Makes 4 big burgers
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes || Active time: 30 minutes
You know the song, two all-beet patties, special sauce, lettuce, “cheeze”…har har.
Well, everyone loves burgers and this is a fine, upstanding, burger-citizen made with some of my favorite ingredients. Brown rice, lentils and beets! They all combine to form the perfect storm of vegan burgerness.
It’s not that they taste exactly like hamburgers or anything, but they do taste exactly like awesome veggie burgers. Rice provides awesome texture, to give you a substantial bite. Lentils are my go-to ground meat so they were a natural addition. And beets are the veggie burger hotness right now! I’ve tried beet burgers at many a restaurant, and I’ve been itching to come up with my own recipe. They give the burger an intense (vaguely disturbing) meat-like appearance, but they also add a lot of flavor, earthy and slightly sweet. Just something that takes your VB to the next level.
I like to make these burgers BIG. Ya’ know, dinner sized. In reading the Wikipedia about the history of the Quarter Pounder (or Royale With Cheese, for you Pulp Fiction fans), the inventor of the burger says he “felt there was a void in our menu vis-à-vis the adult who wanted a higher ratio of beet to bun.” OK, he said meat not beet, but whatever. And I have to agree. There’s a certain satisfaction to eating your way around the burger before digging in to a full-on bun bite.
To make these more fast-foody, top with shredded lettuce, sliced dill pickles, finely diced onion and ketchup. I would add a layer of avocado instead of a vegan cheese, but that’s just me. They really don’t even need it.
One very important part of this recipe is the cooking method. You want to get the burger charred. Not burnt, but charred, which really just means, uh, burnt only in some places. The best way to achieve this is with a very hot cast iron pan. Other pans may react different to high heat, and may not give you that perfect char. So if you’re not using a cast iron pan, the next best thing would be to transfer them to a baking pan after cooking, brush with oil and stick them under the broiler for a few minutes.
Recipe notes: If you’d like to make these gluten-free, just use gluten-free breadcrumbs – ground up gluten-free pretzels would be ideal. And if you’d like to bake them instead, do so at 375 F, 8 to 10 minutes each side, then stick under the broiler to brown them. If you’d like to use a different nut butter, I would recommend cashew or sunbutter. I think PB will be too strong, but who knows? I use a food processor to make these happen quickly, so you’ll have to do some finagling if you don’t have one. And one last tip: I keep a package of frozen brown rice handy at all times. It’s perfect for occasions like this when you just need a little bit for an ingredient.
And don’t forget the fries! Garlic Curry Fries are perfect with these. OK, it’s burgertime!
1 1/4 cups cooked, cooled brown rice (see recipe notes above)
1 cup cooked brown or green lentils, cooled, drained well
1 cup shredded beets
1/2 teaspoon salt
Fresh black pepper
1 teaspoon thyme, rubbed between your fingers
1/2 teaspoon ground fennel (or finely crushed fennel seed)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
3 tablespoons very finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons smooth almond butter
1/2 cup very fine breadcrumbs
Olive oil for the pan
Peel beets and shred with the shredder attachment of your food processor, then set aside. Change the attachment to a metal blade. Pulse the brown rice, shredded beets and lentils about 15 to 20 times, until the mixture comes together, but still has texture. It should look a lot like ground meat:
Now transfer to a mixing bowl and add all the remaining ingredients. Use your hands to mix very well. Everything should be well incorporated, so get in there and take your time, it could take a minute or two.
Place the mixture in the fridge for a half hour to chill.
Preheat a cast iron pan over medium-high. Now form the patties. Each patty will be a heaping 1/2 cup of mixture. To get perfectly shaped patties, use a 3 1/2 inch cookie cutter or ring mold (I have pics of how to do it here.) Otherwise, just shape them into burgers with your hands.
Pour a very thin layer of oil into the pan and cook patties for about 12 minutes, flipping occasionally. Do two at a time if you’re pan isn’t big enough. Drizzle in a little more oil or use a bottle of organic cooking spray as needed. Burgers should be charred at the edges and heated through.
