simple black bean burgers
/A simple post for a simple recipe.
I was in a pinch to make dinner last night with a fairly empty kitchen. I didn’t just want to throw together scraps and call it a meal. Sometimes that totally works and is nice and easy but it’s been happening a bit too frequently. I wanted a meal, instead of 4-5 disjointed foods cooked separately + thrown on a plate.
Veggie burgers are about the greatest thing ever. I almost always have the ingredients on hand that it takes to make a batch of burgers.
It’s not that other burger recipes are too involved, it’s just that this recipe is less involved.
No food processor.
No cooking quinoa, millet, or potatoes to bulk them up and add texture.
No eggs or breadcrumbs for binding.
But not to worry, they have one of my favorite veggie burger textures ever and are easily packed into patty form.
You’ll need a fork, a bowl, a pan, and the ingredients you see below. To help bind this burger together I used a surprise ingredient. Almond butter! It worked like a charm.
Simple Smoky Black Bean Burgers
vegan, gluten-free // yields 6 patties
revised 2/21/2013
- 1 3/4 cups black beans, rinsed + drained
- 1/2 cup finely diced yellow onion
- 1/3 cup roasted corn
- 4-6 tablespoons partially ground [gluten free] oats
- 3 tablespoons sunflower seeds
- 2 tablespoons almond butter or tahini
- 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne [optional]
- 1-2 tablespoon oil for cooking
- In a small pan over medium-high heat add 1 tsp of oil and once hot add your corn [fresh or frozen].
- Cook for 5-7 minutes until golden brown, stirring every minute or so. Set aside to cool.
- In a large bowl combine the black beans and almond butter and mash with a fork until about 2/3 of the beans are mashed.
- Add in the onion, corn, seeds, garlic, and all of the spices. Gently mix until combined.
- Add in the partially ground oats and mix gently to combine. Avoid mashing and over-mixing.
- At this point the mixture should form a sticky dough that can be formed between your palms into patties. Compact into a ball and then carefully flatten in between your palms, cupping/pressing the edges until a firm patty is formed.
- Place a large pan or flat griddle over medium heat with 1-2 Tbsp oil.
- Form the mixture into 6 medium patties, about 3/4 – 1” thick. Tightly packed.
- Place them in the pan [avoiding overcrowding] and cook for 5-7 minutes per side until golden brown. Make sure your heat is not above medium and possibly even a touch below. You may need to cook them in two batches. If they’re placed too tightly together it makes them hard to flip.
- Flip carefully and cook on the other side for another 5-7 minutes until golden brown.
- Serve with your favorite salsa, cheese, avocado, and/or the topping below.
notes: It’s important that the onion is finely diced to avoid large pieces that won’t hold well in the burger. To partially grind oats, place rolled oats [certified GF if needed] in a food processor, blender, coffee grinder, magic bullet, etc. and grind them about half-way to flour. If your burgers are not holding together try mashing the mixture more and/or adding 1 more tablespoon of almond butter or tahini.
Tomato Corn Pepper Topping
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 cup corn
- 1/2 cup diced tomatoes
- 1.5 tsp oil
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- pinch of salt + pepper
- Set a medium size pan over medium heat with the oil.
- Once hot cook the pepper for 2-3 minutes, then add the corn and cook for another 5-7 minutes until starting to brown. Stir frequently.
- Add the tomatoes, smoked paprika, salt + pepper and cook for about 3 minutes until some of the tomato liquid cooks off.
- Serve on top of burgers.
…
The easiest and possibly best tasting veggie burger in my lineup.
As always, I recommend doubling the recipe for quick + easy leftovers.
Enjoy!
Ashley
