Our own Chris Morocco set an almost impossible task for himself: to create a from-scratch veggie burger recipe with patties that could go straight from the mixing bowl to the grill without falling apart. To make things even more challenging, Chris was aiming for vegan burger patties that would come together with a prep time of 20 minutes or less (about the same time it takes to make a beef burger) and with relatively few ingredients—bonus points if they were also gluten-free. A tall order. “There was a good chance this would be the mission that I simply never came back from,” he admits.
Chris opted for an updated black bean burger patty, bulking it out with shredded tofu and quinoa, and adding garlic and chili powder for seasoning. The real key to success, however, was the mayonnaise (a vegan one is also great) and a surprise ingredient: almond butter. Combined, the two give the plant-based patties crucial richness. Meanwhile, flaxseed and cornstarch bind the burger mixture together. You can shape these homemade veggie burgers in advance, wrap the patties tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to three days or stash them in the freezer for three months (cook straight from frozen). If you don’t have a grill, a cast-iron pan set over medium-high heat on a stovetop will work fine and still deliver some crispy bites.
Chris likes to serve the cooked burgers in store-bought buns stacked with the works, including chipotle yogurt—simply mix adobo sauce from canned chiles and Greek yogurt. Or, blend vegan mayo with sriracha and ketchup as an alternative. Best veggie burger ever? We’ll let you be the judge.
Recipe information
Total Time
20 minutes
Yield
8 servings
Ingredients
2
1
2
¼
¼
2
4
4
2
¼
2
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare a grill for medium-high, direct heat. Clean and oil grate. Shred 1 14-oz. block extra-firm tofu, drained using the large holes of a box grater. Firmly squeeze tofu in between paper towels to drain as much excess liquid as possible.
Step 2
Heat 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium. Cook tofu and 2 14.5-oz. cans black beans, rinsed, drained well, tossing occasionally, until beans look slightly dried out and their skins are darkened, 10–12 minutes.
Step 3
Meanwhile, whisk ¼ cup almond butter and ¼ cup mayonnaise (vegan, if you are vegan) in a medium bowl until smooth. Whisk in 2 garlic cloves, finely grated, 4 tsp. chili powder (make sure it’s salt-free), and 4 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 2 tsp. Morton kosher salt. Add tofu-bean mixture and 2 cups cooked quinoa (we prefer red or black), cooled and stir well to combine.
Step 4
Stir ¼ cup flaxseed meal and ¼ cup cold water in a small bowl. Let sit until a thick paste forms, about 1 minute. Add to tofu-bean mixture along with 2 Tbsp. cornstarch and stir well to combine.
Step 5
Using oiled hands, form mixture into 8–10 patties about ½" thick (about a scant ¾ cup each). Grill until lightly charred around the edges, about 2 minutes. Turn carefully using a metal spatula to cleanly lift off grate and grill until lightly charred on second side and warmed through, about 2 minutes more.
Step 6
Place burgers on bottoms of toasted buns. Pile high with pickled onions, tomato, lettuce, pickles, and chipotle yogurt. Close with top bun and serve.
Do ahead: Patties can be formed 3 days ahead. Tightly wrap each in plastic and chill.
Editor’s note: This recipe was first published in June 2018. Head this way for more of our favorite vegetarian recipes →
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Reviews (26)
Back to TopI'd love to make this but I cannot do soy. What are your suggestions? I'm thinking on substituting refried black beans for the whole black bean and soy (tofu).
KateMcGoo
San Antonio, TX
6/25/2018
Listening to the pod cast (which I recently stumbled upon and Im completed obsessed with it on my morning commute) and got excited about these burgers. I have tried to make grillable veggie burgers, with a million ingredients and freezing, and mixed success. I am excited to try these but I think it would benefit readers to explain how Chris cooks his quinoa in the description or hyperlink to it. Thanks ❤ you BA
Anonymous
Born and raised in Brooklyn
9/21/2018
I tried this recipe after hearing about it on the burger podcast. Great flavor, VERY easy to make, but disappointing (sadly). These burgers are very fragile, so I ended up grilling them on a sheet of heavy duty foil and they remained intact. However, they immediately fell apart when I bit into my burger. I ended up eating most of my meal with a fork. The good news is that they were delicious.
Kimberly Hutchinson
Massachusetts
9/24/2018
These burgers are delicious. Mine did not fall apart. I formed them into patties the night before and cooked them on my grill pan, and sandwiched them with brioche buns. Even my 6 year old ate them. My husband cooked the leftover patties the next day on a baking sheet with melted cheddar. Meatless, weeknight family recipes are much appreciated— thank you!
audra_brech
Seattle
11/30/2018
This was pretty effing tasty, and the pickled onion goes well with it. I found that the mixture came together nicely once I added the flax paste and cornstarch, and in fact the consistency reminded me of ground beef. The mixture felt pretty sturdy. I did not grill these, however. The patty remained intact through the pan-frying process but got a bit crumbly as I was eating it, no big deal. I followed Cook's Illustrated recipe for the quinoa which makes a nice, not-too-wet batch--maybe helped the mixture to stick together better?
Ihatemuffins
Waco, TX
5/13/2019
The texture of this burger worked as promised — sturdy and didn’t fall apart. But, it was far too salty. I’d recommend cutting recipe quantity in half. I’ll try making it again just to see how the flavor shines through without so much salt (and I like salt...just not this much.). Might add some onion powder to it as well. Thanks BA for thinking of us vegetarians!
Jojohoho
Maine
7/2/2019
This is one of my absolute favorite veggie burger recipes! I make it all the time, alternating with Chris's lentil burgers recipe. It's more nutritious than recipes that use flour and breadcrumbs as filler. It has a lot of flavor so you don't need a bunch of toppings. I haven't tried to grill them but instead prepare like all my other veggie burgers, pan-frying. A few notes: 1. Grating the tofu is totally unnecessary! You can just break it up in the pan and achieve the exact same texture 2. Like the recipe says, you HAVE to check if your chili powder already contains salt. Between the beans, almond butter, and chili powder there are a lot of salty ingredients! 3. Veganaise works great
capa
Boston
4/1/2020