Serve immediately. But they taste pretty great heated up as well, so if you want to cook them in advance, refrigerate, then gently heat in the pan later on, then that is cool, too.
If there are any other gluten free people out there, I have found that crushed corn chex make an excellent and inexpensive substitute for bread crumbs in recipes like this one.
Ha, that is what I use, too! Except I do the WF brand, whatever that is called.
yes these burgers are crumbly but, as they say, if life gives you lemons, make lemonade. i found that this recipe makes excellent crumbles for veg tacos etc. just break apart the burgers, once they are cooked as per the recipe, in a skillet and heat them up a bit perhaps brown them a bit more, and the crumbles are ready to go.
This recipe is amazing!!! Thank you so much for your awesomeness!!
These were great!!I I used 1/2 cup of dried black bean and ginger seasoning I had purchased instead of almond butter, which I didn’t have, and for good flavor boost as well as ww bread crumbs ’cause I don’t do white bread . I used my green star juicer food processor screen, but it came out a little too smooth for my liking, as I prefer a little chunk! I tried another variation of the same without doing any type of food processing , but using gluten flour, or wheat meat in place of bread crumbs as I’m not gluten sensitive and just discovered this a couple of weeks ago and been trying all sorts of variations on it also. Well this actually made a perfect burger for me as it had a real meaty texture(not spongy or chewy as I usually get with the wheat meat) so now I’m on a roll. Next, I’ll try carrot and beet half and half; maybe carrot and
or beet with cabbage. Yes, this was just the right amount of wheat meat for perfect burger texture and tastes great–there’s no stoppin’ me now!! Now that I have a perfect base using most of your recipe ingredients, I’m going to make a bunch and freeze after cooking to have on hand and save time at dinner for me and mom (she loves them too!)
I tried the fries without curry but other spicey flavors– but didn’t let them boil long enough because I lost track of time so they were a bit hard in places–but I’ll try them again tomorrow. Thanks so much for your expertise and may God continue to bless you and yours. Grandma Shelley
Thank you, sweetie!
I wonder if this would work if one substituted oats for breadrumbs.
These sound delicious! perfect veggie burgers for valentihe’s day!
So dang good my mouth cried when it was gone ! Thank you
Sounds good but I can’t eat onions, lentils or beans and don’t like brown rice. I love beets. Perhaps there is something else I could use to hold it together, reg. rice perhaps? Anyone have a suggestion.
Made these this weekend and we LOVED them! My husband said it was the best “veggie” burger he has ever had!! I just wish I had made a triple recipe because we have already devoured these!!!
I CAN believe how amazing these burgers taste because I have your Veganomicon book, and everything I’ve ever made from that book has been excellent. But, at the same time, I CAN’T believe how amazing these burgers taste! (just because they are THAT good!)
thank you so much! I will be a hero tonight at dinner. 🙂
Once again, thank you for yet another excellent recipe! These are Delicious! Great taste and texture! Even my husband (who is vegan at home because I’m the cook but isn’t strict out in mixed company 🙁 was freaking out over these. And he doesn’t even like beets. I think I am going to be craving these regularly! Another great recipe to put in rotation at my house!
Eventually got round to making this. The issue I had was finding raw beets. Most shops only sold the pre-cooked ones in the vacum pack. Luckily, I was walking past the old fruit and veg shop I worked in whilst at University and decided to quickly pop in and not only did they have raw pink beetroots but also golden beets! I just went with the pink beets as per the recipe but I’m going to pick up some golden beets too and retry. Will report back with my findings!
Another masterpiece, Isa! The whole family loved these. My husband had seconds and contemplated thirds, but decided to save one for the next day’s lunch. When I make these again (and there will be many agains) I will make extras for the freezer. Thank you for the delicious recipe!
I have not made this recipe yet, but I have added beets to my burgers before. I found it’s mostly for nutrition and it adds a lovely color to the meal. If you do like beets, I’m going to say it will not effect the taste of this burger. I’d give it a try.
I love golden beets! Milder than the reds and of course no staining! I suggest anyone with an aversion to the reds seek out the golden variety.I am going to try this recipe with goldens and post the results!
