A Simple Homemade Vegan Burger

A tasty, solid gluten-free and vegan black bean burger recipe can be a bit tricky to find. No longer! The trick here is to use slightly sticky short grain rice and flax seed to hold everything together without eggs, and bake the burgers instead of frying them.

If you’re like me and keep containers of cooked rice and beans in the freezer, these take no time at all to pull together. If not, you can use canned beans and use leftover rice or cook it ahead of time. The flavours in the burgers are pretty subtle, but you could add some herbs or extra spices as you’d like, as long as the base stays the same. No flour, no oats, nothing. Super simple stuff.

I retested this recipe recently to get the amounts and method spot on – we’ve been making them for years but they were always a little too soft for my liking. Some added flax and a slightly adjusted method has solved that problem and now the burgers are just right.

I first shared this recipe in 2018. It’s been updated with improvements to the recipe instructions and slight improvements to the recipe, new clearer photos including step-by-step photos, and more helpful information.

Ingredients You’ll Need and Why

The main ingredients here number less than ten – minus the spices – so I would consider this to be a pretty minimal bean burger recipe. Keep in mind that you can adjust the spices and even omit the parsley if needed. These are my notes from recipe testing and you can find the full recipe card below with complete measurements and instructions.

• Black beans: either canned or cooked at home, it won’t make a difference. If using canned, rinse and drain well before adding.
• Rice: I’ve tested with short and long grain brown and white rice and found no noticeable difference. Any kind of rice will work, but day-old is best in terms of binding the burgers – the starch is helpful.
• Flax: a little added flax makes a huge difference in the holding power of black bean burgers. You don’t notice it when you’re eating the burger but it provides a lot of structure and firms up the patties. Don’t omit.
• Spices: adjust the spices to your personal preference. This is a fairly typical combination with black beans – a hint of cumin, a little spice – but you could add some fresh herbs or something like garam masala.
• Vinegar: a little acid provides a counterpoint to the savoury flavours here. Use lemon juice if preferred.
• Oil: I don’t recommend trying to make these oil-free. They’ll be too soft.
• Parsley: a handful of fresh parsley adds freshness to the burgers. Try another herb, like coriander (cilantro) in place of parsley. Leave it out in a pinch.
• Seeds or nuts: in the updated version I’ve omitted the sunflower seeds but you can add a handful, or chopped walnuts, for some additional texture.
• Toppings: pictured is tomato, cucumber, pickled red onions, a little avocado, mayonnaise, and ketchup. These lend themselves well to classic burger toppings.

How to Make Bean Burgers

I haven’t included the time needed to cook rice (or beans, for that matter) in the recipe card, so note that you’ll need rice that’s been cooked ahead of time before starting the burgers.

Step 1: cook the garlic, onion, tomato paste, and spices, then add to a mixing bowl with the remaining ingredients. Mix well. Be sure to chop the parsley very finely before adding, or chop it in your food processor before adding the burger mixture.

Step 2: blend part of the mixture in the food processor or use an immersion blender to mix right in the bowl. It should be about a third pureed, and stick together easily once it’s ready. Scrape down the sides as needed if using an immersion blender.

Step 3: form into patties and place onto a lined, greased baking sheet. This prevents the burgers from sticking and also adds a little crispness and nice browning to the outside. It’s a trick that my favourite (now defunct) veggie burger place in Winnipeg did and it’s a great tip.

Step 4: bake the burgers until golden, flipping halfway through. They should feel solid once baked with no soft middle and should be easy to transfer and move around without breaking. If they’re still soft, they’re under baked, and if they’re crumbly and delicate, they’re over baked (or there’s been an unlisted substitution made).

Expert Tips for the Best Burgers

• Use day old rice: this is perfect, and great if you’re looking to use up some leftovers. Day old rice is a little dryer than fresh, and has a higher starch content, so you get good solid burgers.
• Add flour if needed: if your burger mixture is too soft to easily form patties, add a tablespoon or two of chickpea or spelt flour to thicken it. This might be due to a higher water content in the rice, for example.
• Don’t over-bake: keep an eye on the burgers close to the end of the baking time – if you cook them for too long they’ll become dry.
• No food processor, no problem: while it’s harder to make these without a food processor, you can do it by hand. Simply chop the onion and garlic very finely before cooking, then use an immersion blender, potato masher, or even mash with a wooden spoon until the mixture looks the same as in the picture for step 2 above.

More Vegetarian Burger Recipes

We’re real fans of veggie and bean burgers and I make them a lot, especially since recipes like this one need so little hands-on time (no standing over a frying pan!). There are several burger recipes on Occasionally Eggs.

• Kidney Bean Burgers – along the same lines as this recipe, but with oats, more beans, and a little more spice
• Spicy Black Bean Burgers – this recipe is adapted from a burger from the restaurant mentioned above and it’s a little more complex, but absolutely delicious
• Lentil Burgers – I probably make these the most because I don’t always have cooked beans on hand. Cooked lentils and eggs make for a meatier texture
• Chickpea Sweet Potato Burgers – also gluten-free and vegan, made with roasted sweet potato, chickpeas, and spices

If you make these Black Bean Burgers or any other vegetarian mains on Occasionally Eggs, please take a moment to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It’s such a help to others who want to try the recipe. For more OE, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest, purchase the Occasionally Eggs cookbook, or subscribe for new posts via email.