hydrate" dry mushroom, butter does also the trick.
        -dbe

        • (Score: 3, Insightful) by epitaxial on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:40PM (1 child)

          by epitaxial (3165) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:40PM (#648546)

          Saute anything in butter and it tastes good.

          • (Score: 2) by Kawumpa on Wednesday March 07 2018, @04:51AM

            by Kawumpa (1187) on Wednesday March 07 2018, @04:51AM (#648885)

            Ah, the secret of french cuisine. :)

      • (Score: 2) by captain normal on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:25AM (1 child)

        by captain normal (2205) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:25AM (#648343)

        The only thing about mixing ground beef and mushrooms in order to cut cattle production is that the medium that Agaricus bisporus (or crimini mushrooms) are grown in is cow manure. Fewer cattle means fewer mushrooms.
        That said, there are many reasons why mixing mushrooms with ground meat not only improves the taste, but is healthier. I've used shiitake and oyster mushrooms mixed with beef for burgers and meatloaf. Very tasty indeed.

        --
        When life isn't going right, go left.
    • (Score: 2) by takyon on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:39AM

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:39AM (#648324) Journal

      Also, one of the benefits of this mixture seems to be that the mushrooms can blend in and not affect the overall flavor of the burger much, aside from possibly making it juicier and adding more glutamates (umami/savory flavor) to it.

      So the school lunch cafeteria can improve the taste while saving money.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
  • (Score: 4, Touché) by HiThere on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:20AM

    by HiThere (866) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:20AM (#648311) Journal

    What else is there to say? Various kinds of "hamburger helper" have been around for decades, and mushrooms sounds better than most of them.

    --
    Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:35AM (5 children)

    Man, the mushroom and swiss burger has been around for like ever. It's good too. I will whoop an ass if anyone tries to tell me I can't have a burger made entirely out of cow bits though.

    --
    My rights don't end where your fear begins.
    • (Score: 2) by leftover on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:22AM

      by leftover (2448) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:22AM (#648340)

      Right with you on both points. With really great mushrooms (fresh morels) beef is the extender. Lesser fresh mushrooms are modifiers for beef and they do make an improvement. Dried mushrooms are a sad and wasteful end for what was once good stuff. Now I am really hungry and it is a ridiculous time to fire up the grill.

      --
      Bent, folded, spindled, and mutilated.
    • (Score: 2) by Arik on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:59AM (1 child)

      by Arik (4543) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:59AM (#648353) Journal
      This isn't exactly like the mushroom swiss burger, not at all, but I agree it's hardly new.

      Poor folks have probably been doing this for many millennia. Growing up, we tried all kinds of different mixers to make the ground beef go further, and some of them really improved the burgers too! Chopped mushrooms, onions, garlic, peppers or whatever is handy, if the mix is too dry add egg, if it's too moist add bread crumbs. Best results require you not add too much, but 70% meat doesn't sound out of line.

      --
      If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
      • (Score: 2) by AthanasiusKircher on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:15PM

        by AthanasiusKircher (5291) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:15PM (#648521) Journal

        Just to be clear -- once you're adding a bunch of stuff plus egg and breadcrumbs, you're making something more like meatballs or meatloaf... And forming it into a patty. Which can be delicious too. But at some point if you served that in a restaurant as a "hamburger" it would confuse a lot of customers, who (unless they order a "veggie burger" or something) are expecting mostly meat and maybe a few spices.

    • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:25PM (1 child)

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:25PM (#648544) Journal

      Found a restaurant recently with a mushroom and bacon burger. It was late in the evening, and there were three young people working. The cook, probably still in high school, or maybe last year's grad, gave me a burger to remember. MAN it was GOOD!.

      Went back a few weeks later, earlier in the day. The same burger was disappointing. Thought about that while I was eating, decided the kid must have cooked the 'shrooms in butter. That's the only thing I could come up with. I suppose they normally cook them in some vegetable oil or other. Blehhhhh . . . they would have a better product if they cooked it all in the bacon fat. Some health conscious dietitian probably decided that the vegetable oil was healthier.

      • (Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Tuesday March 06 2018, @09:53PM

        by Grishnakh (2831) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @09:53PM (#648728)

        I thought the new line of thought was that butter isn't bad for you as long as you don't go overboard, and vegetable oil is absolutely terrible for you unless it's olive oil.