Made these last night. I am a beet fanatic and absolutely loved them. Boyfriend loved them too. We will be making these again for certain!
These are FABULOUS!!! Just made them and could kick myself for not doubling the recipe. Thank you, Isa. You rock the kitchen!
these are FANTASTIC! GF substitutions: i used Glutino brand bread crumbs, which are really just really fine cornmeal crumbs and 1 tsp xanthan gum to really make the beet mix nice and sticky. they held up really well in the oven, and i finished them off in the grill pan. i also added a good dose of tapatio and grill seasoning to the mix as well.
Beautiful! Just made these for the first time and lovely flavours. I didn’t get the cooking quite right but still lovely. This recipe is a keeper.
Not sure about ice and breadcrumbs on a burger bun… I’ve made very similar with quinoa, white beans and mushrooms, then used semolina and cocoa/redberry flax to bind it.
My fav recipe at the moment is chickpea cutlets in the Veganomicon… still rinsing out an adaptation that makes the most amazing breaded Schnitzel x
I made these on Monday and really liked them! They tasted even better the next day. I totally forgot the almond butter but they held together really well and, best of all, my kids gobbled them up. My husband smiled politely and ate slowly…but what does he know?!
Can I use homemade canned beets ?
As I made them I thought they might be too dry and crumbly, but they turned out perfectly once I refrigerated them. Even Surly Stepdaughters ate them with nothing more than the usual complaints (“why don’t we just go to McDonald’s like normal people?”). I had no fennel, but the flavor was still delicious. Next time I may try spicier concoctions. Thank you!
Isa,
What brand of bread do you use for your recipes or do you make your own?
I like Rudy’s or Dave’s Killer, but Daves I can only get on the west coast.
best burger I or my husband have ever had, including pre-vegan days.
I made these and the garlic curry fries for myself and a vegan friend and they were absolutely delicious! I am not vegan myself, but actually found these tastier than a meat burger. I’m definitely going to make up another batch to freeze… like today.
I pulsed the beets, rice and lentils as directed and set aside, then put the onions, garlic, breadcrumbs, etc into the food processor to chop them up finely. As has been said, the texture is so much like raw ground beef it’s scary.
Loved these – as beet lovers we were surprised they didn’t taste much like beets. Next time, we’ll make the patties thinner so they fry up a bit better (the crispy bits on the outside were very tasty.)
These look delicious, I can’t wait to try them! We love beets here at our house!
Just made them! They’re delicious! Thanks so much for posting. I’ve become such a fan of yours. xx
Oddly enough I came back to this recipe while trying to figure out a way to make a vegan “black pudding” for St. Patrick’s Day (after reading some company making one with beet juice rather than blood).
I made these last week and they were so good! My boyfriend is the kind of guy who thinks no meal is complete or filling without meat, but even he loved them 🙂 I’m actually making some more right now! I follow the amounts of beet, rice, bread crumb and lentils so that I don’t mess up the texture, but I add my favourite burger seasoning spices like Lowry’s and smoked paprika…Can’t wait for warmer weather so I can try these on the BBQ!
These are absolutely delicious! I have made them twice, and I’m about to make them a 3rd time! Btw, these also freeze nicely!
I just discovered this recipe – it’s amazing! I love beets but so far I have never heard about beet burgers.
One questions – are you using raw or cooked beets?
These were delicious, especially with the fries. Thank you..
I made these tonight for a small dinner party of vegans and non-vegans. Amazing! These are the best veggie burgers I’ve ever had. Thank you! A revelation this site…every recipe I’ve made is beyond delicious! Best recipes out there…period.
Mine crumbled in the pan when I was trying to cook them 🙁 I did form them firmly with my hands. I can’t work out what I did wrong. The only thing I missed out of the recipe was dry mustard because I couldn’t find it and I don’t particularly like mustard anyway. What can I do to avoid this happening next time? What did I do wrong!?
I thought I saw a yellow raisin in there (food processor photo) and I got sort of excited – and that got me thinking… Perhaps I am totally nutso but is anyone with me that some golden raisins would be kind of amazing here? Maybe sub curry powder for the dry mustard? Cashews instead of almonds? I am totally feeling this….