For the past several months, I’ve been on a quest to make a veggie burger that had everything on our wish list. I’ve probably made over 100 veggie burgers and they all came up short, either by just a tiny bit or by a landslide.
I’m always asked what I do with failed recipes and my answer is usually the same- I eat them! An imperfect veggie burger crumbled over a salad is quite tasty. Same goes for a doughy muffin crumbled over a bowl of Vegan Overnight Oats. Unless something I make is really gross, I eat it.
However, I am picky about three things:
1) The recipes that I post on the blog
2) Homemade Veggie burgers
3) Tying my running shoes before a run (I always stop once to re-tie them, lol)
Now you know. :)
Eric and I put together a ‘must-have’ list of requirements during our mission. Veggie burgers are serious business around here and we have quite a checklist. ;)
Our veggie burger must haves:
- Can’t be mushy in the middle (the problem I have the most)
- Crispy outer shell
- Lots of flavour from fresh herbs & spices
- No tofu (not a fan)
- Crunchy, chewy texture is a must
- No cracking or falling apart (another common problem)
- Must cook well 3 ways: frying pan, oven, and BBQ
- Could make a grown man shed a tear of joy (ok, that was my requirement, heh)
If one of those elements is missing, the recipe is as dead to me as the burgers flippin’ on the McDonald’s grill!
After writing about my most recent Lemon Rosemary burger fail (that drove me to make PB Crunch Blizzards), I received an email from a lovely reader named Jenny who must have known that I was one failed veggie burger short of being buckled into a straitjacket.
Jenny writes, “After reading your post today, which has me day-dreaming about cookie dough blizzards by the way, I wanted to share with you the best veggie burger recipe our family has come across (even my meat-lovin’ husband requests them from time to time!). The recipe is from the Whitewater ski area in Nelson, BC and hasn’t failed us yet. It isn’t vegan but I’m sure you can work your magic to make it so.”
Isn’t Jenny great?
After reading Jenny’s email, I flew into the kitchen so fast my processor spun. I figured there was a 0.0002% chance they would work, so I was quite hopeful.
As luck would have it, magic did happen in my kitchen that fateful evening as Eric patiently awaited the outcome, fearing he’d be served yet another bowl of cereal.
He wasn’t. :)
Our Perfect Veggie Burger
Yield
8 burgers
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Crunchy, chewy, with a crispy outer shell, these delicious veggie burgers have all the right elements we love in a veggie burger. Light on the beans, these burgers aren’t mushy in the middle, but have a nice mixture of veggies, bread crumbs, chopped oats, sunflower seeds, and spices to round them out. This recipe is inspired by Whitewater Cooks.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons ground flax
- 1/3 cup (80 mL) warm water
- 1 (14-ounce/398 mL) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 tablespoon (15 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
- 3/4 cup finely chopped red onion or yellow onion
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup grated carrots
- 1/3 cup finely chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds, toasted
- 1 to 2 tablespoons (15 to 30 mL) tamari, to taste
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 cup rolled oats, processed into a coarse meal*
- 1/2 cup spelt bread crumbs (or bread crumbs of choice)
- 1 to 2 tablespoons oat flour (or flour of choice), as needed
- 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk the ground flax and water in a small bowl and set aside for about 5 minutes so it can thicken.
- Into a large mixing bowl, add the drained black beans. With a potato masher, mash the beans until 2/3 of the mixture is a bean "paste" while leaving about 1/3 of the beans mostly intact.
- In a medium skillet, add the oil and increase the heat to medium. Stir in the onion, garlic, and a pinch of salt. Sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, until the onion softens. Transfer the onion mixture into the bowl with the mashed beans.
- Stir in the flax egg, grated carrots, parsley (or cilantro), sunflower seeds, tamari, chili powder, oregano, and cumin until thoroughly combined.
- Now, stir in the coarsely chopped oats, bread crumbs, and oat flour until the mixture comes together. It should be easy to shape the dough into patties. Stir in the salt and pepper, to taste.
- Shape the dough into 8 patties (roughly 1/3 cup of dough per patty). Pack the dough together tightly as this will help it stick together. Place onto the baking sheet.