  • (Score: 4, Informative) by ilPapa on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:48AM

    by ilPapa (2366) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:48AM (#648329) Journal

    I used to go to a food truck that mixed chopped nopales in with ground beef to make its hamburgers. They were the most delicious goddamned things I ever tasted and nopales are incredibly healthy.

    If any of you live in the Southwest or on the West coast, you really ought to try nopales. They're flat blades from cacti, peeled and then sliced. Here in California, they're really inexpensive and you can use them in lots of tasty dishes. If you have a Mexican produce market near you, they'll usually have nopales. Here in Cali, they're in virtually all grocery stores.

    --
    You are still welcome on my lawn.
  • (Score: 2) by Snotnose on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:19AM (4 children)

    by Snotnose (1623) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:19AM (#648338)

    Ok, to all the party goers who have attended my cookouts for the last 20 years. This is how I do it. Get some ground beef, depending on how many people you expect and how many leftovers you want. Get some mushrooms, button is fine, portabello is great, shitaki is overpriced for what we're after. In a bowl combine the ground beef, shrooms, some salt, some pepper, some worchester, and either an egg or bread crumbs to hold it all together.

    Now for the fun part. Got 4 people to feed? Make 8 patties. Take 1 patty, put a slice of cheese on it (and other stuff, pickled jalepenos are my fave), and cover with another patty. Squeeze the edges to make a seal. Toss on the grill for 2-3 minutes, flip, 2-3 minutes later serve.

    --
    Why shouldn't we judge a book by it's cover? It's got the author, title, and a summary of what the book's about.
    • (Score: 2) by captain normal on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:28AM (2 children)

      by captain normal (2205) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:28AM (#648344)

      Sounds good. What time's dinner?

      --
      When life isn't going right, go left.
      • (Score: 2) by Snotnose on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:56AM (1 child)

        by Snotnose (1623) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:56AM (#648352)

        20 minutes ago, sorry. Wanna wash the dishes?

        --
        Why shouldn't we judge a book by it's cover? It's got the author, title, and a summary of what the book's about.
        • (Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:25AM

          by maxwell demon (1608) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:25AM (#648400) Journal

          Only if you pay me a million for it. I mean, dish washing is supposed to make you a millionaire, isn't it? :-)

          --
          The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
    • (Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:09AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @04:09AM (#648357)
      It's news to inhabitants of Blue states, where all changes in behavior have to start in the legislature.
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:34AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @03:34AM (#648347)

    Top the burger with sauteed mushroom. And no, I didn't invent this - it's been around as long as there was hotdog. Or something.

  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @05:15AM (8 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @05:15AM (#648368)

    Or you could simply sell burgers at 70% of their current size. Most people eat too much anyway. Don't pollute my meat with additives. If you add sugar you can substantially reduce the amount of beef while keeping the calorie count the same too. Why not make that proposal? Because it's stupid. Same with this. Sell smaller burgers. Provide mushrooms as a topping. How much is the mushroom industry paying for the PR for these combined burgers?

    • (Score: 2) by PocketSizeSUn on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:08AM (6 children)

      by PocketSizeSUn (5340) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @07:08AM (#648391)

      This years trend (Mushrooms in everything) was in the pipeline for about a year.
      The weird one coming is mushroom+coffee.

      • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @10:47AM (5 children)

        by Phoenix666 (552) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @10:47AM (#648443) Journal

        I like mushrooms and this combination sounds good to me. I even think we should change how we produce and consume to lessen our impact on the environment, because there are more than 7 billion of us (there were 4 billion when I was a kid--that's not a comforting growth curve).

        But why does every blessed thing these days that would otherwise be fine to propose have to be couched with an ulterior motive? Moreover, why does everything these days have to be composed as clickbait: "This year's hot new trend: mushrooms! In everything! Because it's so eco-friendly!!" It's sanctimonious and obnoxious and narcissistic all at the same time.

        --
        Washington DC delenda est.
        • (Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday March 06 2018, @01:49PM (3 children)

          by VLM (445) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @01:49PM (#648486)

          Because adulterating meat to increase profits is hyper-downmarket, see McDonalds, that stuff is barely food.

