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Quinoa + White Bean Veggie Burger

head on view of quinoa white bean veggie burger with all the fixings.

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5 from 26 reviews

It’s burger time with this easy quinoa & white bean burger recipe! And if you don’t want it on a bun, try having your patty on a nice bed of fresh leafy lettuce with a squeeze of lemon, sliced avocado, and salt & pepper!

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1/2 cup dried quinoa
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 cup corn, fresh, canned, or frozen
  • 1/2 cup red bell pepper, finely diced (about 1/2 bell pepper)
  • 1/2 cup shallot, finely diced (about 1 medium) or red onion
  • 2 teaspoons thyme, divided (oregano would be good too)
  • 1 teaspoon EACH garlic + onion powder
  • 1/21 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon chipotle or chili powder, optional
  • 1 can (15 oz.) white beans (I used great northern), drained and rinsed
  • juice of one small lemon
  • 1/2 cup flax meal (or flour of choice)
  • mineral salt & cracked pepper, to taste
  • olive oil, to grease

To Serve:

  • tomato, sliced
  • leafy greens
  • avocado, sliced or mashed
  • red onion, sliced
  • whole-grain or dijon mustard (hummus or vegan mayo is great too)
  • sriracha or Sriracha Cashew Cream (use the sriracha cream in place of mustard)
  • burger buns of choice

Instructions

If baking in the oven, turn oven to 375 degrees F. (It’s helpful to read instructions first before making the patties)

Quinoa: In a medium pot, add the quinoa, water, red bell pepper, corn, onion, garlic + onion powder, thyme, paprika, and salt. Give a gentle stir, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Mash the beans: While the quinoa is cooking, drain and mash the white beans. You can quickly mash the beans in your colander if it has smaller-sized holes (it’ll save you a dish to wash). I mash about 3/4 of the beans, leaving a quarter of the batch whole or somewhat whole.

Add beans and flax meal: Once quinoa is done, remove the cover and stir in the mashed white beans, flax meal, and lemon juice, mix well. Let the mixture cool for 10 – 15 minutes. Taste for flavor – seasoning to taste with salt, pepper, and other spices.

Divide and make your patties: I like to pat my mixture into the bowl a little and divide it with a knife into 4 sections, making a plus sign if you will. Take each section and pack it tightly into a ball in the palm of your hands. Flatten with your palms and place on a hard surface. Cup the edges with your palm, tighten them in a bit, and squeeze together any cracks that have formed. Flatten the top to the desired size. Mine were about 1/2 inch thick with a 3 1/2 – 4 inch diameter.

Cook one of two ways:

  1. Oven: In the oven at 375 degrees on a greased or parchment-lined cookie sheet for 30 minutes, turning once after 15 minutes. I also added a sprinkle of himalayan salt to the top before baking.
  2. Stovetop: In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon coconut oil or olive oil over medium to medium-high heat. Cook patties for about 4 – 5 minutes on each side. Burgers should be lightly charred, crispy, and browned on the outside with a tender center.

I cooked both ways and had no preference. They both held up well and cooked great.

Makes 4 jumbo patties

Serve on a bun or bed of leafy greens with your favorite toppings!

Notes

The patties can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 4 days before cooking or reheating.

For mashed avocado, cut open avocado, remove seed and using a fork, mash the flesh right in the skin…it’s like a bowl. Then, spread on a bun for a great creamy condiment!

This was recipe has been updated and modified in June 2021. Changes made include cooking the veggies and spices with the quinoa. You can find the original recipe here.

Nutrition is calculated with 2 tsp. olive oil.