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Vegetable-Bean Burgers

Veggie burgers you can sink your teeth into! These are moist, tender and hold their own on the grill, in the pan or served right from the steamer!
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time15 mins
Resting Time15 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: burger, corn free, gluten-free, nightshade free, no onions, no garlic, oil free, plant-based, soy free, vegan
Servings: 8
Calories: 290kcal

Ingredients

  • 3 cups raw, 1/4-inch chopped vegetables
  • 2 cups whole, raw soaked beans (Roughly 1 to 1.25 cups dry)
  • 1.5 cups dry oats
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 3/4 cup water
  • .5 cup oat flour Or any gluten free variety or blend
  • 2 tbsp chia seeds
  • 1 tsp ground mustard seed
  • .5 tsp ground fenugreek
  • 2.5 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 tsp nutritional yeast
  • 1 tsp sugar

Instructions

  • Soak whole, dry beans (I often use kidney beans but black or pinto beans are fine) overnight (6-8 hours). Process until they are coarsely ground to within 1/8th of their original size. Depending on the beans, 1 to 1.25 cups of dry beans should be sufficient for getting at least 2 cups soaked beans. Any remaining soaked beans over 2 cups in quantity can be refrigerated or frozen for repurposing in a later recipe.
  • Soak 2 tbsp of dry chia seeds in 1/4 cup of warm water
  • Put up to 3 cups of vegetables in a large bowl. I used 1 cup each of carrots, red cabbage and broccoli for this post. Add the coarsely ground beans and salt to the bowl and combine with a spatula.
  • Except for the water, add the remaining ingredients, including the now-gelatinous chia seed mixture, and combine with a spatula. 
  • Let the mixture rest for 10 minutes to allow the salt to draw out moisture from the vegetables. Add water 1/4 cup at a time (mixing each time) until you achieve a mixture that is moist but not wet.
  • Form the moist (but not wet) mixture into patties ( I use 1/3 cup for each). Note: The patties will bind more loosely than typical burger patties during this step. Don't worry. The steaming process will bring these together nicely.
  • Place the patties into a steamer about 1/4" apart. They don't expand noticeably during the cooking process. 
  • Bring the water in the steamer to a boil and cook for 15 minutes. Let the burger patties rest for 5 minutes and then remove somewhat gently with a heat-safe spatula and onto a serving platter. 
  • The burgers are now ready to serve and will continue to bind as they cool. By the time you assemble these into burgers with toppings, etc. they will have excellent structural integrity. 
  • Be sure to bring these to room temperature or lower  (~20-30 minutes) before grilling or pan-cooking them any further to get the typical 'charred' look. 

Notes

So...this recipe is a little complicated.  Maybe it's because I know some of you are in the same boat as me, but I assure you it wouldn't be posted if I didn't think it was worth the effort :) Once you get it, it will be smooth sailing. In the mean time, any sub-optimal attempts can likely be repurposed into burrito filling or pizza topping. Please reach out with questions on this one. 
The sugar in this recipe helps balance the flavors and can easily be omitted for those on a low sugar diet.
When processing the beans, uniform piece-size is important for for maintaining a consistent texture in the patty. Depending on the size of your food processor, you might need to process the beans in smaller batches to achieve this.
Also, having small size bean pieces (1/8 the size of the soaked kidney bean, in this case) is important for maintaining a consistent texture between the vegetables and the beans in the patty. If the bean-pieces are only 1/2 or 1/3 the soaked bean size then you will end up with al-dente 'crunchy' bean pieces that might be off-putting, depending on your preferences :)
As included above, add the water 1/4 cup at a time to achieve a mixture that is moist but not wet. The reason being that some types of vegetables will release more water when exposed to salt and it's best to be conservative with the water up front. You may not need the full 3/4 cup.
The resulting moist mixture will form into more loose burger patties than normal veggie burger recipes. You might find yourself wondering how these are going to bind fully. Don't worry. :)  The steaming process is key to binding them in way the maximizes the overall moisture, texture and flavor.
If the patties are too wet, try adding more flour to help achieve the 'moist but not wet' consistency. 
I made these in a steamer with a wide, flat surface. However, if your steaming surface has a lot of ridges or 'petals,' consider applying a light layer of oil on the surface to help you remove the patties more easily.
After steaming, you will want to handle the patties somewhat gently.  However, once they have rested and cooled a bit they will have the structural integrity you'd expect and want in a burger. 

Nutrition

Calories: 290kcal