Lentil Burgers

Vegetarian lentil burger on a bun with sauces and vegetable toppings.

Made with cooked lentils and plenty of herbs and spices, these oven-baked lentil burgers are a truly excellent vegetarian burger.

Course Main Course, Mains, Summer

Cuisine American, Canadian

Diet Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 40

Total Time 55

Servings burgers

Calories 201kcal

Author Alexandra Daum

Ingredients

200 grams (1 cup) dried brown lentils
1 tablespoon oil
1 medium onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon sweet paprika
¼ teaspoon hot pepper flakes reduce or omit to taste
30 grams (⅓ cup) quick-cook oats* gluten-free if needed
1 tablespoon chickpea flour or rye flour
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Large handful chopped parsley
1 teaspoon dried herbs like oregano, thyme, or a blend
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 large eggs

Metric - Cups

Instructions

Start by cooking the lentils. Add them to a pot and cover with plenty of well-salted water. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and cook on a low boil, covered, for about 20 minutes or until soft. They should be a little softer than you would usually cook them.
200 grams (1 cup) dried brown lentils
While the lentils are cooking, start the onions. Preheat a frying pan over low-medium heat. Once hot, add the oil and onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about ten minutes or until the onions are softened and starting to turn golden.
1 tablespoon oil, 1 medium onion
Add the garlic and tomato paste to the pan and cook for another couple of minutes. Stir in the smoked paprika, sweet paprika, and hot pepper, then remove from the heat.
2 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, ½ teaspoon smoked paprika, ½ teaspoon sweet paprika, ¼ teaspoon hot pepper flakes
Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) and line a baking sheet.
Once the lentils are cooked, drain well. Add to a large bowl along with the cooked onion mixture, oats, chickpea flour, vinegar, parsley, dried herbs, salt, and pepper. Stir well to combine and then mash very well with a potato masher. Alternatively, blend about halfway with an immersion blender or remove approximately ⅓ of the mixture and blend into a paste in a food processor before returning to the bowl and mixing well.
30 grams (⅓ cup) quick-cook oats*, 1 tablespoon chickpea flour, 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar, Large handful chopped parsley, 1 teaspoon dried herbs, ½ teaspoon sea salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper
Mix in the two eggs, stirring well to combine. The burger mixture should be fairly sticky and hold its shape when pressed. If it's crumbly, mash a little more.
2 large eggs
Form six burgers of approximately equal size and place onto the baking sheet. Baking times are for burgers that are about 2cm (⅔ in.) thick but it doesn't vary much if they're slightly larger or smaller.
Bake for 20 minutes, carefully flipping the burgers with a spatula halfway through the cooking time. Serve hot with any toppings or buns you'd like.
Lentil burgers are best fresh but can be refrigerated for up to three days.

Notes

During the testing phase, I served these to a few different people and the meat-eaters generally preferred burgers that had been fried rather than baked. If you want to fry the burgers, cook them in an oiled frying pan over low-medium heat for about three minutes each side. They are more delicate when fried but have crispy edges and a greasier feel, which appeals to some people more than a baked burger.

I don't recommend tasting the mixture before adding eggs because raw chickpea flour tastes terrible.

Nutrition is calculated for the burgers alone with no optional toppings or buns.

* If you only have rolled oats, it's best to give them a chop in the food processor so that they're in smaller pieces. If you use rolled oats, the burgers will be less sturdy and more likely to fall apart.

Nutrition