Wednesday, May 2, 2018

Burger Parmigiana over Non-Watery Zoodles

This evening I didn't have any meat thawed for dinner so I grabbed a bag of burgers that I had made several months ago, double wrapped and froze (raw). I added them to a skillet with some olive oil, covered the pan and cooked over medium heat until they thawed and cooked (it took about 15-20 minutes). I flipped them a couple times. I moved the burgers aside to a plate and added 1/2 of a diced Vidalia onion to the pan and cooked for about 5 to 7 minutes until translucent and caramelized. I returned the 3 burgers to the pan with the onions and poured a jar of Classico's Riserva Arrabbiata sauce over top of the burgers. I wanted a spicy sauce to contrast the sweetness from the Vidalia onions. I covered the pan and simmered the burgers on low for about 20 minutes. While I was cooking the burgers, I pulled out my Paderno Spiralizer and quickly made a huge pile of zoodles using 5 medium-large zucchinis. It took about 3 to 4 minutes. They are so much fresher than those you purchase pre-spiralized in the store and when you realize how quickly you can make a bunch at a fraction of the cost, it will easily justify purchasing this spiralizer. Plus, I think there is something fun about using it. It cleans up so easily by simply rinsing with water and lightly wiping with a paper towel with a drop of dish soap. Just shake it off and place on the counter or in a dish rack and allow it to dry naturally overnight. One of the things many don't like about using zoodles is they can be so watery. I found a way to take care of that by layering the raw zoodles between paper towels (lightly salting to help draw out excess liquid), rolling them up and allowing to wick out the excess liquid. I actually dedicated an entire blog post on "How to Make Non-Watery Zoodles" that you can find by clicking the bolded blog title with that name on the line above.

After the burgers simmered in the sauce, I removed the pot from the heat and topped each with a slice of Bel Gioioso fresh mozzarella cheese and topped with a pinch of dried basil and gave the cheese a few minutes to melt. After my zoodles had sat for a while (at least 30 minutes, but the longer the better...you can make them the night before, roll-up and place in the fridge overnight), I did a quick saute in a bit of olive oil in a nonstick pan (just a couple of minutes on medium high while tossing frequently). I cooked half of the zoodles I made and did it in 2 separate batches. I rolled up the other half of uncooked zoodles and placed on a plate in the fridge to use in the next day or two. I transferred the cooked zoodles to a mesh strainer over a bowl to allow any juices from cooking to drain off. To store leftover cooked zoodles, I line a bowl with a white paper towel and place the zoodles on that and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. I served the Burger Parmigiana over zoodles and we added finely grated Parmesan cheese to our burgers at the table before eating. I snapped a few photos below. Enjoy!










               

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