Fry

Black Bean and Quinoa Veggie Burgers

Name: Black Bean and Quinoa Veggie Burgers
Prep time: 12 h 15 min
Cook time: 50 min
Yield: Makes 6-8 burgers
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1/2 cup quinoa; 1 teaspoon olive oil; 1 small red onion, chopped; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 pinch Kosher salt; 2 cans (15.5 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained; 2 tablespoons tomato paste; 1 large egg; 2/3 cup cooked corn (fresh or canned); 1/4 cup chopped cilantro; 1 tablespoon minced chipotles in adobo; 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin; 1 cup rolled oats, ground into crumbs; 1/2 cup fat-free Greek yogurt; 1 teaspoon minced chipotles in adobo; 1/2 teaspoon adobo sauce; 1 teaspoon honey; 1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard; 6 multigrain hamburger rolls; 1 handful Lettuce, avocado slices, and tomatoes, for topping (optional)

by: Sonali aka the Foodie Physician

November 5, 2012

19 Ratings

Photo by James Ransom

Prep time 12 hours 15 minutes
Cook time 50 minutes
Makes 6-8 burgers

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Author Notes

I created this burger for my vegetarian friends who are always asking me for hearty, meat-free dishes that can satisfy a serious hunger craving. The patties are made with nutritious black beans, oats, and protein-packed quinoa. To infuse them with lots of flavor, I add chipotles in adobo and other southwestern spices. Store any leftover patties in the freezer so you can enjoy a delicious and healthy vegetarian meal any night of the week.

Sandwich fan? Tune into our podcast, The Sandwich Universe, where co-hosts and longtime BFFs Molly Baz and Declan Bond debate and cook up iconic sandwiches every ‘wich way. —Sonali aka the Foodie Physician

Test Kitchen Notes

These burgers were surprising and delicious. Most of the ingredients were already in my pantry or freezer and other than the couple hours of required chilling, they came together in about 20 minutes. I chose to pan fry them, and thanks to the quinoa, the exterior was so pleasantly crunchy that I'd make them smaller next time to be able to enjoy more crunch. We served ours on a pile of lettuce with tomato, avocado, and the sauce on the side. I doubled the dijon in the sauce as I thought it needed a little acid, but otherwise these were great. —savorthis

Test Kitchen-Approved

What You'll Need

Ingredients

Patties
¹/₂ cup quinoa
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small red onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pinch Kosher salt
2 cans (15.5 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 large egg
²/₃ cup cooked corn (fresh or canned)
¹/₄ cup chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon minced chipotles in adobo
1 ¹/₂ teaspoons ground cumin
1 cup rolled oats, ground into crumbs

Yogurt Sauce
¹/₂ cup fat-free Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon minced chipotles in adobo
¹/₂ teaspoon adobo sauce
1 teaspoon honey
¹/₂ teaspoon dijon mustard
6 multigrain hamburger rolls
1 handful Lettuce, avocado slices, and tomatoes, for topping (optional)

Directions

Place the quinoa in a small saucepan along with 1 cup of water. Bring the water to a boil then reduce heat to medium low and cover the pan. Cook 10 to 15 minutes until the water is absorbed and quinoa is cooked. Remove from heat.
Heat the oil in a small sauté pan over medium heat and add the onion and garlic. Season them with a pinch of salt and sauté until onions are softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Place the mixture into a large bowl. Add approximately 1 1/2 cans of black beans to the bowl and, using a potato masher or fork, mash all of the ingredients together until a pasty mixture forms. Stir in the remaining beans along with the tomato paste, egg, corn, cilantro, chipotles, cumin, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir in the cooked quinoa and ground oats until evenly distributed.
Form the mixture into 6 equal patties, compacting them well with your hands as you form them. Place the patties on a baking sheet, cover them with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least a few hours or overnight.
To make the yogurt sauce, stir the yogurt, chipotles, adobo sauce, honey, and mustard together in a small bowl.
When ready to eat, preheat the oven to 400° F. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray and place the patties on the sheet. Cook 10 to 12 minutes, until the patties are golden brown and crispy, then carefully flip them over and cook another 10 minutes. You can also fry the patties in a pan with a small amount of oil. Serve patties on the buns with the yogurt sauce and toppings of your choice.

