Vegan burger, a simple recipe that only requires 30 minutes. It’s grillable, full of flavor, and a wonderful meat substitute.
This is my all-time favorite vegan burger. It’s an easy way to include more legumes into my diet and it tastes so good!
Homemade vegan burgers are much healthier and more affordable than store-bought, so I hardly ever buy vegan burgers at the supermarket. You can use all kinds of legumes, but pinto beans are my go-to. Black beans are also a good choice. I conveniently cook them using my Instant Pot, but canned beans are also great.
I always add lots of spices, herbs, and condiments, like liquid smoke, to get a meaty flavor, but please feel free to use any ingredients you have on hand. Hope you like it!
Ingredient notes
- Pinto beans: you could also use other types of beans, like black beans or kidney beans, but pinto beans are my favorite ones for this recipe.
- Nutritional yeast: it can be replaced with more breadcrumbs. However, nutritional yeast is the best choice.
- Paprika: I used sweet paprika, but any kind of paprika will do.
Dietary variations
- Make it gluten-free: use tamari instead of soy sauce. Also use gluten-free breadcrumbs, oats, or almond meal instead of regular breadcrumbs.
- Make soy-free: if you don’t consume soy, coconut aminos is a great substitute. You could also add the same amount of water or vegetable stock and add more salt.
- Make it oil-free: you can cook the vegan steak using no oil in a non-stick skillet.
- Make it sugar-free: omit the barbecue sauce or use a sugar-free one.
Pro tips
- The amount of barbecue sauce may vary depending on how many patties you’re making and how much sauce you want to add.
- Walnuts can be replaced with any other nut or even seeds. Flaxseeds are my favorite choice.
- If you can’t find tomato paste, use some tomato sauce instead, although tomato paste is the best option.
- Liquid smoke is optional, but your vegan burgers will taste even better if you use it.
- Add any spices or herbs you have on hand.
- Omit the salt if you want to reduce the amount of sodium in this recipe.
How to make vegan burger
- Add the walnuts to a food processor or a powerful blender and pulse until they are ground into a powder-like consistency. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
- Incorporate the beans, soy sauce or tamari, and tomato paste into the food processor and blend until smooth.
- Transfer the mixture to the large bowl.
- Add all the remaining ingredients except the barbecue sauce.
- Mix until well combined.
- Make 4-6 patties with your hands.
- Heat a little bit of oil in a frying pan or a griddle and then add the patties.
- Then brush the barbecue sauce onto the tops of the patties (optional) and cook for 3-5 minutes over medium heat. Flip them brushing barbecue sauce onto the other side and cook for another 3-5 minutes.
- Serve your vegan burger immediately.
How to store
- Fridge: keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- Freezer: freeze them in an airtight container and keep them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Reheat: you can reheat it in a pan, the oven, or the microwave. Add a little bit of oil if needed.
What to serve with a vegan burger
Serve them in buns with your favorite veggies or ingredients. I added lettuce, vegan cheese, tomato slices, and red onion. Feel free to serve them with French fries on the side or to add any sauce you want, like ketchup or vegan mayo.
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Vegan Burger
-
Prep:
15 mins -
Cook:
10 mins -
Total:
25 mins -
4-6 1x -
Main Dish, Grilling, How to -
American -
Vegan
Servings 4-6 1x
Scale
Tap or hover over number to scale servings
Vegan burger, a simple recipe that only requires 30 minutes. It’s grillable, full of flavor, and a healthy alternative that even meat eaters will enjoy!
Ingredients
- 1 cup walnuts (100 g)
- 2 cups canned or cooked pinto beans (340 g), rinsed and drained
- 2 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup breadcrumbs (110 g), see notes for a gluten-free alternative
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 2 tsp liquid smoke (optional)
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup or 4 tbsp barbecue sauce (optional), see notes
Instructions
- Add the walnuts to a food processor or a powerful blender and pulse until they are ground into a powder-like consistency. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
- Add the beans, soy sauce or tamari, and tomato paste to the food processor and blend until smooth.
- Transfer the mixture to the large bowl.
- Add also all the remaining ingredients except the barbecue sauce (breadcrumbs, nutritional yeast, liquid smoke, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, cumin, paprika, and pepper).
- Mix until well combined (you can use a spoon, a spatula or even your hands). If the dough is too watery, add more breadcrumbs and if it’s too dry, add a little bit of water.
- Make 4-6 patties with your hands.
- Heat a little bit of oil in a frying pan or a griddle and then add the patties. Oil is optional, but it prevents the patties from sticking to the pan.
- Then brush the barbecue sauce onto the tops of the patties (optional) and cook for 3-5 minutes over medium heat or until golden brown. Flip them brushing barbecue sauce onto the other side (I usually add one slice of vegan cheese onto every patty after flipping them, but this is completely optional), and cook for another 3-5 minutes or until golden brown.
- Serve just by themselves or on buns with your favorite ingredients. I added lettuce, vegan cheese, tomato slices, and red onion. Feel free to serve them with French fries on the side or to add any sauce you want, like ketchup, vegan mayo, or extra barbecue sauce.
- Store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight. You can reheat it in a pan, the oven, or the microwave. Add a little bit of oil if needed.
Notes
- If you’re gluten-free, use gluten-free breadcrumbs, oats, or almond meal instead of regular breadcrumbs.
- The amount of barbecue sauce may vary depending on how many patties you’re making and how much sauce you want to add.
- Walnuts can be replaced with any other nut or even seeds. Flaxseeds are my favorite choice.
- This recipe can be made with any other kind of canned or cooked legumes.
- Soy sauce or tamari can be replaced with salt, but in that case, add 2 tbsp of water as well.
- If you can’t find tomato paste, use some tomato sauce instead, although tomato paste works great.
- Nutritional yeast can be replaced with more breadcrumbs or the gluten-free alternatives I told you about before. However, nutritional yeast is the best choice.
- Liquid smoke is optional, but your vegan burgers will taste even better if you use it.
- Add any spices or herbs you have on hand.
- Omit the salt if you want to reduce the amount of sodium in this recipe.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 burger of 6
- Calories: 302
- Sugar: 5.6 g
- Sodium: 1213 mg
- Fat: 14.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 34.3 g
- Fiber: 6.6 g
- Protein: 10.9 g
Update Notes: This post was originally published in February of 2018, but was republished with new photos, step-by-step instructions, and tips in August of 2022.