Black Bean Burger is the meatiest, tastiest and most flavorful veggie burger! It is an ultimate vegetarian burger that is easy to make without sauteing the veggies or baking beans.
Easy Black Bean Burger Recipe
This black bean burger is an ultimate veggie burger! It is flavorful, holds its shape and most importantly easy to make.
I have originally posted this black bean burger recipe back in 2015. Then I took it down and boy, have I ever heard from readers to bring it back. So, it is a reader favorite!
Who doesn’t like a good old juicy burger?! Messy ketchup and mustard, a huge bite, variety of layers, a savoury pickle in the middle, gooey cheese on a patty, a bun with crispy edges…
I was sceptical burger made with beans would taste anything like a burger. Like wouldn’t it be dry?! Truth is, once you dress it up with all traditional burger fixins, I swear it is the “meatiest” and tastiest burger ever!
Ingredients for Black Bean Burger
- Black beans: Low sodium canned black beans or you can cook your own in Instant Pot.
- Zucchini: Squeezed grated zucchini adds unbelievable moisture to the patty. Don’t skip.
- Rice: Any cooked or leftover rice will work.
- Oat flour or breadcrumbs: I prefer a patty with breadcrumbs but often use oat flour. You can make your own by grinding oats in a food processor or blender.
- Eggs: Are absolutely necessary to hold burger together. Don’t skip.
- Seasonings: Chipotle in adobo sauce is a must. You can sub it with 1 tsp smoked paprika though. Also cumin is a must.
How to Make Black Bean Burger
- Cook any rice as per package instructions or use leftovers.
- Mash the beans: Also chunky mashed beans are better than mushy in terms of texture, therefore I mashed them by hand.
- Prep zucchini: Grate, squeeze liquid out and then measure.
- Make patties: Combine and mix all ingredients really well. Form patties as you add them to the skillet and handle gently. You should shape them the size of your bun or however large you want. I found sweet spot with smaller buns is 1/2 cup and regular – 3/4 cup mixture.
- Pan fry patties: I recommend to use preheated and well-oiled skillet. Cook patties undisturbed for 5-7 minutes per side. Flip with flat spatula carefully with a quick single flip.
More Tips for Best Black Bean Burger
- Skillet type: I use ceramic non-stick skillet. Well seasoned cast iron skillet will work but needs more oil.
- Grating onion: Onion has to be finely minced or pureed for juicy and moist burger. Best non-crying method is to use a food processor or this chopper. Grater works but get your goggles out. 🙂
- Leftover chipotle in adobo: After I open the can, I mash and freeze leftovers since you need only a little bit for most recipes. Then I lightly thaw and scoop what I need.
- Grilling: I have not tried to grill the burger. But I think you can with these grill mats. I would not recommend to place burger directly on a grill as it will stick.
Favorite Black Bean Burger Toppings and Serving
- Usual suspects: Lettuce, tomato, red onion and pickles.
- Melted cheese: Since black bean patty has no saturated fat vs. beef patty, I feel no guilt by melting a slice of mozzarella, havarti (with jalapeno mmm) or white cheddar on top. So good!
- Avocado: Sliced avocado, store bought guacamole (it is surprisingly good!) or if you have time make my easy guacamole.
- Low carb: Serve patty over a salad, lettuce wrapped or today I used a shortcut – sweet kale salad kit. 🙂
How to Store, Freeze and Reheat
Storing: Refrigerate cooked burger patties in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Freezing: Or freeze cooked burger patties in a container lined with parchment paper in between for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight or on the counter for a few hours. You can also freeze uncooked patties on a baking sheet lined with parchment, then transfer to a zip top bag and freeze for 3 months. Cook from frozen + 5 minutes.
Reheating: To reheat cooked burger patty, the best way is to microwave it for a minute or so covered with a bowl. Or on a non-stick skillet by simmering on low heat with a tiny splash of water while covered.
Enjoy this black bean burger with “meaty” black beans and be healthy!
More Burger Recipes
Black Bean Burger
Ingredients
Black Bean Patty:
- 1 cup white or brown rice cooked (measured after)
- 2 x 14 oz cans low sodium black beans drained & rinsed
- 2 eggs large
- 3/4 cup 1 small grated zucchini, liquid squeezed out (measured after)
- 1 medium onion minced or pureed
- 2 large garlic cloves minced or grated
- 1 cup oat flour for GF version or whole grain breadcrumbs (I prefer latter)
- 1 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp chili pepper in adobo sauce minced (more to taste)
- 2 - 3 tbsp oil for frying
Burger (use your imagination):
- 7 burger buns
- Cheese mozzarella, white cheddar or (jalapeno havarti go well))
- Lettuce use in place of a bun for low carb version
- Tomato slices
- Red onion slices
- Pickles
- Avocado sliced/mashed or guacamole
- Ketchup and mustard
Instructions
- Cook rice as per package instructions.
- In the meanwhile, in a large bowl, add beans and mash with a masher until coarse puree with some bean chunks forms. It doesn't have to be smooth, in fact coarser texture means "meatier" burger.