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Danielle R. April 24, 2020

I'm making these tonight :) Thank you so much! They are formed into patties and resting in the fridge right now!! I didn't have any chipotles so I marinated finely chopped bell pepper in hot sauce (I know, but it's all I could think of) I also didn't have tomato paste so I added flour to some tomato puree... Hopefully they are such minor changes that it doesn't affect the final product *too much* lol, I will let you know what happens!!

Danielle R. April 24, 2020

Amaya June 4, 2019

Can these be grilled? I would love to have these for a BBQ party.

Sonali A. June 19, 2019

Yes they can be grilled but make sure you refrigerate them ahead of time so that they don’t fall apart on the grill.

Kaya April 9, 2019

I can wait to try this recipe it looks amazing. two of my favortie things!

Kate April 8, 2019

Well, I thought it was pretty good. I liked the flavoring with the adobo sauce plus I added some lime juice and smoked paprika as I saw in some other reviews. I liked the corn and the quinoa. The yogurt sauce was quite tasty, too, and I had to make more of that for the leftovers tonight. We had zucchini fries with the burgers and used the sauce for dipping as well. However, my teen son hated the burger. Refused to eat it. In his endearing teenage way I think I was blamed for the actual recipe. I just assumed he could not reconcile this as being a, "burger". As I ate it again tonight - in peace, by myself - I realized there was a pasty consistency coming through. I think it's the oatmeal. The reason I was tolerating it was because of the corn and quinoa. I'm sure if I ask him he will say this is probably why he didn't like it. Because of that I'm going to try a different recipe for black bean quinoa burgers and see if I can eliminate that texture. Adding the sauce, pickled onions/radishes and arugula, I believe, kind of hid it from me. He's not very adventurous so all he had on his was the sauce. In that case the texture was much more pronounced. The flavor was good, though, but I'll keep experimenting with this idea.

Rita W. August 12, 2018

For those who find these missing something... I have been making these for several years with a few modifications. Firstly I add a table spoon (or more) of homemade Adobo Seasoning (can find on the Internet, I use Tracy’s) and I divide it into twelve burgers. I do this by forming a round mound in the bowl, cutting in quarters and then further cutting each quarter into three. I bake them at 350 on parchment for 20 mins, flip and bake for an additional 20. When they are cool I freeze and we eat as a main or in a bun (best served with a thin bun, toasted and lots of condiments)

S. T. July 30, 2018

I made these tonight for dinner. As a vegetarian I ear a lot of “housemade” veggie burgers from local restaurants. I’ve been trying to find something to make at home that compares. Let me start by saying my meat eating partner thought the texture of these was comparable to a real burger. But the flavor was no where near as good as the local restaurants have come up with. I don’t know what’s missing, but I’m going to try and find out.

The I. May 24, 2017

We eat a lot of, and have tried many variations of, veggie burgers in our household. We have them at least 1-2 times per month. Given that we prefer a dense veggie burger with a nice chew that will also hold up to grilling I always add a bit of vital wheat gluten to the recipes and I did the same with this one....1/2 cup. The only other change I made for ease of prep was to had 1/2 tsp chipotle chile powder vs using the chopped chipotle chiles in adobo. As for the sauce, we love making burger sauces them out of vegan mayo so I replaced the yorgurt with this plus doubled the dijon and added some fresh squeezed lime juice for some extra brightness and tang. Delicious!

