FINALLY…a veggie burger that can hold up on the grill!!
Packed with protein thanks to black beans, quinoa + walnuts, perfectly firm + full of texture that’s so often lacking in meatless burgers, and boldly flavored with lots of barbecue sauce + cumin; it’s essentially my dream burger.
This burger happens to also be gluten-free, thanks to the addition of oats as a binder. It can be made in about 30 minutes or less (more like 15 if you have cooked quinoa in the fridge already), is sturdy enough to hold together on the grill (but also tastes great if you feel like cooking it in a pan or the oven), and freezes beautifully for easy make-ahead dinners. I even tested grilling one of them straight from the freezer and found it maintained it’s texture and flavor just fine…no need to defrost!
What I love most about this burger is that it’s thick, hearty, filling, and satisfying enough to please veggie burger loving folk + meat eaters alike. It’s not trying to imitate meat in any way- it’s boldly, unapologetically meatless, and so stinkin’ delicious tucked into a bun on a hot summer day.
That being said, the first word that comes to mind when biting into this burger is ‘meaty’- not in the sense that it tastes like meat, but that it’s texture is so varied from the quinoa, walnuts, oats, and beans, that it takes on a consistency that’s usually not present in store-bought veggie burgers. Instead of being the soft, mashed potato-like center of disappointment that’s the status quo for meatless burgers, we’ve got a relatively dry (in a good way!) chunky, slightly crisp patty.
It’s bliss, I tell you.
Pure bliss.
I’ve been using my homemade Date-Sweetened Barbecue Sauce in these burgers lately, but we also love this store-bought sauce for times when we’re in a pinch and need burgers, fast! And, while the BBQ sauce is an essential flavor and moisture component (it adds a little sweetness, tang, and smokiness while helping to stick everything together), if you’re not a crazy-obsessed BBQ sauce person, I think you’ll still enjoy this burger.
The BBQ sauce combines with spices like cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and plenty of salt and pepper to form a flavor base for the burger that’s out-of-this-world. Trust me.
This burger recipe also utilizes an egg to help ensure it binds together fully and doesn’t fall apart on the grill; if you’re not into eggs, fear not: I’ve left a few options for you in the recipe notes, all of which still yield a burger that’s still boldly flavored and full of texture, but is slightly too delicate for the grill. It still yields a beautiful veggie burger, though, so don’t pass over this recipe if you don’t eat eggs. When left out, this burger is entirely plant-based/vegan-friendly.
I hope this recipe makes it’s way into your summer meal rotation. It’s truly one of the best burgers I’ve ever eaten, and I think you’re going to LOVE it, regardless of whether or not you enjoy ‘real’ burgers, too! As long as you’re a fan of black beans and barbecue sauce, this burger is sure to get you excited.
Pro Tip: I always make sure to keep extra in the freezer to throw on the grill (or the stove) and have dinner ready in minutes!
If you make them, let me know what you think! Leave a comment below, or take a picture and tag me in it on Instagram. I love seeing my recipes in your kitchen!
- 1/2 cup dry (uncooked) quinoa*
- 1 cups water, to cook quinoa
- 1/2 a small onion
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup walnuts
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1 15-oz can black beans
- 1 large egg**
- 3 Tablespoons barbecue sauce
- 1 Tablespoon cumin
- 1/2 Tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 Tablespoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and black pepper
- 1. Rinse quinoa in a fine mesh sieve, then transfer it to a small pot with water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer. Let cook 15 minutes, then turn off the heat and remove the lid to let it start cooling before adding to the burger mixture. This will leave the quinoa ever so slightly undercooked, which helps keep some texture in these burgers.
- 2. While quinoa cooks, heat a small skillet over medium-low. Finely dice the onion, then add it to the skillet with the olive oil. Sautee for 5-8 minutes, or until onions are translucent and starting to turn golden. Turn off the heat and set onions aside until needed.
- 3. Place walnuts and oats in the bowl of a food processor or blender, and pulse until they're about the texture of panko bread crumbs or very coarse cornmeal. A few small lumps of walnut left is okay, but there shouldn't be any whole chunks of walnut remaining (no food processor/blender? You could put the oats and walnuts onto a large cutting board and chop the heck out of them until you're only left with fine bits. It'll take longer, but it still works in a pinch!)
- 4. Open the can of black beans, pour into a fine mesh strainer, and run under cold water to fully remove any liquid. Let beans drain, then shake the beans in the strainer to help remove any excess moisture.
- 5. Put beans into a mixing bowl and use a fork or a potato masher to smash the beans- you don't want to create a paste, just break up the beans a bit so there aren't any whole beans in the mixture. Add all remaining ingredients (including the onions + any oil left in the pan and all of the quinoa) and stir well to fully combine. The mixture should be thick and sticky.
- 6. Let sit for 10 minutes (this gives the oats time to absorb and makes the batter less wet), then divide mixture into 6 and use your hands to form patties (I like using a 1/2 cup measuring cup to help portion/shape them). At this point the burgers can be cooked immediately (whether on the grill, a pan, or in the oven, I recommend drizzling a little oil on the outside of the burger first, and cooking until both sides are deeply golden brown), chilled in the fridge for up to 4 days, or frozen for up to 2 months (maybe longer, but that's the longest I've kept them for without noticing any quality changes). Frozen burgers can be cooked directly from frozen or allowed to defrost at room temperate for about an hour first, before cooking.
- *If you already have cooked quinoa, or want to make the quinoa in advance to aid in the speed/ease of this recipe, it can be cooked and refrigerated up to 5 days in advance. 1/2 cup of dry quinoa should yield 1 1/2 cups cooked, so if you already have cooked quinoa on hand, you'll need 1 1/2 cups for this recipe. Alternately, another cooked grain like brown rice could be used in stead; I just prefer the texture of quinoa best here.
- **Vegan friends: this recipe can be made without the egg and still yield a delicious burger. You can either leave it out entirely, or try replacing it with a flax egg (1T flax meal + 3T water). In either case, the burgers will be ever so slightly more delicate, and I would advise cooking them in a pan or the oven, not a grill, unless you form the patties and feel confident that they're still sturdy enough to not fall apart when cooked on a grated surface.