Hearty, wholesome and absolutely delicious. This Best Black Bean Burger Recipe uses good-for-you ingredients for an absolutely flavor packed veggie burger that will actually leave you satisfied! You can grill or pan fry these veggie patties, pair with toasty buns and top them off with fresh guacamole and salsa!
You’ll love more meatless meals like this Baked Cauliflower Mac and Cheese, Gnocchi in Tomato Cream Sauce, and Chickpea Curry!
Why This Recipe Works
So Delicious: I have had my fair share of store bought and restaurant black bean burgers, and I have never liked any of them as much as I love this one. I often think that homemade is just better, if you know how to do it! I packed it with lots of flavorful ingredients like chipotle peppers, fresh cilantro and bold spices like cumin, paprika and cayenne pepper. These black bean burgers are savory, spicy and super delicious with some guacamole and your favorite salsa on top.
Wholesome & Good for You: Don’t get me wrong, I love a good classic burger as much as the next person. But sometimes I want something that is healthy and yummy! And this best black bean burger recipe does not disappoint. These veggies burgers are low in fat, high in protein and fiber, and bursting with flavor!
Ingredients
- Black Beans: Black beans are the base of these veggie burgers and are packed with protein and fiber!
- Scallions: Scallions are added for extra flavor and blend seamlessly into the mixture.
- Fresh Cilantro: Fresh cilantro adds an herbal depth of flavor.
- Chipotle Pepper: I used one chipotle pepper from a can of chipotle peppers packed in adobo sauce. These peppers are slightly spicy and smoky for a southwest style flavor!
- Spices: Cumin, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne pepper and salt will spice these black bean burgers up perfectly.
- Panko Breadcrumbs: The bread crumbs keep the burgers moist and add some structure!
- Eggs: Eggs bind these patties together and also add moisture.
- Worcestershire Sauce: For an umami packed burger, Worcestershire sauce does the trick!
- Fixings: You can eat these burgers on their own or pair them with toasted burger buns and some guacamole and salsa!
Here’s How to Make It
Step by Step Instructions
- Preheat & Prep: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a large baking sheet, or two regular sized pans with baking parchment and spread out the black beans. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes until dry and split. Don’t be tempted to skip this step or you’ll be left with mushy burgers! (photos 1-2)
- Blitz: In a food processor, blitz together half the beans, the scallions, cilantro, and chipotle pepper until combined. (photos 3-4)
- Combine with Remaining Ingredients: Transfer to a large bowl along with the rest of the black beans, the spices, salt, breadcrumbs, eggs and Worcestershire sauce. Bring everything together into a sticky mixture with your hands. (photos 5-6)
- Shape: Wash your hands and while they’re still wet, shape the burgers into 4 patties. (photo 7)
- Cook: Grill over a medium heat of cook in an oiled frying pan or cast iron skillet for 5 minutes on each side until golden and heated through. Serve on toasted buts with guacamole and salsa and enjoy! (photo 8)
Expert Tips
- Avoid mushy veggie burgers! The best way to avoid mushy veggie burger is to dry out the beans so that there isn’t too much moisture them. I found that the best way to do so was baking them on a baking sheet until they are slightly split and dry!
- Prefer them vegan? If you need a fully plant-based burger, replace the eggs with 1/3 cup mashed sweet potato and replace the Worcestershire sauce with A1 steak sauce (which is surprisingly vegan!).
- No food processor? No problem! You can also smash the mixture with a fork or a potato masher. They might be chunkier, but they will still be delicious!
- Serve these best black bean burgers with simple guacamole, salsa and tortilla chips or sweet potato fries!
Frequently Asked Questions
If the black bean patties aren’t sticking together as well as you would like, then mash the mixture a little bit more with a fork. You want enough black beans to be mashed that the mixture is sticky and holds its shape, but you also want bites of whole black beans in there as well.
Definitely! You have a few options. You can make the black bean burger mixture, form it into patties, place them on a baking sheet covered in plastic wrap. Refrigerate them for up to 1 day until you are ready to cook and serve. Or, you can definitely make the black bean burgers including cooking them, and then place them in an airtight container in the fridge and reheat whenever you are ready to serve! You can also freeze black bean burgers for up to 2 months and thaw prior to reheating and serving.
More Burger Recipes to Try
- Garlic Pesto Turkey Burgers
- Chipotle BBQ Burger
- Greek Burger with Tzatziki Sauce
- Tex Mex Turkey Burgers
- Mushroom Swiss Burgers
Best Black Bean Burger Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 15 oz cans black beans - rinsed and drained
- 6 scallions
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro
- 1 chipotle pepper - from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce
- 1 tsp cumin
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 eggs - beaten
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- toasted buns - for serving
- guacamole - for serving
- jarred red salsa - for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a large baking sheet, or two regular sized pans with baking parchment and spread out the black beans. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes until dry and split. Don’t be tempted to skip this step or you’ll be left with mushy burgers!
- In a food processor, blitz together half the beans, cilantro, the scallions, and chipotle pepper until combined.
- Transfer to a large bowl along with the rest of the black beans, the spices, salt, breadcrumbs, eggs, and Worcestershire sauce. Bring everything together into a sticky mixture with your hands.
- Wash your hands and while they’re still wet shape the burgers into 4 patties.
- Grill over a medium heat or cook in an oiled frying pan or cast iron skillet for 5 minutes on each side until golden and heated through. Serve in toasted buns with guacamole and salsa.
Notes
- To make these burgers vegan, swap the eggs for 1/3 cup of mashed sweet potato, and use A1 Steak Sauce – which is actually plant based – in place of the Worcestershire sauce.
- The burgers can be made up to 24 hours ahead and refrigerated.
- Nutrition information includes just the black bean burger patty.
These look so good! I’ve always wanted to venture into non-meat burger territory and this might be the recipe that makes it happen! Nice post!
Kathi
P.s. Overalls? How bout some M C Hammer pants? Now that’s fashion!
Looks like a healthy, but filling burger. The black beans are very healthz, and go well together with the pineapple.
Great burger recipe !! 🙂
Curious about where the cup of breadcrumbs fits in… is that missing from the directions?
Hi Sam – sorry for any confusion, the breadcrumbs go straight into the black bean mixture! I’ll take a look and update the directions!
Made these last night and was very disappointed. They did not stay together at all. Thankfully I had morning star burgers in the freezer.