- Add eggs, zucchini, onion, garlic, oat flour, salt, cumin, pepper in adobo, and mix with spatula very well.
- Preheat large non-stick ceramic or well-seasoned cast iron skillet on low - medium heat and swirl 1-2 tbsp of oil to coat it generously.
- Scoop 1/2 cup for smaller or 3/4 cup mixture for larger burgers and form into a patty. Place on a skillet and proceed doing the same with remaining mixture until skillet is full.
- Cook patties undisturbed for 5-7 minutes per side. Flip with flat spatula carefully with a quick single flip. Other side will cook faster as skillet gets hotter.
- Optional: Top desired amount of patties with a bit of melted cheese, cover and cook on low until cheese is melted.
- Assemble burger on a bun with your favorite toppings. Serve immediately.
Store: Refrigerate cooked patties in an airtight container for up to 5 days or freeze leftovers for up to 3 months.
Freeze: Lay patties on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, freeze completely and transfer to a large Ziploc bag. Cook from frozen following recipe's instructions + 5 minutes.
Notes
- I chop onions using this chopper or puree in a food processor. Best non-crying methods. 🙂
- I used my own cooked Instant Pot black beans so you might need to use less salt if using canned.
- Do not skip eggs and zucchini.
- Sub chipotle in adobo sauce with 1 tsp smoked paprika
Recipes and images are a copyright of ifoodreal.com
I had to tone down my spice but I didn’t want it to be a flat tasting burger. Thank you for your help. I’m happy with the six qt cooker. It’s a new experience, So I am paying close attention to your work.
The whole family enjoyed these!
I’m so happy your family loved the recipe, Deborah. Thanks for sharing that with me!
I am a meat eater who loves burgers. Hamburger has zero taste. It is the fixins that are the best part. I tried these burgers with my wife. We both agreed that they were delicious tasting way better than hamburger. Could you send more veggie burger ideas.
Thank you, Howie
I’m so glad you and your wife enjoyed it, Howie! Thank you for the wonderful review! I will keep your request in mind.
OH my WORD! No wonder this is a reader favourite! This recipe is the best black bean burger I’ve ever tried. Yummy. I used Farro instead of the rice and melted havarti on top with about 30 seconds left of cooking. I will be making this again. Olena you did not disappoint! 🙂
Chelsey! Thank you for the awesome feedback. You made my day 🙂
Wow….These were incredible! The whole family asked me to put them on our “dinners we love list”. So flavorful. My husband asked me to make another batch so he could bring them to the crew at work tomorrow.
Thank you.
That’s amazing Tara! Sounds like this recipe is definitely a win for your family 🙂
Can you bake these in the oven? If so what temperature and for how long?
I have not tried, so I am not sure how they will hold up. You can try at 400 F for maybe 15 mins per side and see.
Hi, Made this buger tonight and everyone loved it. Can these be frozen without cooking? Thank you, I will definitely be making your black bean buget again!
Hi Barry! You can freeze uncooked patties on a baking sheet lined with parchment, then transfer to a zip top bag and freeze for 3 months. Cook from frozen + 5 minutes. Hope that helps!
I love this burger. It took me a while to figure out how much oil to use to my liking but even when I’m off theses burgers are amazing. Moreover, my partner requests them (he does not join me in eating veggie often so the fact he enjoys it is a true testament to the texture). Don’t forget you need cooked rice! I like it better when the rice is from the night before. Regardless, the burgers are so yummy and stick together so well. If I manage to freeze some, they’re good out of the freezer. I was bummed when the recipe was taken down so I emailed Olena and she sent it to me. Please keep leaving comments so that others can find this recipe. ❤️❤️❤️
Awe, thank you so much for such detailed review. Very nice of you!
I love this recipe! I make it and freeze the extras so we can have them any time. We use farro instead of rice and way more chipotle peppers because we like it spicy.
Thank you so much for your wonderful review, Bethanne! 🙂
Delicious, I hope to make more recipes from this site!
you should bake your zuccini and other vegs in the oven it gets all the water out, burger isent mushy,
These patties are really good! Excellent recipe, thanks for sharing.
You are welcome, Liz.
Yummy! Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe! Zucchini is the best vegetable for almost every food, isn’t it? I love it so much and burger also. It looks so tasty and the sauce that is flooding out is soooo attractive that I feel crave now! Thanks again!
Thank you, Melinda!:)
waiting for the salmon lentil burger after making this one , simply loved it
Yay! It is coming in a few weeks tops! So hot we are eating mainly salads. It should cool down soon, I will make it.
I hope it tastes good
Can the rice be substituted with cooked quinoa?
Yes.
It is a wonderful breakfast. I love it. It will make me full in the morning and work better 🙂
You always come up with the most interesting recipes! I’ve heard of bean burgers but have never tried them. I have all of these ingredients in my pantry too, just need to make them sometime! 🙂 Yours look so good by the way! I am getting hungry over here lol.
Thank you. They were good.