- Bake patties for 15 minutes, gently flip, and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes until patties are firm and golden.
- Cool the patties on a cooling rack for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. This helps them firm up a bit.
- Serve in a bun or lettuce wrap with your desired toppings. Leftover burgers will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, or you can freeze cooled patties for up to 1 month. Simply wrap each patty in tinfoil and then place all of the wrapped burgers into a zip freezer bag.
Tip:
- * To coarsely chop the oats, add 1/2 cup rolled oats into a food processor. Process the oats until a coarse meal forms (the chopped pieces will be a mixture of powder and chopped oats just smaller than rice). Be sure not to process too long or the oats will turn into flour.
- Make it gluten-free: Use certified gluten-free oats, gluten-free Tamari, and gluten-free breadcrumbs.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)This veggie burger ‘dough’ is so good to eat straight from the bowl! Another thing I learned during my mission: if the ‘dough’ doesn’t wow you, the burgers won’t either. Don’t be afraid to adjust the seasonings to taste.
For my first trial, I didn’t process the oats into a flour and they didn’t hold together very well when frying. For my second trial, I used oat flour instead of whole oats and they held together very well!
Before baking in the oven:
I love my silpat, but you can also use parchment paper.
After baking for 20 mins. on each side…crispy and golden!
Our preferred method of cooking is on the skillet, fried in a bit of oil. The burgers get this crispy shell similar to a hash brown! We already have plans to fry the ‘dough’ in a skillet for breakfast.
We also tried them on the BBQ, which also worked well. Pre-cook them in the oven for about 15 minutes first to firm them up a bit.
Then I raided the garden…
On the side, kale chips and ketchup.
On the burgers, we had homemade BBQ sauce, ketchup, mustard, lettuce, tomatoes. The second night, we had guacamole and pico de gallo on top- incredible!
I hope you love ‘em too!
I think this comment from Dawn says it all:
“Throw out any of your other veggie burger recipes! Seriously. This. Is. The. One! No weird ingredients. I’m no gourmet foodie, I’m just plain jane and have regular things in my pantry and fridge and I had all of these ingredients. I added about 1 Tbsp chopped jalapeno (from a jar of sliced jalapenos). Love the sunflower seeds!! Do not over chop the black beans. I recommend mixing by hand in a bowl. I used my kitchen aid and they were too mush-i-fied. Even with my mess ups, these were very, very good. I immediately ate one from pan fried. The others I baked and will freeze. Then I will give them a try on the barbecue. Truly. I am going to remove other recipes from my Pinterest, and toss the others from my recipe box.
Thank you for making the Perfect Veggie Burger recipe!”
Those do look like the perfect veggie burgers – I always have trouble with mine crumbling or being mushy! Those look fantastic!
In the pictures it looks like there are whole oats in the mixture but there isn’t whole oats ‘(just ground ones) in the recipe. Maybe I am wrong…?
My first trial used whole oats, 2nd trial used oat flour (process whole oats). Use oat flour :)
So is it a cup of oat flour, or a cup of oats ground down, which would make less flour? If I already have the flour how much do I use?
I used 1 cup of rolled oats and ground it into a flour. You can also use 1 cup + 1 tbsp oat flour.
Could you use 1 cup + 1 tbsp almond flour instead?
Hey Emily, I’m not sure as I haven’t tried it before. Oat flour is pretty darn great for binding and I’m not certain if almond flour would be the same. Let me know if you do try it out! :)
These sound amazing!!!! I wonder how it would taste subbing in cannelini beans and then basil…I’ll have to try it!! And the original too, of course :D
I used fresh basil and it was amazing. Didn’t have flax so I used egg whites. Wish I had used one more. Think i used 2. Also, very important to keep hands really wet when forming the patties. Pretty time consuming but I’ll be more organized next time I make them. Delicious recipe!
These are the prettiest veggie burgers I’ve ever seen!
I’m the same way about eating “failed” cooking and baking projects – unless it’s truly horrendous, I re-purpose it somehow or suck it up and chow down! My budget doesnt really allow for throwing away gobs of food, and I love that you don’t waste yours either!
