Black Bean Veggie Burger

Have the ultimate burger dinner on any day of the week with these amazing vegetarian black bean burgers.

You don’t have to be a vegetarian to embrace the benefits of meatless meals. This tasty vegetarian recipe makes it easy to prepare protein-rich vegetarian meals without compromising on flavour.

It’s hard to believe the meaty texture of these veggies burgers. They’re made with sautéed red onions, garlic, mushrooms, and black beans that are seasoned to perfection. Eat with hamburger buns and let everyone at your table customize their burger by choosing their own favourite toppings.

I developed this recipe for my daughters. My youngest is a vegetarian living in London, England, and my oldest lives in Toronto and enjoys incorporating vegetarian meals into her meal plan. This veggie & bean cousin to the traditional beef burger turned out to be the perfect meatless burger! No food processor is required for these burgers. They’re simple for each of my daughters to put together on their own in their small downtown apartment kitchens in their respective cities.

My daughters love that this recipe makes a sufficient batch to entertain with or to store away in the freezer for another day when a quick dinner is needed. I too always have a batch of these burgers in my freezer ready for a busy night.

The burgers have a slightly fragile texture so cooking them in a skillet is recommended over grilling. Ideally, if you have a cast iron skillet, heat it up until it’s screaming hot in order to get the burgers browned and charred on the surface. They’ll be crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and full of veggie burger goodness! If you don’t have a cast iron skillet you can still achieve this nice browning with a regular skillet.

Allow time for the black bean mixture to chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes up to 2 hours before forming the burgers.  Working with a chilled mixture makes it easier to form and bind the burgers.

For convenience make the burgers ahead, store in the refrigerator and cook when needed. This makes these burgers ideal for meal prep Sundays! They also freeze well. Just pack each one individually to avoid them sticking together and thaw them in the refrigerator for a couple of hours or more before cooking.

I hope you will enjoy these homemade healthy veggie black bean burgers. Try them for a meatless Monday meal and let me know what you think!
 
 

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Black Bean Veggie Burgers

Thick veggie burgers with sautéed red onions, garlic, mushrooms and protein-rich black beans. Tuck these black bean burgers into hamburger buns with your favourite toppings and enjoy a satisfying vegetarian meal.

Servings 4 burgers

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 250 grams cremini mushrooms, diced fine
• ½ cup cup finely diced red onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 580 mL tin black beans, rinsed and drained
• ⅓ cup finely chopped parsley
• ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
• ¼ cup ground flaxseed
• 2 teaspoons oregano
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon chili powder (as desired)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 egg
• 2-4 teaspoons olive oil, for cooking

Instructions

1. In a 12” skillet, preferably cast iron, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, red onion and garlic. Sauté while stirring occasionally until browned and tender, about 5 – 7 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly. (Use the same skillet to cook the burgers later).

2. Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl mash the black beans with a potato masher to a lumpy texture. Most of the beans should be broken and some of them creamed. Add the sautéed mushroom-onion mixture, parsley, breadcrumbs, flaxseed, oregano, cumin, coriander, chili powder, salt, pepper and egg. Mix all the ingredients together really well.

3. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for 2 hours. Working with a chilled mixture makes it easier to form the burgers. Form the chilled mixture into 4 equal sized burgers, pressing them firmly, and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Refrigerate to keep them cold, or freeze until needed.

4. Cook the burgers cold from the refrigerator. If the burgers are frozen, thaw them in refrigerator for at least 2 hours or longer before cooking (and in this case you may have to add a few minutes to the cooking time).

5. Heat a 12” cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until really hot. Add 2 teaspoons oil and then the burgers. Cook without disturbing for 4 – 5 minutes, reducing the heat as necessary. Gently flip the burgers over, adding another 2 teaspoons of oil if necessary, and cook for another 4 – 5 minutes. The burgers should be crisp and golden-brown on the outside and heated through on the inside.

6. Transfer the burgers onto hamburger buns and garnish with desired toppings. Suggestions: hamburger buns, cheese slices, leaf lettuce, micro-greens, tomatoes, onions, avocado, mayonnaise and sriracha sauce mixture, or other burger garnishes as desired.