Shelley June 23, 2016

These were amazing! I did make a few tweaks, however. I need lots o flavor, so I added some chili powder (the chipotle wasn't enough--guess I couldn't just added more of that too) and the juice of one lime. Lime definitely brightened the flavor. Also, used oat bran instead of the ground oatmeal, mostly because I'm lazy and didn't want to blend the oatmeal! It made 8 large patties, some of which I froze. Also, I didn't refrigerate the patties before baking in the oven and they held together just fine. I'll definitely be making these again!

Mike A. March 31, 2016

Second time making these, I love them and I am not a vegan. Any suggestions on freezing? Should I cook them all first and then freeze? Should I freeze the formed patties, then defrost and cook? Any ideas?

Freddurf March 31, 2016

I form them into patties and freeze them uncooked in individual sandwich bags. When I'm ready, i defrost in the fridge and cook as directed.

Sonali A. April 1, 2016

Yes, I freeze the formed patties uncooked. Then defrost and cook as directed. You could probably also cook them in the oven straight from the freezer but would need to adjust the cooking time. So happy you like them!

Gal November 12, 2015

These veggie burgers were easy and a lot of fun to make! This is the first time I've ever made veggie burgers and they held together nicely and kept its shape. I too used smoked paprika instead of the chipotles in adobo.
I kept them refrigerated overnight covered with plastic wrap, and baked this morning. They turned out moist and delicious.
As mentioned in the recipe you can also fry the patties in a pan but then some oil will penetrate the food, adding calories and fat. Baking the patties worked out great for me.
I would also like to explore variations of this recipe with chickpeas and lentils instead of black beans but overall this is a wonderful recipe.

Sonali A. June 3, 2015

Thanks everyone for the positive comments! This recipe is actually the all-time most popular dish on my blog and I'm so happy to share it with everyone!

Chris June 2, 2015

I don't have any tomato paste and don't want to buy any since I'm moving out soon. Any subs? Or can I omit it altogether?

Sonali A. June 3, 2015

I use tomato paste to add flavor. You can probably leave it out or try substituting tomato sauce or ketchup. Both of these are thinner than tomato paste so I would use 1 tablespoon instead of 2. I hope you like it!

kschurms May 28, 2015

I left out the quinoa so that this would have slightly less calories, and it was delicious -- a little bit extra oats were plenty to keep the patties sticking together. The flavor was excellent, and the sauce is perfect!

Melanie March 5, 2015

Just the keeper I've been looking for! They came out perfectly flavorful (I added about a teaspoon of salt) with great texture. The quinoa and oats are a great base to change it up- chick peas+zucchini+cucumber dill yogurt=mediteranean. The only thing I changed was the yogurt sauce. I kicked it up with double chilies, adobo, lime, cilantro, cumin, salt and pepper. Thanks for a great recipe!

Luna H. August 27, 2014

Hi Elizabeth Mountain , sorry about the Diabetes diagnoses at least you know now and can take care of it. If you have. Netflix check it out a documentary called Forks over Knives. Excellent documentary and will give you lots of info how to really take care of your diabetes and really get control of it. They are in Facebook too. The recipes here are excellent and I use it too. Good luck.

Elizabeth M. August 27, 2014

Thanks Luna, I will check those out! :)

Elizabeth M. August 21, 2014

I am a newly diagnosed diabetic, type 2, and have only just begun to educate myself. This sounds like a great healthy recipe to start off with.

PublicRadioGal August 15, 2014

These are the best veggie burgers. I introduced them to a vegan friend and she loved them too! When we needed to stretch the mix for a crowd, we added some leftover forbidden rice. Great! The flaxseed egg replacement works just fine.