          So you have to market the heck out of it to make it a trendy cool thing instead of poverty food.

          The taste will be the same, its just if you eat it in a Stanford cafeteria you can humblebrag on twitter about how holy you are for your martyrdom of eating weird food, whereas if you eat the same burger out of a McDonalds bag thats merely ghetto trash.

          Pay close attention to where the money goes... the adulterated meat will cost more than pure beef, cost less to make, and someone is going to adsorb the profit. The market has settled on $X per burger and they will get $X regardless how cheap the adulterated meat costs... Especially at restaurants.

          • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:17PM (2 children)

            by Phoenix666 (552) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:17PM (#648496) Journal

            That makes sense. I think you're right.

            Still, can they not do all that, which is nothing new, but hold the side dish of sanctimony and narcissism? I'm all for weird food and new combinations and experimentation and all that, but for fuck's sake can the Millenials please take the "meaning" they interlard everything with and stick it where the sun don't shine? Even when I agree with the overall philosophy its constant insertion into everything is obstreperous and off-putting.

            --
            Washington DC delenda est.
            • (Score: 2) by Osamabobama on Tuesday March 06 2018, @05:26PM

              by Osamabobama (5842) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @05:26PM (#648573)

              But sanctimony and narcissism are powerful market forces. A responsible business plan will put them to use.

              --
              Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
            • (Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:49PM

              by VLM (445) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:49PM (#648675)

              I'm all for weird food and new combinations and experimentation

              That also brings up the corporate problem.

              When I mince onions and garlic into my burgers and they grill up delicious (also tried peppers, both sweet green, and hot) thats fun combo experimentation and its good. Another fun one, although when it burns its kinda gross is mixing in cheese.

              When corporation does it to sell 80% beef 20% "filler" burgers at the same price as 100% beef burgers, and bad money forces out good money all the time, such that its impossible to consume a 100% beef burger ever again at any price other than at home if you grind your own, thats just a profiteering ripoff screwing over the customer and reducing choice and quality of living.

              I suppose a lot of food things scale like that. My mom's lasagna being my monopoly lasagna supplier is fun, but some multinational corporation being the only monopoly lasagna supplier would suck.

        • (Score: 2) by PocketSizeSUn on Wednesday March 07 2018, @03:05PM

          by PocketSizeSUn (5340) on Wednesday March 07 2018, @03:05PM (#649005)

          Well there are a couple of reasons these food trends kick off.

          Either a product becomes cheap (Ex: Earthquake in Modena, IT that caused a fire sale on Parmesan cheese making it the year of parm in everything).
          Sometimes a producer find a new method of incorporating an additive either for lower cost, better taste, or jumping on a health kick (Ex: probiotics)
          Sometimes it's just new and different (Ex: Nitrogenated cold brew coffee)

          Personally I equate food and fashion as having similar trends.
          Ex: Chocolate 'lava' cake started out in high end restaurants and eventually trickled down to everywhere...

    • (Score: 2) by Preston on Tuesday March 06 2018, @11:33AM

      by Preston (4) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @11:33AM (#648452)

      What about 70% smaller and 30% of that new total being mushrooms? 🤔

      Glad to see Unicode support!

  • (Score: 2) by requerdanos on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:34PM

    by requerdanos (5997) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:34PM (#648504) Journal

    Blending around 70% ground beef with 30% chopped mushrooms could reduce the environmental impact of beef

    Or, stated another way, "Consuming less beef could reduce beef consumption. Maybe we put in some fillers or something."

    Here are some instructions for doing just that, from 2007: Heinz & Hautzinger's "Meat Processing Technology for Small-to-Medium Scale Producers" chapter on "Non-Meat Ingredients" [fao.org]. Though this particular source dates back only about a decade, the ideas it presents date to prehistory.

    Richard Waite...is thrilled. "I think it's great!" he says.

    There are many things that "everybody knows," like "mentos+diet coke=sudden increase in volume" or "if you put fillers into meat you can use less meat for the same volume". There is a nice, relevant, almost obligatory xkcd [xkcd.com] that relates to this, and offers a great example for us in its opening frame: "I try not to make fun of people for admitting they don't know things."