These look absolutely jam-packed full of goodness! If you had to take a guess, do you have any idea how much protein these babies have going on? I’m looking to up my intake and these sound like an awesome whole-foods way to do it :D
im not sure….maybe I will calculate the nutritional info at some point!
I love that there are so many veggies in that veggie burger! A lot of times, I feel like they’re lacking (like if there’s really only one veggie in there). I can’t wait to try these!!
Oh, my goodness, I got all excited when I read the part about your reader’s meat-loving husband eating these veggie burgers from time to time. THAT is music to my ears!
These look absolutely amazing! OMG look at that texture! WOW! Certainly a winner. Book marking this right now!
I can’t wait to try these out and freeze some for quick work meals! Also, your photography is just stunning. I’m constantly in awe of how you make everything look so gorgeous!
Thanks Jennifer :)
Do I freeze these raw or cooked? if cooked how long and what method? Thanks. I am new to your blog and and am looking forward to trying these.
I think you can freeze them raw, thaw in fridge or at room temp, and cook as usual. I also think you can freeze them already cooked (for both: double wrapped and put in air tight container), but I would imagine they wouldnt last quite as long in the freezer.
Sorry, I didn’t see your answer. Do you think I can still freeze them raw with the “real’ eggs in them? They really are good and I am quite proud of myself. I have not eaten meat for 40 years and these blogs are really helping me with new ideas.
@Mika: I include egg in my variation of the veggie burger recipe here (http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/on-air/as-seen-on/Village-Whiskey-Veggie-Burger-62562777.html), and I freeze it with no problems. I form each patty and wrap it in plastic wrap, then stack and freeze them flat in large glass containers or Ziploc bags. I defrost them in the fridge or, in a pinch, quickly in the microwave. I always polish them off in under a month or so, though, so I can’t be sure how long they’ll keep in the freezer.
These are the BEST vegan burgers ever. You were right to suggest to throw out all the other recipes. For what it’s worth, I froze them (after oven cooking). Double wrapped them in baking paper and sealed them in a plastic bag (in pairs). They were just as delicious post-frozen, as they were freshly cooked. Re-heated them in the oven with freshly made hand-cut chips.
Thank you for the recipe, saved me hours of trying to find the ‘right’ one.
Ok, so I made these tonight and they are as good as all the pics! My question remains about freezing them, I did use 2 “real” eggs. Thanks!
I knew you would find the perfect veggie burger recipe! This looks fantastic and I can’t wait to try them! I would never have thought to add the nuts and seeds!
….and good call putting ketchup on the kale chips — that’s another must try for sure!!
I’ve never seen veggie burger dough look so good before. These are definitely a must try!
These look awesome! I’m always on the hunt for new veggie burgers, and my criteria is pretty similar to yours. I think homemade veggie burgers are so much better than boxed ones.
I have always wanted to make my own veggie burgers, but most of the recipes I’ve seen have things in them that scare me. This recipe has stuff that I already have in my kitchen – perfect!! They are going on tonight’s dinner menu :)
Ooohhh….this recipe sounds epic! I’ve been craving veggie burgers lately, but have the same frustrations–mushy middle, can only be cooked in one fashion. I look forward to testing out this recipe!
These look really tasty – and soo healthy!
These look great Angela!
Is it too much to ask for the burgers to taste like meat also? lol… hamburgers are the one thing I really crave since going vegetarian. If you’re ever in the LA area, there is a place called Umami Burger that has THE most amazing veggie burger.. & it even tasted like meat! I didn’t secretly envy my family members’ burgers as we ate like I normally do because this burger was so darn good.
haha yea some people would like that as well…Im personally not a fan of meat taste anymore. I stopped craving it after a few months.
It’s been so long since I’ve made veggie burgers! These are definitely on my must-make-soon list!!
is that you in the banner?
yup :)
this looks amazing angela!! I just might have to whip up a batch of these for dinner tonight! :) thanks
I input the recipe in MyFitnessPal.com and here is the calories and nutrition info on the veggie burgers based on 8 burgers. Calories 214, Carbs 12, Fat 11, Protein 9, Sodium 405, Fiber 6. I used canned black beans so the sodium would be reduced drastically if you used cooked black beans as per the recipe.
Thanks Sue that is nice to you to share!