Carolina May 27, 2014

Spectacular. Just the best veggie burgers I've ever had.

kimberly.godwin May 14, 2014

I made this with black eyed peas as it was all I had in the pantry. I also substituted some cayenne pepper as was suggested by a previous review and replaced the corn (I don't like it. I know...weird.) with diced yellow bell pepper. I was in a hurry and only let them sit in the fridge for an hour and then baked them as described. I thought they came out delish and they held together just fine. I will say I halved the recipe (I only had one can of black eyed peas) and I got out six good sized patties out of it. Overall, a good veggie burger. Will def make again. Next time I will prepare ahead and get some black beans. :-)

meredithbw May 7, 2014

Amazing! This is the first time I've ever made veggie burgers and they turned out amazingly. I halved the recipe and added some hot sauce and used smoked paprika instead of chipotles in adobo. Threw them in the freezer for 30 minutes and had no issues keeping them together. Really flavorful and great texture. Thank you for making my first experience making veg burgers a success! Already sent the recipe to my mom. :)

Searcy April 8, 2014

These are really delicious. Easy to make and wonderful to grab from freezer for a quick meal. I also used smoked paprika instead of peppers and it worked well. I served with sriracha sauce as I love spice and it was a nice addition instead of yogurt sauce.

Nikki H. March 7, 2014

These burgers are FANTASTIC. (Even without the corn, which I was out of.) These are the best of the many kinds I've made. I foresee them being a weekly thing (inexpensive to make, healthy, and a batch will last a few days!)

Anita February 14, 2014

Foodie Physician! I make this every other week for the kiddos! We are not vegetarians but not big meat eaters so this is a delicious (and healthy! Yes!) meal. Thanks for the post. Also, just wanted to add that instead of ground oats I have made this with gluten free cracker crumbs I had on hand with the same results. Yum!

Caroline S. February 9, 2014

Made this few weeks ago and it was a hit too!!! So we are going to try more of your creations now!!

bistrobistro February 8, 2014

Great recipe!!! The sauce was insanely delicious. I didn't have any chipotles so I used chipotle powder in the burger mix and used that and smoked paprika in the sauce. I will add some smoked paprika to the mix next time if I can't get ahold of chipotles in adobo. Excellent, thank you!

Janet P. February 6, 2014

I baked these after 3 hours in the refrigerator and my daughter said they were very good. I'll eat them tomorrow. I also got 8 very good sized burgers. Is that a typo in the directions or did you really mean to make a giant, giant burger.

bistrobistro February 4, 2014

I can't find chipotles in adobo but I do have chipotle powder and some dried chipotles. Can I just use that or should I try to make some adobo sauce as well?

Sonali A. February 5, 2014

You can use the chipotle powder or dried chipotles. I like to use the adobo sauce because it has a nice smoky, garlicky flavor that gets distributed nicely throughout the patties.

Freddurf January 14, 2014

These were CRAZY GOOD! After one bite, I went to the freezer and threw out my store bought frozen patties. Since I don't care for Greek yogurt, I mixed 2 chipolte chilies with about 1/2 cup of mayo.
Thanks for a great recipe! I'll be making these often.

Sonali A. February 5, 2014

I'm happy you like the recipe! Yes, mayonnaise is a good option for the sauce too- I was trying to make it healthier by using Greek yogurt :)

Rupi D. January 8, 2014

This is my go to recipe now- thank you! Very easy to vary based on what you have at home. Last nights version included peppers, scallions and cheddar mixed into the batter. My husband is not vegetarian and loves it. I also do not think it takes much time at all to put together- the rest of it comes together as the quinoa cooks pretty much, plus 10 mins or so.

Sonali A. February 5, 2014

Thanks for your comment! I like the idea of mixing cheese into the patties- I'll have to try it.

Joseph H. January 7, 2014

You DO have to try new things, after all...lol

Joseph H. January 7, 2014

So how about I'm not really a veggie burger guy. But this sounds good. So I'm gonna take a whack at it!

Sonali A. February 5, 2014

Great, I hope you like them!

Sonali A. October 30, 2013

Thanks so much for all of the positive reviews! I'm really happy that people are enjoying this burger. I especially love it when the real meat lovers are converted! This recipe is actually the all-time most popular recipe on my blog. The burgers do take a little time to make but I think they're worth the effort and the recipe makes enough burgers to last for a couple of meals.