    Welcome to the party, Richard!

  • (Score: 5, Interesting) by bziman on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:48PM (2 children)

    by bziman (3577) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @02:48PM (#648509)

    For those of us with food allergies, surprise filler ingredients are a nightmare. I'd rather see smaller burgers. I'd rather eat grass-fed beef, even if it costs more. Don't try to save the environment by making food uneatable. I don't want to become the endangered one.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @06:27PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 06 2018, @06:27PM (#648598)

      For those of us with food allergies, surprise filler ingredients are a nightmare. I'd rather see smaller burgers. I'd rather eat grass-fed beef, even if it costs more. Don't try to save the environment by making food uneatable. I don't want to become the endangered one.

      As someone with a genus-wide allergies to Allium, Piper, and Capsicum.
      I wholeheartedly agree.

    • (Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:53PM

      by VLM (445) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:53PM (#648679)

      AMEN to that. Strange anecdotal example: Its impossible to make gyro meat at home with wheat, but all commercially available gyro meat has wheat filler; my son is medically allergic to wheat (celliac) so its homemade or nothing. Can't even go to restaurants because of wheat filler to boost profits. Its actually harder to make gyro meat with wheat flour filler; tends to burn and the burned parts taste like burned bread, but the profit margin is a harsh motivator.

  • (Score: 2) by goodie on Tuesday March 06 2018, @06:50PM

    by goodie (1877) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @06:50PM (#648611) Journal

    The idea of adding the mushrooms in the patty (as opposed to on the side) is appealing to me, but purely for the purpose of taste. My kids on the other hand would likely complain since they are not fans of mushrooms.

    However, the real issue is that as a population, the US eats too much. I am talking about the US since we are talking about burgers and well, like it or not, they are mostly sold and eaten in the US. One of the big issues is that we have somewhat convinced ourselves that we value quantity over quality. This is tied to a number of issues, including over consumption, obesity, chronic illnesses and others. I find it fascinating, every time I go the US, how bigger the plates are getting. Every restaurant's message is targeted at telling you that you get "more" for "less". Not more quality, but more quantity. In many grocery stores, same story: huge fruit and vegetables, zero taste.

    My experience is that a dinner for me is an appetizer in any US restaurant. and when the portion is of a reasonable size, it's invariably greasy, salty and with that awful dehydrated garlic/onion/msg flavor that leaves you parched afterwards... I value quality and diversity and I find myself paying a high price for it when I eat a restaurant or do my groceries. But I am okay with it ultimately because I value it and coincidentally (or not), it is good for my health. And yet I am not a tree hugger, vegan freak or anything (and I go to restaurants probably twice a year). But I have come to feel greatly aware of how much food we can easily waste. When that food has value (as in $$ and taste), you save it for later. When it does not, you toss it because, it's worthless. And with kids, it's actually easier to go with the second route. But I try to hang on and explain to them that anything we eat requires time and energy to be produced and brought to our table. Hence it deserves to be treated with respect and not be wasted. I find the focus on meat odd personally anyway. Anything we eat requires time and energy. Granted some more than others.

    This idea is stupid because it does not attempt to address the underlying issue of food overconsumption (I know, not many people would value having less food for the same price and be told that it's allegedly of better quality...). People need to be educated about this. Somehow it does not register with most. Worst, this idea might "trick" people into thinking that the burgers are less caloric, less nutritious (mushrooms especially...) but "healthier" so they will eat more to get the same amount of sustenance. without every questioning how much they were eating in the first place. How we eat also matters. There are studies that are starting to show (can't find where anymore) that when you eat with your eyes glued on your phone, you eat more because it's mechanic, and not enjoyable.

    That's why I'd rather eat one burger with less meat but more toppings. Now take that small patty, garnish the burger and add some mayo with chipotle and cilantro and we're talking!

    Apologies for the rant...

  • (Score: 2) by ngarrang on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:47PM

    by ngarrang (896) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:47PM (#648673) Journal

    Various beef patties have been enhanced/augmented with soybeans for years and it is fairly cheap to do so. Using mushrooms would seem to be unnecessarily expensive.

    Now I have a craving for a blended beef-soybean-mushroom pattie.

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