Tarragon October 25, 2013

Please do make the sauce - the combination of Greek yogurt, honey and chipotle is eye-opening!

sexyLAMBCHOPx October 26, 2013

I couldn't agree more about the sauce for this and other applications!

Miki October 17, 2013

Absolutely the best veggie burger ever. My carnivore husband loves them. Recipe yield - 10 good sized burgers, more than enough. Freeze very well. Thank you sooooo much for this recipe. Although time consuming to throw together, well worth it! This will be my go to veggie burger, Good Bye Morningstar farms!

Tinaindenver October 5, 2013

These are good. I followed the recipe exactly, but it took an awfully long time. Not sure I will make them again.

ellie September 24, 2013

I just made these and was really pleasantly surprised - they are quite tasty. A few notes: like someone else, I ended up with 8 (generously sized) burgers rather than 6. Not sure why. I did not make the yoghurt sauce because I couldn't wrap my head around adobo AND honey AND mustard with yoghurt. Finally, it took me a lot longer than 20 minutes to get everything together for these burgers. Between the chopping and mashing and mixing and patty-forming, it took my quite a bit of time. But I have 6 burgers in my freezer now, and again, they are very good.

suziqcu September 23, 2013

I wanted to reply again just to say that I did try these burgers with a flax seed egg replacement and they were delicious! My husband grilled it for me along with his regular burger. He even tried it and said he would eat that next time! Don't leave out any of the spices...they are such a great part of the whole burger. I think it would have crisped up better if pan "fried", but we put a little olive oil on it and grilled away! I froze the rest for a quick meal anytime. Thank you for a healthy burger alternative.

Ceege September 23, 2013

I made these two night ago for our dinner. They were fabulous. I ended up with 8 patties rather than the 6. They are very flavorful and best of all "stick" together and do not fall apart like other recipes I have tried. I did use the ground flax seed/water replacement for the egg because of allergies, but otherwise followed the recipe as stated. I did not make the yogurt sauce. I froze the remaining 6 burgers and will just have to pull out as many as needed and thaw, then cook. Thanks for a great recipe.

Holguinadriana September 22, 2013

Top quinoa burger. Delicious! Try it.

Adelucchi September 21, 2013

Thanks for this recipe. I made the burgers and let them set over night. My husband's nose crinkles at the mention of veggie burgers. He ate them without protest after the first bite! The only ingredient not in my pantry, adobo peppers in sauce, was a great addition that I'll keep from now on. Thanks again.

suziqcu September 20, 2013

Going to try with flaxseed "egg" replacement also will have to find a yogurt sub...maybe coconut "yogurt" I know....I need to just find a vegan recipe straight out...but I love the innovations and flavors I find here on food 52 also!!

gaelc September 19, 2013

Can't wait to try these...I'll use the flax seed/water combination for the egg and let you know the results. Thank you so much for this idea!

Shannon D. September 16, 2013

These look wonderful! Sadly, I'm the only one in my family who would eat them. Can they be frozen, either pre or post cooking?

Sonali A. September 16, 2013

Yes, they freeze really well! I would freeze them before cooking and pop them in the oven when you're ready to eat them.

Shannon D. September 16, 2013

That's great! I am so over commercial veggie burgers.... I would love to make my own, know what's gone into them and know they aren't going to taste like a cardboard box!

Ceege September 15, 2013

These sound great. Due to allergies, I can't eat eggs. What can I use in place of the egg? Thanks for any suggestions.

Sonali A. September 16, 2013

Thanks! You can try to buy a commercial egg replacement product. I've also read that you can try a mixture of 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed and 3 tablespoons warm water. Let it stand for a few minutes to thicken up before using. I haven't tried it but it sounds like it would work.

sexyLAMBCHOPx September 1, 2013

Solid veggie burger recipe, great job! Gobbled up by all my friends except me and a few who had a beef burger!

Sonali A. September 1, 2013

So glad your friends liked it!

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